At Denbigh School, we make sure students are ready for what comes next after they leave—whether that’s further education or getting a job.
Through lessons and careers activities, we help students learn about the different options available and give them personalised support to make the right choices.
In our PSHE programme, students develop important employability skills to help them succeed in their future careers. We also follow the Gatsby Benchmarks to ensure our careers education is high quality and effective.
Our careers programme is well planned and built into both lessons and extra-curricular activities. It gives students clear, high-quality information about future study options and different job opportunities.
Careers support at Denbigh is designed for each age group, and advice is personalised for every student. We also make sure it is fair and inclusive, recognising and respecting everyone’s different backgrounds and needs.
The school gives students lots of chances to learn from employers about different jobs, the world of work, and the skills needed to succeed. All students take part in work experience and can build connections with employers.
They also explore all the options available after school, including college, apprenticeships, university, and employment.
They also explore all the options available after school, including college, apprenticeships, university, and employment.
Information for Parents
We provide information for parents about our programme through the website, social media and through parental information evenings. This includes links to further information for key careers topics. Students also have access to Unifrog which parents can explore with students. Parents are invited to information evenings including the Year 8 Curriculum evening and sixth form opening. The careers advisor is available at these transition events to speak to parents alongside students.
We encourage parents to get involved with our career programme by volunteering to give careers talks, conduct mock interview or run stalls at careers events.
Information for teachers
Teachers have access to Unifrog and are encouraged to share or direct students to relevant information. In faculties, resources are available to use in lessons to help you deliver Careers in the Curriculum
If you have any questions regarding careers, please email the following staff:
Mrs H. Brown- Careers leader brownh@denbigh.net
Mrs C Hamdan- Careers Coordinator hamdanc@denbigh.net
Mrs F Agbame– Careers Adviser agbamef@denbigh.net
Delivery
How the careers programme is delivered
All students take part in the careers programme, but what they learn changes depending on their age.
Careers learning takes place during tutor time, in subject lessons, in Personal Development, and at school events. We also have an independent careers advisor who offers one-to-one guidance, especially for students in Years 11 to 13. At key transition points, parents can meet the advisor during Parent Consultation evenings.
People from a wide range of jobs visit the school to talk about their work and share information about their careers.
In the tutorial programme, students learn about different career pathways and develop important communication skills.
Students also use Unifrog, an online platform that helps them search for careers, explore their options, and record the skills they are developing.
Evaluation
How We Review the Careers Programme
We check how well the careers programme is working in a few different ways.
We collect feedback during PSHE lessons, after careers events, and through questionnaires. After work experience, students, staff, and tutors share their views about what worked well and what could be improved.
We also gather feedback from one-to-one meetings. This helps us plan future events and choose speakers.
The Leadership Team and the Careers Assurance Governor review the programme to make sure it is effective and continues to improve.
What are the Gatsby Benchmarks?
The Gatsby Benchmarks are eight standards created by the Gatsby Foundation to help schools and colleges provide effective career guidance.
They focus on areas such as understanding career options, linking learning to jobs, connecting with employers, and offering personal guidance, helping young people make informed choices about their future.
If you would like to know more about the Gatsby Benchmarks, please use the link below
Quality in Careers Standard
The Quality in Careers Standard is the national quality award for overall careers education and guidance provision in secondary schools, colleges and Independent Training Providers. The Standard is owned and governed by the Quality in Careers Consortium.
Careers Programmes
Year 6
| Career Event | Subjects include | Benchmark |
| Transition Day | Introduction to Careers Team, department and our roles | 1, 3 |
Year 7
| Career Event | Subjects include: | Gatsby Benchmark |
| Careers Programme within Personal Development lessons | Initiative Budgeting CV writing Interviews | 1, 3 |
| Careers Week | Career activities linked to subjects Employer talks Career pathways within subjects | 1, 2, 4, 5 |
| Enrichment Days | Enterprise Challenge Visits to Warwick Castle and Woburn Safari Park | 2, 4, 5, 6 |
| Enterprise Skills | Students plan and run stalls to raise money for the Denbigh Association and local charities | 1, 4 |
| PSHE | Introduction to Careers Introduction to Unifrog | 1, 4 |
| Tutorial Sessions | Employer Talks Future Skills Questionnaire | 1, 3, 5 |
Year 8
| Career Event | Subjects include: | Gatsby Benchmark |
| Careers Programme within Personal Development lessons | Choosing GCSE subjects First Jobs and Pay Money Management | 1, 3 |
| Careers Week | Career activities linked to subjects Employer talks Career pathways within subjects | 1, 2, 4, 5 |
| Enrichment Days | Visits to National Space Centre and Kew Gardens | 2, 4, 5, 6 |
| Enterprise Skills | Students plan and run stalls to raise money for the Denbigh Association and local charities | 1, 4 |
| GCSE Options Support | Taster lessons Group support for targeted students Parents Information evening with support from Careers Adviser | 1, 3, 4, 8 |
| PAL assembly | Introducing Careers in engineering and pathways within Niftylift | 1, 5 |
| PSHE | Job Adverts Local Labour Market | 2, 4 |
| Tutorial Sessions | Employer Talks Unifrog session on exploring GCSE options | 3, 5 |
Year 9
| Career Event | Subjects include: | Gatsby Benchmark |
| Careers Week | Career activities linked to subjects Employer talks Career pathways within subjects | 1, 2, 4, 5 |
| Enrichment Days | Visits to Silverstone Museum and Cadbury’s World Careers activity sessions in school led by local employers | 2, 4, 5, 6 |
| Enterprise Skills | Students plan and run stalls to raise money for the Denbigh Association and local charities | 1, 4 |
| PAL Assembly led by the RAF | Introducing routes into and career pathways within the RAF | 1, 5 |
| PSHE | CV Writing Preparing for Work experience | 1, 3 |
| Tutorial sessions | Employer Talks Future Skills Questionnaire | 1, 3, 5 |
| Work Experience | Launch of Work Experience assembly Sessions on: The importance of Work Experience How to use the Placements tool on Unifrog How to approach an employer | 1, 2, 4, 5, 6 |
Year 10
| Career Event | Subjects include: | Gatsby Benchmark |
| Careers Advice | Targeted students meet with the Careers Adviser for early intervention | 3, 8 |
| Careers Fair | Attended by local and national employers and University representatives | 1, 2, 3, 5, 7 |
| Careers Week | Career activities linked to subjects Employer talks Career pathways within subjects | 1, 2, 4, 5 |
| Enrichment Days | Visits to Kempston Outdoor Centre Life Skills | 2, 4, 5, 6 |
| Enterprise Skills | Students plan and run stalls to raise money for the Denbigh Association and local charities | 1, 4 |
| PAL Assembly led by Team Matrix | Introducing Apprenticeships, what they are and how they work | 1, 2, 3, 5 |
| PSHE | Workplace Rights Discrimination Unifrog Intro to Sixth Form and post 16 opportunities | 1, 3 |
| Tutorial sessions | Employer Talks | 1, 3, 5 |
| Work Experience | Work Experience preparation sessions Work Experience week in November | 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, |
Year 11
| Careers Event | Subjects include: | Gatsby Benchmark |
| Apprenticeship Morning | Training provider talks Where to find apprenticeships Support in applying | 2, 3, 5, |
| Career Appointments | Targeted students prioritised All students seen by end of February Action plans written and sent to parent and student and added to Unifrog | 1, 3, 8 |
| Careers Fair | Attended by local and national employers and University representatives | 1, 2, 3, 5, 7 |
| Careers Teams channel | Careers related information shared to Careers Team tile such as: Work Experience Opportunities Apprenticeships Universities Colleges | 1, 2, 3 |
| Careers Week | Career activities linked to subjects Employer talks Career pathways within subjects | 1, 2, 4, 5 |
| PAL Assembly led by Moulton College | Introducing course and qualification options within the College | 1, 2, 3, 5 |
| Post 16 Futures Day | Employer talks College talk University talk Apprenticeship information and applications CV writing Interview Skills A-Level taster lessons | 2, 3, 5, 7 |
| PSHE | Which course is right for me? Career Vs Job Part-time work | 1, 3 |
| Sixth Form Information Evening | Introduction to Denbigh Sixth Form | 1, 3 |
| Tutorial sessions | Employer talks College talks Future Skills Questionnaire Introduction to career appointments Preparing for interviews | 1, 2, 3, |
| YR11 Senior leadership interview | With parents in attendance Focusses on progress, future plans, course choices | 1, 3, 8 |
| YR11 Parents Consultation Evening | Careers adviser attends and supports parents | 1, 3, 8 |
Information about possible next steps for Post 16 study or training is available on the links below:
Year 12
| Careers Event | Subjects include: | Gatsby Benchmark |
| Career Appointments | Available to all students Action plans written and sent to parent, student and added to Unifrog | 1, 3, 8 |
| Careers Fair | Attended by local and national employers and University representatives | 1, 2, 3, 5, 7 |
| Careers Induction session | For students that are new to Denbigh in Year 12 | 1, 3 |
| Careers Teams channel | Careers related information shared to Careers Team tile such as: Work Experience Opportunities Apprenticeships Universities Colleges | 1, 2, 3 |
| Careers Week | Career activities linked to subjects Employer talks Career pathways within subjects | 1, 2, 4, 5 |
| Enrichment Activities | Students can choose activities such as: Young Enterprise, the EDT Engineering Scheme, and the Bar Mock Trial Scheme | 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 |
| Mentoring sessions | Employer talks Focusses on progress, future plans and one-to-one guidance | 3, 8 |
| PAL Assembly led by Team Matrix | Introducing Apprenticeships, what they are and how they work | 1, 2, 3, 5 |
| Post 18 Futures Day | Employer talks University talks Apprenticeship information and applications Speed dating with Alumni UCAS information | 2, 3, 5, 7 |
| PSHE | Part-time Work | 1, 2 |
| Work Experience | Launch of Work Experience assembly Sessions on: The importance of Work Experience How to use the Placements tool on Unifrog How to approach an employer Work Experience week in June | 1, 2, 3, 5, 6 |
Year 13
| Careers Event | Subjects include: | Gatsby Benchmark |
| Apprenticeship Morning | Training provider talks Where to find apprenticeships Support in applying | 2, 3, 5, |
| Career Appointments | Available to all students Action plans written and sent to parent, student and added to Unifrog | 1, 3, 8 |
| Careers Fair | Attended by local and national employers and University representatives | 1, 2, 3, 5, 7 |
| Careers Teams channel | Careers related information shared to Careers Team tile such as: Work Experience Opportunities Apprenticeships Universities Colleges | 1, 2, 3 |
| Careers Week | Career activities linked to subjects Employer talks Career pathways within subjects | 1, 2, 4, 5 |
| Mentoring sessions | Employer talks Personal Statements School progress Future plans Future Skills Questionnaire | 3, 8 |
| Mock Interviews | External employers conduct mock interviews with targeted students | 2, 3, 5 |
| YR13 Parents Consultation Evening | Careers adviser attends and supports parents | 1, 3, 8 |
Information about possible next steps is available on the links below:
You can get further information about our PSHE and Careers week curriculum from the links below:
Careers Guidance Procedure
Please find below the published Careers Guidance Procedure:
Unifrog
Unifrog is our primary database for both recording student activities and for researching opportunities. It provides students with a user-friendly tool to keep track of work experience, extra-curricular achievements, academic results and to start considering their options beyond Year 11 and sixth Form.
Unifrog is a well-used tool and many students who join Denbigh School in our Sixth Form will already be familiar with it and have an account.
Labour Market Information (LMI)
Labour Market Information is about the current economic and employment situation. It includes data on destinations, average starting salary, current trends in employment sectors and recruitment patterns.
LMI means finding out the following things about different job roles or career pathways:
• What do people actually do in this job/industry?
• How many people work in this job/industry?
• How much do people get paid in this job/industry?
• What qualifications do I need to do this job?
• What skills or qualities do I need to do this job?
• What are the typical working hours for this job?
• What percentage of men/women work in this job/industry?
• Where can this job/industry take me in the future?
• Where are these jobs located around the country?
• How many of these jobs will there be in the future?
The latest local LMI information can be found on the below link:
