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Enterprise & Employability Skills

What Is Enterprise

Enterprise Education aims to provide students with the knowledge and skills that they will need to be future employees and potential employers.  It includes but it not limited to teaching financial and organisational capability, while also providing opportunities to raise student’s awareness of problems and solutions in the context of business and enterprise by enhancing their skills for work.

Here at Sir Christopher Hatton we pride ourselves that we are at the leading edge in education. We are pleased to announce that we were one of the first schools in the county to be part of the Careers and Enterprise Advisers initiative.  We have now been involved with the project for several years and as such, our offering has expanded and grown due to the strategic focus that we have on creating a learning environment in which students grow both academically and develop as well rounded learners.

We work closely with a dedicated team of external agencies in order to support the strategic implementation of careers and enterprise strategies across our Academy.

What Are Employability Skills

Employability skills are the core competences and soft skills that are essential to allow a student to progress both academically and in the world of work. In short some of these can be defined as:

  • Communication skills (speaking and listening, written communication and understanding)
  • Financial Capability (understanding money and budgeting)
  • Confidence (believing in one’s self, having a can do attitude, being independent and having the opportunity to share thoughts and opinions)
  • Initiative (taking the first step, thinking outside of the box, having the will to get things done, being motivated to succeed and taking responsibility for your actions)
  • Organisation (Thinking and planning ahead, having realistic goals and doing what you said you were going to do)
  • Problem Solving (coming up with alternatives and good ideas, finding solutions, thinking though what will happen before you do it, finding out what you need to know)
  • Resilience (Keeping going when things get tough, bouncing back when the unexpected happens, learning from your success and your mistakes and managing frustrations when things get difficult)
  • Team work (Sharing ideas with others, taking part in activities, doing your built and supporting others)

The Importance of Employability Skills

Whilst grades are essential to employers; as it highlights that students have the aptitude to retain knowledge and have the drive to succeed, it is also essential that when they enter the work place that our future generations have the soft skills that equip them to succeed in a working environment.

When applying for a job opportunity the employer will expect the applicant to be able to discuss their life experiences and opportunities as well as any challenges that they have faced and overcome. This will show the employer that the applicant has the core competences to overcome any hurdles and difficulties at work.

At Sir Christopher Hatton, we are committed to ensuring that our students achieve their maximum potential educationally as well as ensuring that we develop the whole individual so they are academically, emotionally and mentally prepared for both their future educational choices and career aspirations.

Employer Engagement

Our academy is currently working towards enhancing employer engagement throughout the curriculum as we believe that it is the responsibility of all staff across the academy to ensure that our students have access to employer knowledge and experience during their time here at our academy.

How Can You Support Your Child

The enhancement of employability skills is not limited to a child’s time in education, it can be fun to learn and try new experiences outside of school, as well as work together to prepare your child for what they will be doing in school.

  • Encourage your child to try new experiences and clubs.
  • For older children encourage them to volunteer for charities or gain a couple of hours paid work a week.
  • Give your child responsibility for completing tasks at home or planning and researching a family day out.
  • If you give you child pocket money, encourage them to think about what they do with that money and consider how they may budget.
  • Take your child into your work place and show them what you do or talk to them about your job and the skills that you have that enables you to do your job.
  • When you are out and about with your child, talk to them about the jobs that they see others completing and consider what skills those individuals will be using.
  • Talk to your child about their future and what they want to achieve.
  • Support your child in completing a revision or homework schedule (you can find a useful tool on www.getrevising.co.uk)
  • Encourage your child to research around topics that have been taught in school so they enhance their research skills.
  • Talk to your child about their enrichment choices and what skills they feel they are developing as part of this.
  • If your child is in KS3, discuss with them how they can meet their HBAAC targets and make a plan of how they can achieve Bronze, Silver and Gold levels.