The organisers of a major conference, held in the autumn, are progressing initiatives aimed at improving young people’s chances of finding work and are seeking input from those with expertise to offer.
Employers, educationalists, industry leaders and political members and officials of the Isle of Man Government attended the Employability, Productivity and Leadership conference at the Mount Murray Hotel and Country Club in October. Click here for background.
The conference was organised by the Employability Working Group, comprising representatives of the Departments of Education and Children and Economic Development and business and voluntary organisations.
The group has identified three priority projects: communicating job-related information digitally; involving employers more directly in careers education and enhancing work experience opportunities.
Three sub-committees will now develop these areas and input is being sought from those with the relevant experience.
Annette Baker, Deputy Headteacher of Ballakermeen High School and chairman of the Employability Group, is working with representatives from DED, DEC and employer groups to develop a one-stop website to incorporate careers advice, guidance and job market information to serve the needs of young people and all those who work with them. She said:
‘A clear message came from October’s conference that there was a need to bring together in one place all information which is relevant to young people as they decide upon a career path. We are very excited about the opportunity we have to create a world-class access portal for all careers and job-related information that everyone will be able to find and use easily.’
Sue Cook, Chief Executive Officer of Junior Achievement Isle of Man, is working with a sub-committee to improve the readiness of young people for the workplace by making available employer-led services, including CV preparation and interview practice, to students. She commented:
‘A recent survey of more than 300 young people aged 11 to 18 for the Education and Employers Taskforce (UK) found that young people who had been given careers advice from four or more employers were almost twice as likely as those who’d had no contact with employers to have a good idea of the knowledge and skills they needed for the jobs they wanted to do. The feedback from the conference has been the catalyst to further improvement in the area of employer engagement.’
Andrew Cole, Headteacher of Castle Rushen High School and chairman of the sub-committee looking at work experience, said:
‘We are very excited at the prospect of improving the range of workplace options for students post as well as pre-16. These could include internships as well as placements with voluntary organisations, all of which can give young people valuable experience in the workplace.’
Tony Wild MLC, political member of the Departments of Economic Development and Education and Children, commented:
‘I am delighted to see the initiatives arising from the successful conference last October. The response to the event from those who attended was excellent and demonstrated how important this issue of employability skills is. Providing young people with the correct set of skills to deal with the critical transition from education to employment is a key challenge and I commend the work of the steering group and all those, not only from the government but from the private and third sectors, who are working in the background to achieve our goals.’
The working group would like to extend an invitation to any organisation that feels it can make a contribution to any or all of the projects to contact Mrs Baker on 648700 or via email at a.baker@bhs.sch.im
