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VIA HELPS YEAR 9 STUDENTS PREPARE FOR THEIR FUTURE
Over 1000 young people from Blackburn with Darwen began to plan their future last week by attending our careers event at King George’s Hall.
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VIA BECOMES FIRST IN COUNTRY TO OFFER NEW QUALIFICATION
We have become the first organisation in the country to deliver a new qualification, accredited by City & Guilds.
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Latest News
VIA HELPS YEAR 9 STUDENTS PREPARE FOR THEIR FUTURE
27 January 2012
Over 1000 young people from Blackburn with Darwen began to plan their future last week by attending our careers event at King George’s Hall.
Over 1000 young people from Blackburn with Darwen began to plan their future last week by attending our careers event at King George’s Hall.
Year 9 students from high schools across Blackburn with Darwen were invited to discover the college courses, training schemes and career routes available in the area.
The ‘Today, Tomorrow and Beyond’ event, organised by The Via Partnership on behalf of Blackburn with Darwen 14-19 Partnership, Blackburn with Darwen Education Improvement Partnership and Aim Higher, set out to give pupils and their parents/carers valuable firsthand information to prepare them for when they leave school.
The colleges, sixth forms, training providers and employers who attended the event interacted with young people to talk about the courses on offer and the potential career paths available. Blackburn with Darwen’s Connexions service were also in attendance, offering careers information advice and guidance to the young people.
The event was attended by Blackburn with Darwen’s Mayor, Cllr Karimeh Foster, who enjoyed learning about the career routes on offer alongside students from Darwen Vale High School.
The event included a special session for parents/ carers, which was attended by over 250 families, ensuring that young people have parental support and advice in the decisions they make.
David Hallam, Deputy Head Teacher at Darwen Vale High School, said: “The event gave our students a good insight into what options are available for them when they come to move on from high school. The event allowed students to discover a potential career path that they wish to follow, in good time to make the right choices.”
Councillor Maureen Bateson, Blackburn with Darwen Council's executive member for children's services, said: "It can be a daunting time for young people having to consider what options they want to take to support career decisions for when they leave school.
"Events like this are really important so that we can help give our young people the tools they need to make informed decisions. We want to help our young people stay on a track that is suited to their individual needs and help them achieve their full potential."
John Proctor, 14-19 Adviser at Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, said: “The event has been well attended by our year 9 pupils and will have helped them to make their choices for their next stage of study. This is really key for these young people as they will be the first who will all stay in learning until they are 18. We were also very pleased to welcome the many parents and carers who attended the evening session to find out more about options for their children's future learning.”
Photo caption: The Lady Mayor with Carly Hawley, Alice Dysart and Liam McIlvany of Darwen Vale High School learning about the hospitality trade from Mr McIntosh and Miss Hall of Our Lady and St John’s College.
VIA BECOMES FIRST IN COUNTRY TO OFFER NEW QUALIFICATION
10 August 2011
We have become the first organisation in the country to deliver a new qualification, accredited by City & Guilds.
We are the first centre across the country to have been given the go ahead to deliver a new qualification in Careers Guidance.
The Level 6 QCF Diploma in Careers Guidance is aimed at individuals who work to deliver expert career guidance to clients, as well as managing and developing the service provision.
Offering a flexible learning programme, taught and assessed by expert practitioners, Via will deliver the programme over 9 to 12 months. The flexible learning approach recognises people’s prior learning and ensures that only the modules needed are covered. Acknowledging existing experience will ensure that the learning is streamlined and efficient, which is paramount in today’s environment.
Karen O’Donoghue, Chief Executive at Via, said: “We are proud to be the first City &Guilds accredited delivers of this new qualification. This shows how we are committed to a high quality guidance workforce and believe in the development of the sector moving forward, despite the challenges faced. We aim to offer the qualification to a large number of careers guidance professionals to ensure high quality provision is maintained.”
The new qualification is a new sector standard for Careers Guidance professionals and will become the kite mark for the sector.
Via will start interviewing for the programme over coming weeks, with a view to starting in September.
For more information or to enrol, contact Pat Hastings in the Workforce Development Team on 012772 642393.
VIA EXPOSE PUPILS TO THE WORKING WORLD
14 July 2011
The Via Partnership hosted a special event at Preston College last week for over 1100 young people from the Preston area. The event allowed these young people to gain an insight in to their options for when they leave school.
Year 8 students from 10 schools from across Preston were introduced to over 20 organsations and training providers from a range of industries, in order to gain an understanding of what working life is like and the different career options and routes available, including further training, work based learning and apprenticeships.
The EXPO event took place on Wednesday 6 and Thursday 7 July and was designed to give pupils valuable firsthand knowledge to inform their career choices and prepare them for when they leave school.
The event was attended by Mayor of Preston, Cllr Roberta Cartwright and her husband, The Consort Cllr Neil Cartwright. The Mayor was able to mix with young people and join in the workshop activities with them.
The organsations who attended interacted with young people to talk about the work their company involves and offered the students information as to what skills employers currently require.
Gwen Green from PC World and Curry's who hosted workshops at the event said: "This was our first time supporting an EXPO event and we have all gained so much from working with Preston's young people. We were trained by The Via Partnership as Ambassadors and now hope to extend our support to many more schools throughout Lancashire as this event has shown how invaluable it is to both to us to young people with advice and guidance on careers within our company. The event was also invaluable for the young people who engaged so positively and became inspired by the event, they are a credit to the local area.”
Kay Vaughan, Head of Youth Employability at The Via Partnership said: “The EXPO event was enjoyed by all and has really benefited Preston’s young people, it wiill build on their knowledge of the working world. The event was also an excellent opportunity for businesses across the area to engage with young people and assist them with their career choices. We would be very interested to hear from other local businesses that wish to assist young people in this way at future events.”
WANT TO GET INVOLVED? If you are business that would like to help at future Expo events, contact Nikki Brookes on 01772 642400
Photo caption: Mayor of Preston Cllr Roberta Cartwright and The Consort Cllr Neil Cartwright with Graham Cornwell of North Lancs Training Group as he gives Garstang High pupil Matthew Pennington, 12, a lesson in upholstery.
About Via
Via is a social business based in Lancashire.
Via's purpose is to improve skills and reduce unemployment.
Via helps people to move forward in work and life and helps employers to develop their business and their workforce.
Via is owned by Lancashire County Council, Blackpool Council and Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council.
Via works with public, private and third sector organisations to deliver a range of products and services and careers information, advice and guidance for young people and adults, and business training and support for workforce development, redundancy transition and business growth.
