Teachers and businesses team up to help students with career path
West Midlands-based businesses and forward-thinking teachers took part in a national programme aimed at boosting collaboration and improving young people 's career opportunities.
The first Teacher Encounters event in the region was led by the West Midlands Combined Authority (WMCA), together with the Careers and Enterprise Company, and looked to connect teachers with local businesses allowing them to explore future job opportunities for their students.
A range of businesses, from SMEs to major multinationals, were at the event at Faithful and Gould 's Birmingham offices at Paradise Circus, before travelling to Birmingham Airport for job demonstrations in the afternoon.
Teachers learnt how major corporations, local supply chain, and public-facing clients worked together on a variety of projects, whilst also being shown the alternative pathways that they can use to guide their students onto the right career ladder.
This, in turn, gave them a further insight into how they can teach their subjects by linking classroom topics to workplace skills and real industrial opportunities, as well as growing their school 's network of local businesses.
The event came shortly after the WMCA highlighted which industries in the region were crying out for workers and how residents can join specific courses to help take advantage of over 50,000 unique job vacancies that are available.
Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands and WMCA chair, said: “The WMCA is keen to ensure local people are aware of the wide variety of employment pathways open to them at all ages and to make sure they are given the right support to build a successful career for themselves.
“These efforts can start at a school age and we want to equip teachers with the knowledge to suitably advise their students on the array of options out there after they leave formal education.
“The first West Midlands ' 'Teachers Encounters ' event is a wonderful way to do exactly that - creating a bridge between educators and businesses so that students are as well informed as possible before they take the first steps in their career. ”
The Teacher Encounters programme is driven by the Careers & Enterprise Company 's national network of Careers Hubs. They will be awarded dedicated funding for specific projects that engage their network of schools, colleges and employers.
The Teacher Encounters programme builds on policy proposals for careers awareness training for all teachers in the Government 's Skills for Jobs (January 2021) and Schools (March 2022) White Papers. Proposals echoed by Lord Blunkett 's recent Learning and Skills Report (October 2022).