Welcome to
Careers Advice for Parents/Carers
We recognise that parents and carers play a vital role in shaping a young person’s understanding of careers and future opportunities. This section has been created to support you in guiding your child as they explore their options, from subject choices and work experience to post-16 pathways and life beyond A Levels.
The Next Steps
Introduction
When it comes to Careers Education, the people who have the most influence on your child is you, their parents. Although the school provides students with information, the majority of what they know about the world of work, comes from you and their experiences of different professions.
It is therefore crucial that school and parents work together for the benefit of your child. This section of the website, aims to support you helping your child learn about the options available to them and begin working towards a rewarding career.
As a school, we give students the opportunity to use the Careers software Xello. This is a powerful tool that students of any year group can use to help them learn about different careers and pathways into them. In order to use Xello, students can follow this link which will allow them to log on using their school login information https://auth.xello.co.uk/SAML/Student/61bc869e-ef26-4ab9-9c42-7004e715d5a5. Once they have logged onto the system using this link, https://login.xello.co.uk/ they should be able to access the website using their normal school computer login credentials.
This section includes information to support your child through Options in Year 9, Year 10 Work Experience, Post 16 choices and about life after A Levels.
Parent & Carer Advice
Options Choices Year 9
Section A : Core Studies
At Thomas Adams School we consider it essential that all of our students follow a broad, balanced curriculum throughout Key Stage 4. All students study a core curriculum of:-
GCSE courses in:
ENGLISH
MATHEMATICS
SCIENCE
The vast majority of students will also study (expectation for Set 1 and 2 students to take the qualification):-
FRENCH
as well as non-examination courses in:
PHYSICAL EDUCATION
Section B : Pathway Choices
In addition, each student chooses further subjects from:
HISTORY, GEOGRAPHY, COMPUTER SCIENCE, BUSINESS STUDIES (GCSE or CNAT), RELIGIOUS EDUCATION, ICT, DESIGN & TECHNOLOGY, FOOD, TEXTILES, ART or 3-D ART, DRAMA, MUSIC, BTEC SPORT, TRIPLE SCIENCE, GRAPHICS, HEALTH AND SOCIAL CARE, CHILD DEVELOPMENT
Process
You will be emailed a “Pathways Form” that you are to complete and submit with your choices. Depending upon your Key Stage 3 profile you will either receive a “Pathway A or Pathway B Form”.
Pathway A
Students that are in Sets 1 and 2 in French (and therefore eligible for the EBACC) are expected to select French along with:-
Either History or Geography
Select a further two choices in rank order along with two reserves.
We will strive to provide at least one of your top two choices (if not both)
Pathway B
Students that are not in Sets 1 and 2 in French follow a more technical pathway and are expected to:-
Select four choices (that includes French) in rank order along with two reserves.
We will strive to provide at least two of your top four choices (if not all).
Parent & Carer Advice
Work Experience
Thomas Adams School believes that Work Experience is a crucial moment of a student’s education, giving them the opportunity to experience the world of work and potentially start their pathway towards their chosen career. It can provide students with an incentive to work harder in order to achieve their chosen career.
Work Experience can help in the following ways:
- Some employers want to know if an applicant has undertaken work experience in their chosen field.
- Provides students the opportunity to understand the world of work and if that sector is right for them.
- Will help students identify their strengths and skills they need to develop.
- Students may be offered a job by the company!
More information on the benefits of Work Experience can be found here https://www.allaboutcareers.com/careers-advice/work-experience/why-is-work-experience-important
The school recommends that students take the onus of finding and approaching their chosen placement as we wish to simulate the challenge of finding a job. This of course can be a nervous experience as students approach the company, but we ask that you encourage your child, as success in this can feel like an important accomplishment.
Practical information
Student Area
Vocational Training
Vocational courses are available at some further education providers. These are available at Level 1 to 3. Access to these courses are dependent on GCSE qualifications, however, for some trade qualifications Level 1 is where everyone starts. Some of these qualifications are the equivalent of 3 A Levels and others can lead to employment in that field. The most common form of Vocational Training course is a BTEC and there are 3 levels, at 16 you would be looking at BTEC Firsts or BTEC Nationals.
BTEC Firsts are level 2 qualifications and are equivalent to a GCSE.
BTEC Nationals are level 3 qualifications and are equivalent to A levels.
BTEC Higher Nationals are equivalent to the first year, or first and second year, of an undergraduate degree.
Student Area
T Levels
What are T Levels?
T Levels are a new qualification for young people after GCSEs, designed to combine classroom learning with practical experience. They are equivalent to three A Levels and focus on developing technical skills for specific careers. Each T Level includes academic study alongside an industry placement, giving students the chance to apply what they learn in a real work environment. This makes T Levels an excellent choice for those who prefer a more practical route into employment, apprenticeships, or higher education.
Why choose T Levels?
One of the key benefits of T Levels is the industry placement, which lasts around 45 days and helps students gain valuable experience with employers in their chosen field. This not only builds confidence and professional skills but also provides a clear understanding of what working life is like. T Levels are available in subjects such as health, science, construction, and digital, so students can choose a pathway that suits their interests and career goals. Locally, T Levels are offered at North Shropshire College, Shrewsbury Colleges Group, and Telford College. Cheshire College South & West also offers T Levels and provides free transport from Wem. If your child enjoys learning by doing and wants to prepare for a specific job or sector, T Levels could be the perfect option.
Student Area
STEM Opportunities
STEM careers (Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) is an expected area of growth in the UK over the next few years. There is an expected shortfall in the number of jobs and students following such a path. As such, the school wishes to promote these jobs. If you are interested in STEM opportunities within the school, please see Mr Gilbert.
Student Area
Learning Skills
There are several websites that can help you learn about your skills. These help you learn about what you are good at, but also skills that you may need to work on. These should help you consider which career paths that you may be suited to.
Just be warned, they are not perfect. Only you fully know how skilled you are at different things.
Apprenticeship and Vocational Courses Links
- Further information can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/what-different-qualification-levels-mean/list-of-qualification-levels
- Amazing Apprenticeships – https://amazingapprenticeships.com/vacancies/
- Apprenticeships UK – Get in go Far https://www.apprenticeships.gov.uk/#
- Government UK website – https://www.gov.uk/topic/further-education-skills/apprenticeships
- County Training Website – https://www.ctapprenticeships.co.uk/
- Apprenticeship Tips for Parents/Carers – https://amazingapprenticeships.com/app/uploads/2022/01/Apprenticeship-Hints-Tips-for-Parents-Carers-1.pdf
Student Area
Key Contacts
If you wish to learn more about Careers we recommend contacting or speaking to one of the following members of staff.
Mr Hargreaves (Assistant Head teacher for Personal Development and Careers Leader) – james.hargreaves@tas.318education.co.uk
Mrs Weston (Careers Adviser) – kim.weston@tas.318education.co.uk
Mrs Whitfield (Deputy Headteacher with careers oversight) – jennifer.whitfield@tas.318education.co.uk
For Thomas Adams Sixth Form information, please speak to Assistant Headteacher, Mr Allen – liam.allen@tas.318education.co.uk
Student area
Careers Programme and Feedback
The school has a careers programme which it reviews every year during the Summer Term. Over your time at Thomas Adams you will start by learning about different jobs, to learning about what career path is right for you, to learning the skills you will need to apply, interview and achieve the career you desire. The document can be found here.
We also want to know what you think about our Careers Programme. We constantly review this, if you wish to provide us with feedback, please follow the survey link.
Each year we collect data where Year 11 and 13 want to go after they finish their studies and where they end up going. This is so we can see how effective our Careers Programme is. For the latest data analysis for Year 11 please see here. For Year 13, please see here.
Contact
The Thomas Adams School
Lowe Hill
Wem
Shropshire
SY4 5UB
Tel: +44 1939 237000