Bringing the corporate world to life for young people – and showing them how to get there
Students at St Paul’s Way School have taken part in a wide variety of our programmes, most recently including Barclays LifeSkills, Bridge to M&G, KPMG Opening Doors to Opportunities, CV Review with M&G, Enterprise Challenge with M&G, Career Kickstart with Network Rail and Finance Unlocked with M&G.
Rosie Staley, Higher Education Co-Ordinator at St Paul's Way, told us that her experience of working with The Talent Foundry (TTF) was “excellent" - but what exactly made her experience so positive?
With most of our Year 12 students, we advertise opportunities and trips, and whenever they see that it is a Talent Foundry trip, they sign up because they know it will be worthwhile and engaging.
It’s amazing to hear such great reviews of our programmes and to have young people so eager to sign up to learn more about the world of work. Encouraging young people to recognise their talents and build essential skills and networks is what helps to prepare them for the workplace.
TTF perfectly bridges the gap between the education world and the corporate/professional world for young people and always pitches the content in a way which is appropriate and engaging for students while remaining genuinely useful for building professional skills and confidence.
Not only that, but Rosie shared the story of one specific student who particularly benefitted from taking part in our sessions. Having started the academic year with little to no engagement in careers and higher education opportunities, attending an in-school workshop with M&G on the Finance Unlocked programme was a turning point.
After the session, the student came to speak to me for the first time about how to apply for degree apprenticeships and build a CV. Since then, he has signed up to lots of opportunities and even engaged in mentoring.
The student was the first to hand in a CV for the M&G CV Review, his grades have improved and he can now see a realistic future in financial and professional services to work towards. Not only that, but he knows what he needs to achieve in order to get there. Rosie credits TTF’s opportunities with playing a huge part in his journey.
When describing her experiences with our programmes and sessions, Rosie highlighted the skills’ development opportunities as key, allowing students to explore life outside of a traditional classroom setting while applying new skills in the real world and learning about career pathways.
TTF sessions focus on the skills our students need most – problem-solving, teamwork and communication. The sessions then ground these skills in real life by relating them to a specific company and roles.
Our programmes enable students to explore real work challenges such as audit, risk assessments and problem-solving. By giving students the context and support they need, they gain the confidence to solve the kinds of problems they will face in the workplace.
This gives students a direct understanding of what professional roles look like, and the confidence to know they can access these challenges and work through them with the right support, teamwork and communication.
Rosie highlighted the amazing ability of our facilitators keep everyone involved and enable all students to access the session, making it easy for them to participate and reflect on their learnings. This also ensures that students have legitimate evidence to use in statements and applications for post-18 pathways.
Our straight-forward booking process and high-quality delivery keep things running smoothly, and our experienced facilitators can adapt to overcome challenges and make the most of available resources. Rosie described one scenario where students were reluctant to engage due to exam fatigue – but when enticed by a competitive environment, our facilitator had even the most reticent students stood up presenting their ideas to the group, and all the students left feeling positive.
When asked whether or not she would recommend working with TTF, Rosie said:
Go for it! They are straight-forward to book with, minimal time is required on behalf of staff, and the students will engage and benefit from the sessions, particularly if you have students looking for apprenticeships or interested in careers with the companies TTF works with.
We’re committed to providing high-quality careers education at no cost to students living in under-served communities. Our vision is to spark ambition and unlock opportunity so that every young person can thrive.