At the GM CEIAG Conference ‘A Future Beyond the Ordinary’ at Gorton Monastery we identified five themes where we anticipated additional resource to support you and your careers provision.
- Employer Engagement
- Professional Development
- Apprenticeships and Vocational Pathways
- Employability Skills for young people
- Widening Participation.
The Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) is committed to supporting you as much as possible to achieve the highest quality careers provision. We will do this by offering a strategic framework under which we can all work and where possible resource any gaps that emerge in provision across GM.
We are thrilled to offer you an extension to some of the best projects you’ve enjoyed over the past three years As part of our careers education information advice and guidance strategy we have worked hard to find ways of supporting you to stimulate interest in Apprenticeships and develop your careers provision.
There will be five project extensions announced over the coming weeks starting with three of the very best outlined below. This offers GM schools a total investment of £250,000 which we know will benefit your pupils, colleagues and parents.
In addition we have supported Manchester Higher along with other partners to secure £12 million of investment to support widening participation activity 80 Greater Manchester schools. This is excellent news which we know will benefit so many of your pupils and more information about this is highlighted below.
The long awaited £2 million of European Social Funding for CEIAG has just been announced.
The Manchester Growth Company and its supply chain of careers professionals will be offering schools and colleges enhanced IAG activities over the next 18 months. Look out for more information in the next articles.
Employer Engagement — The Careers and Enterprise Company has awarded funding to mentoring organisations to work with schools and young people across GM. We have worked with them to ensure the best providers have been identified to reach the maximum number of schools and number of young people. The successful organisations have been notified and we will be able to share details on November 21st. Each organisation will work across dedicated GM areas from January 2017. This funding will last for three years to grow the number of schools into the mentoring community. We will work with the organisations and Local Authorities to find the schools which meet the criteria.
To find out a little more then click here www.careersandenterprise.co.uk/mentoring or contact Sophie Hope for further information Sophie.hope@neweconomymanchester.com
Professional Development — Back by popular demand, Better Choices, Better Outcomes, the GMCA careers leadership programme is back! We have extended this project in partnership with CEL Leadership and Change to work with a further 20 schools, taking the total to 110 GM schools which is fantastic.
The 50 or so schools who expressed an in interest in this at the conference will be sent an invitation very soon. It is specifically designed for two people from each school to attend as a team who, together, will develop a strategy to improve CEIAG across the whole school. The team should comprise of a senior leader who has responsibility for careers education, for example, Deputy or Assistant Headteacher and the Careers Coordinator.
What will it help you do:
- understand the wider context for careers education and in particular the Greater Manchester skills agenda and how this relates to your school;
- develop your skills in leading whole school change, using best practice management concepts and frameworks;
- review your current careers education provision against a strategic framework so you can identify areas of strength and those needing improvement;
- understand how data can be used to interpret labour market trends so appropriate careers advice and routes can be offered to all pupils; and how
- pupil destination data can inform decision making about future CEIAG provision.
Please contact Andrea Gerrish andrea@cel-leadershipandchange.com to find out more.
Apprenticeships and Vocational Routes, Search and Apply — We are delighted that we have been able to extend the Search and Apply project for Greater Manchester. Search and Apply is an online application process to support young people to make multiple applications for post-16 provision including expressing an interest in Apprenticeships. Over 12,000 young people made an application using this last year. It ensures that the young person using this gets the full picture of post-16 provision across GM and offers a minimum level of impartial careers information.
To find out more, contact Diane Sproson Diane.Sproson@careerconnect.org.uk at Career Connect who is leading on this for GM.
Digital Advantage — This project aims to raise awareness of opportunities for careers in the digital industry, addressing acute and enduring skills gaps reported by employers and demystifying the types of skills and roles within the digital sector. Participants in a small number of schools in Stockport, Oldham, Bolton and Rochdale will design a digital business and build relevant industry skills, along with receiving ongoing support and mentoring to establish their business following in-school initiation meetings, video pitches and a ‘pitch and prize day’. The project will develop training content, tools and blended learning based on industry bootcamps and existing provision in the digital and creative industry, as well as guaranteeing participants an interview for one of 100 creative pioneers Apprenticeships in GM. Contact: andy.lovatt@thewhiteroom.co
Widening Participation — GM Higher have been successful in their bid to deliver the National Collaborative Outreach Programme, which aims to double HE participation from disadvantaged groups by 2020. This programme is highly targeted, concentrating on 45 electoral wards where progression to HE is lowest and also lower than expected based on attainment. Funding will be just over £1.9M from January to July 2017, and £3.8M per year in subsequent years. The programme will be reviewed mid-2018, with funding for years 3 and 4 of the programmed be confirmed in autumn 2018.
It will operate on a regionalised hub model - 5 hubs will be established with staff to engage and support schools and colleges. The location of these hubs is due to be agreed in November 2016. Currently, localised discussions are being held to determine the infrastructure required to deliver this project and colleagues have been invited to these meetings where relevant. The activities that will be delivered will build on the core programme and include subject and industry related activities, mentoring, summer schools, work with parents/careers and bespoke projects.
For further information in the first instance contact Jamie Bytheway; J.Bytheway@mmu.ac.uk
