Careers Education
We are fully committed to providing an impartial, comprehensive careers service that supports all young people in making informed choices and encourage everyone to participate in work experience. We recognise that school is only the start of our students' journey towards the working life they will enjoy throughout adulthood. We believe it is important that all our students are given the support they need whilst they are with us to make the best decisions they can about their future plans.
Our aim is to ensure everyone is able to recognise the skills and abilities they have, appreciate what they are good at as well as what they enjoy, and understand how their talents can be applied to post-compulsory education and the world of work.
We are members of the Somerset Chamber of Commerce and we are currently working with Careers South West to develop and enhance our school careers service.
We are exceptionally proud that Haygrove School has been recognised for their Careers Programme and achieving the highest marks available with 100% scores across the eight Gatsby benchmarks. These were developed on behalf of the Gatsby Foundation by Sir John Holman. They define what world-class careers provision in education looks like and provide a clear framework for organising the careers provision at schools or colleges.
Haygove School is currently ranked joint 1st of the 154 schools and colleges who are part of the Heart of the South West Careers Hub. The Heart of the South West Careers Hub is one of the largest careers hubs in England, established in collaboration with The Careers and Enterprise Company to help transform careers education for young people across the southwest. They work with every state-funded secondary school, special educational needs school, alternative provision & post 16 college, helping them to link with local employers to develop and deliver high quality careers support to all their students.
You can view our Careers Education, Information and Guidance Policy and our Provider Access Policy on our Policies Page.
Employers
We are always looking for additional help to enrich the students experience in different careers. If you are an employer and would like to get involved in the Careers Activities at Haygrove School we would be very pleased to hear from you.
Former Haygrove Students - can you inspire current Haygrove students?
We would like to hear from former Haygrove students to hear about what exciting things you have been up to.
If you would like to share your experiences to inspire our current students, please contact our Careers Coordinator
We run Careers events throughout the year, and by signing up there’s no commitment to get involved. We will contact you to see if you are available.
Haygrove's Careers Learning Journey
Here is a useful document to help you prepare for you Career's guidance interviews - "What is a Career's Guidance Interview?"
The Careers Programme is evaluated each year by sending an evaluation survey to students, staff and parents to assess the impact of careers.
The programme will be evaluated next in June 2023.
The Baker Clause stipulates that schools must allow colleges and training providers access to every student in Years 8-13 to discuss non-academic routes that are available to them.
We offer students information on both academic and non-academic routes. We are part of the Careers Hub with the Careers and Enterprise Company which offer non biased opportunities to students. Ask apprenticeships participate in Careers Fairs, assemblies and workshops to show students the range of options available.
As well as this Year 10 students all have 1-1 Careers Interviews with an independent Careers advisor from CSW.
The Careers policy states the provider access agreement and details of how stakeholders can be involved in Careers activities.
You can view our Careers Education, Information and Guidance Policy and our Provider Access Policy on our Policies Page.
Work Experience
Our Work Experience Week for Year 10s is Monday 30th June – Friday 4th July 2025.
If you are able to offer a work experience placement please contact our Career Coordinator on 01278 455531.
Work Experience is an important part of the careers education programme and is available to all Year 10 students.
- Work Experience is a great chance to get a taste of a job and see what skills you’re going to need for the world of work.
- Work experience can be a great help if you’re still wondering what sort of career you want.
A work placement is an opportunity to spend a period of time with a local employer, learning about a particular job or area of work. During the placement, students will find out what skills employers look for when they're hiring someone to fill a job vacancy.
Students will identify and apply for their own placement in an area of interest to them. The programme is designed to encourage independence and give a real taste of what work is really like. The programme is supported by full Health and Safety checks from South Somerset Partnership and students will be visited by a member of Haygrove staff during the week.
Our Career Coordinator will be available to help with anything relating to securing a work experience placement and will be based in Student Services.
Work Experience Documents:
Form A: Work Experience Parent/Carer Consent Form
Form B: Database Placement Form
Form C: New Placement Request Form
Work Experience Student Guide 2025
College Open Events and Job Fairs
Bridgwater & Taunton College
Richard Huish College
https://www.huish.ac.uk/Weston College
King Alfred School Sixth Form - Online information and application
Sexey's Sixth Form - Please click here for more information about Sexey's Sixth Form.
Taunton School - Click here for information about Taunton School's Sixth Form. Taunton School IB Poster IB Leaflet IB Application Form
About Apprenticeships
Increasingly, our Year 11 students are considering an apprenticeship as an alternative to full-time study at college. An apprenticeship combines practical on the job training with study for an approved qualification. Apprentices receive a salary whilst working for their employer, but are expected to also complete a programme of study (usually by attending college one day per week) that will give them a relevant and industry-standard qualification.
Posters about Apprenticeships relating to subject areas
For those students who may not be ready for a full apprenticeship, there is also the option of a Traineeship which is typically a one-year programme to prepare for joining the workforce.
You can find out more about what apprenticeships are on these useful websites:
Bridgwater and Taunton College Apprenticeship FAQs
Richard Huish College Apprenticeships
Take our Apprenticeship Quiz and test your knowledge!
Local and National Apprenticeships
Apprenticeships are advertised by employers all year round and start-dates vary from employer to employer. Students who are interested in finding an apprenticeship will need to be very pro-active in order to find a vacancy either by approaching a company directly or by regularly checking local vacancies advertised online.
Apprenticeship Vacancies Online (national database of apprenticeships)
Richard Huish College Apprenticeship Vacancies
Bridgwater and Taunton College Apprenticeship Vacancies
Disability Rights UK is delighted to announce the publication of Into Apprenticeships, a guide for disabled people, parents and key advisers about applying for Apprenticeships in England.
Higher Education
Higher Education at university or a college may seem a long way off, but it can be helpful to know what the options are. Of course, many young people choose not to go to university and there are lots of sources of information about ‘non-uni’ choices.
The Study Up Somerset website provides comprehensive information all Higher Education courses available in Somerset.
The UCAS website provides lots of information about going to university and how to apply.
All our local colleges offer higher education courses, including degrees:
- Bridgwater and Taunton College
- University Centre Somerset
- Strode College
- Richard Huish College
- Weston College
Local universities in Somerset, Cornwall, Devon and Dorset include:
- Plymouth University
- Bath Spa University
- UWE (University of the West of England)
- Bristol University
- Bath University
- Bournemouth University
- Arts University Bournemouth
- Exeter University
- Falmouth University
- University of Gloucestershire
Higher Education courses are also available via the Open University.
You may decide after Higher Education that you would like to do an apprenticeship instead of progressing on to University. Find out about higher and degree apprenticeships.
You can get information about different universities in the UK and overseas at:
The Sunday Times University Guide (subscription required)
Finding Employment
The following links and documents also provide advice and guidance:
CMT Services, Yeovil provide training packages to help young adults find work
Writing a CV
The links below will help you when writing a CV:
National Careers Guidance Service
CV Support
Our Careers Co-ordinator is available to help students with writing a Curriculum Vitae (CV), writing covering letters and completing application forms.
Part-time Work
Many young people look for part-time work. The following resources provide useful information regarding young people and part-time work:
Guide to Tax and National Insurance
National Minimum Wage and Living Wage
Useful Resources
The National Careers Service website aims to:
- help you with careers decisions and planning
- support you in reviewing your skills and abilities and develop new goals
- motivate you to implement your plan of action
- enable you to make the best use of high quality career related tools
Students & Parents/Carers (padlet.com) - This Padlet is designed for students, parents & carers. It contains information such as open days, along with local opportunities and support for students, parents & carers on the transition to Post 16 & Post 18. This will be regularly updated and is a great source of information.
Career Pilot provides a comprehensive resource of careers information including quizzes that will ask you lots of questions and from your results suggest jobs that might suit you or identify strengths you have.
Barclays Life Skills provides a range of resources aimed at helping young people unlock their potential and improve their employability. Advice and materials for young people, parents, employers and schools/colleges.
U-Explore is an exciting and interactive resource designed to support young people find out about suitable jobs and understand the world of work. U-Explore uses motivating video clips, 3600 interactive virtual tours and multimedia graphics to inspire and support young people in investigating the jobs and opportunities which exist on a local and national level. There is also information on qualifications, different industry sectors, local success stories, business profiles and much more.
Career South West - Being a teenager can be a really exciting time but it can also seem like there are too many choices you're being asked to make! Don't worry we're here to help you sort through all these decisions and point you in the right direction. We support you by providing independent and impartial information, advice, guidance and practical help. We can also help you up to the age of 25 if you have special educational needs in certain cases.
Pluss - Want to work? Support for people with disabilities to find work and a career.
www.learnsomerset.co.uk Have you just left school or college? Are you looking to take those next steps into employment, education or training? If so - Somerset Skills and Learning can help.
www.skillsforcare.org.uk Information and advice for those considering a career in the care sector.
icould gives you the inside story of how careers work. The icould storytellers relate, in their own words, their real life career journeys. From telecoms engineers to police officers, from landscape gardeners to web designers, from engine drivers to zookeepers; they talk about what they do, what it’s like, how they came to be where are and their hopes for the future.
Tomorrow's Engineers - A career in engineering can be exciting, varied and rewarding. Engineering is a key part of a range of industries, including music, TV and film, construction, transport, cosmetics, medicine, food, fashion and much more. Tomorrow's Engineers gives you all the information you need to make wise choices about your future.
Young Chamber is a branch of the British Chamber of Commerce.
Labour Market Information
The history of working in Somerset has its roots in agriculture, manufacturing, quarrying and trade. It's well-known for traditional food and drink produce such as cheese and cider and the food and drink sector employs thousands of people in the area.
Health and social care is the largest sector and with an ageing population there will be lots of jobs in the future. Other growing sectors include creative and renewable energy; Somerset also has a strong aerospace sector around Yeovil.
With a dramatic coastline, attractive beaches and beautiful Exmoor as well as many other attractions, it's not surprising that Somerset is a popular place with tourists and the tourism industry is an important sector especially in the West. Away from the peace and quiet, the M5 corridor is growing for warehousing and distribution meaning more jobs in transport and logistics.
So, whatever you're interested in, there are many rewarding careers on offer - wherever you live in Somerset.
Office for National Statistics - Current rates of Employment
Somerset Intelligence - Facts and Figures
National Labour Market Statistics
Have a look at some of the Labour Market Information for other areas:
Enter job titles in the links below to compare labour market information:
For Parents
Amazing Apprenticeships - link to the ‘Parents’ section on the website which contains the most recent ‘Parent Pack’
Career Pilot Parent Zone - information for parents/carers around a child’s study choices at age 14, 16 and 18
Next Steps South West Parents Page - information for parents/carers – mostly about higher education
UCAS Applying to University: Guide for Parents and Guardians - might be useful for parents/carers looking further ahead
The Parents Guide to Careers for National Careers Week
Get in touch
Please use our Careers Contact Form.