Vacancies last updated on: Saturday, Nov 22 2008 8:40AM
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‘ A placement on an employer’s premises
in which a pupil carries out a particular task or duty, or a range of
tasks or duties, more or less as an employee would, but with the
emphasis on the learning aspects of the experience.’ You benefit from Work Experience by:
Finding out what skills and attitudes are needed in the work place
Exploring your own skills and qualities
Developing key skills and undertaking other learning activities
Finding out about different job roles within company
Getting a general feel for the demands of working life
Developing motivation about future opportunities
Possibly receiving an employer report or reference
Supporting vocational courses that you may be studying
Contributing to your Record of Achievement or Progress file
Employment opportunities (part time, holiday etc)
The process:
Veryan: Most
Northamptonshire secondary schools and Connexions Northamptonshire use
Veryan, an online work experience booking and Health and Safety
management system. You can make choices online and the schools use
the system to book you into the placement and the central team at
Connexions manages the Health and Safety aspect of the placements. The
way work experience is organized in schools may differ and is usually
determined by the curriculum and the needs of the their young people.
Briefing: Schools
brief their pupils on all aspects of work experience including, when
appropriate, use of the Veryan system. Some schools also hold briefing
sessions for parents/carers. Your school or learning provider is your first contact for any information about work experience.
Making a choice:
There 2 ways of making a placement choice
1. From the Veryan database, were the employer who has offered Work Experience previously. 2.
Completing a new employer form, were you have approached an employer
for a placement but they have not previously offered Work Experience
and or not on the Veryan database.
When making choices you
should consider your transport needs, including cost. It is advisable
to make a wide selection of choices, not just popular ones, as this
leads to an increased need to rechoose. You must be prepared to go to
any of the choices that you have selected
1. Employers already on the database
At
the school’s discretion, you may be given an individual PIN number
which will enable you to access the Veryan website and look at and
select the work experience opportunities. The school can then look at
the selections and books you into one which is available and the most
suitable for your needs. This information is down loaded by the
central team at Connexions who will check the company Health and Safety
status for work experience.
2. New Employers
For a
placement that you find yourselves, the ‘new employer’ form ( available
from your school/learning provider) is completed. The employer should
complete the form, including insurance details this should then be
returned to school who sign it and send on to Connexions.
Only
Employers within Northamptonshire or the bordering counties can be
used. Connexions can only carry out health and safety risk assessments
locally and has reciprocal agreements with bordering counties.
