Yesterday, I attended the launch of The Careers and Enterprise Company. The event was packed to the rafters with colleagues from local enterprise partnerships (LEPs), careers organisations and employers.
The Rt Hon Lord Young of Graffham CH DL, who has been a major driving force of careers and enterprise in government (and is Deputy Chair of The Careers and Enterprise Company) opened up the event, sharing some of his experiences of youth unemployment over the years. Lord Young was instrumental in the Manpower Services Commission in 1981, the government agency dealing with unemployment and training matters.
Lord Young is championing the creation of an Enterprise Passport, which we were told would come next year. The purpose of which is to help young people identify skills and activities that they develop outside of education (sport, volunteering etc.) so that they can build their confidence up in their own employability. The Passport will also provide a way for young people to share their experiences with prospective employers.
Christine Hodgson FCA, Chairman of Capgemini UK plc and of The Careers and Enterprise Company, followed Lord Young with a passionate speech about the need for The Careers and Enterprise Company and its remit to bridge the gap between education and the world of work. Christine has championed careers education and employer engagement through work with Business in the Community and Inspiring Futures. She told us that she was wary at first of taking on the role offered by Education Secretary Nicky Morgan as she did not want to be involved in just another initiative.
However after hearing the proposition from the Department for Education, Christine was soon convinced that it was the right thing to do.
Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Childcare and Education, Sam Gyimah MP (labelled as the Careers Minister by Christine Hodgson), spoke about his own experiences and his desire to see The Careers and Enterprise Company deliver on its mission.
Finally we heard from Claudia Harris formally of McKinsey & Company who is the CEO of The Careers and Enterprise Company who provided us with a detailed presentation about the rationale behind the company and its drivers. Claudia’s presentation included a video from the Northamptonshire LEP who have been leading on the pilot stages of the service.
It will be of course the local enterprise partnerships that will be delivering the lion’s share of the service from The Careers and Enterprise Company in the form of Enterprise Coordinators. Each Enterprise Coordinator will develop a network of Enterprise Advisers who will be volunteers from the business community. The Advisers will be partnered with a school or college and with the support of the Coordinator and a Toolkit provide guidance on creating improved employer and careers links for students.
This local approach seems to be working really well in Northamptonshire where schools, employers and students have benefitted from the network. However, there was still a sense of watch and see in the room, as careers experts still call for face-to-face guidance for pupils. Quality and quantity will be an ongoing issue as the LEPs have to recruit their network of volunteers and engage schools with this agenda.
But with a 17 person strong team, The Careers and Enterprise Company certainly have the resource and the network to influence some positive change.
The Careers and Enterprise Company website is now live and you can find out how you can get involved here.
