Futures First Careers Fair
On Tuesday 7th June, Warlingham School & Sixth Form College opened its doors to welcome a wide variety of representatives for our inaugural Futures First Careers Fair for Year 10 and Year 12 students.
This event was run in conjunction with the Year 12 Aim Higher Week and saw the whole year group visit the fair, talking to the exhibitors, interacting with games/quizzes, engaging with various activities that promoted different industries and institutions and collecting a whole host of information leaflets and freebies. We were also delighted to invite our Year 10 students to join the fair during their break and lunch and many students took advantage of this offer.
Our exhibitors were very positive in their feedback from the day and were highly
complimentary about the way our students conducted themselves. As a result of the enthusiasm and behaviour displayed by our students, we have received many offers of future trips from some of the exhibitors, including Biggin Hill Airport, Kenley Observatory and to see Hamilton the Musical.
Natalie Leu, self-employed author and podcaster with baggagereclaim.com said, "It was thoroughly enjoyable to talk to the students about creative careers and enlightening for them to see that they had options, that crystallising moment in the eyes was amazing. I also
loved to answer all the business questions I received as a self-employed and independent exhibitor. Really, really lovely kids.”
Sarah Crush from Thakeham Homes posted to her LinkedIn followers, “Thakeham are delighted to continue our support of Warlingham School today via their Futures Fair. This follows a virtual work experience day for Year 11 in the autumn and site visit this spring. At Thakeham, we recognise the importance of careers education and the huge impact this can have on pupils future prospects. We proudly support schools across the Surrey, Sussex and Kent areas as a Cornerstone Employer to help 'Build Future Generations' and inspire young people to join
our exciting industry.”
Hellen Ward from the STEM Ambassadors Hub had this advice for our students: “It is scary but you’ve just got to do it!”
Del from the DWP really enjoyed learning from the students what they want from future employment and speaking to the other employers allowed him a greater insight into what they want/need too and will help shape the support offered in future.
Finally, Gloria Louis from the Delfont Mackintosh Theatre Groups said “I have found the event very interesting on two levels. Firstly, from the perspective
of the school and students, just how many people wanted to work in the theatre. Secondly, it was refreshing to meet with people who want to meet the same goals as I do, that of a work force that is fully diverse. Our association with Warlingham School & Sixth Form College with continue for many years.”
Our grateful appreciation goes to all those who volunteered their time and expertise from the following individuals, companies, and institutions below. We look forward to working with them closely in the future to offer the students of Warlingham School & Sixth Form College many exciting and engaging careers encounters and opportunities.
Thank you to the following individuals, companies and institutions for their participation
| Representative | Company / Institution |
|---|---|
| Rhea Barretto and Aziz Mohamed | Gallagher Construction |
| Del and Andriana | The Department of Work and Pensions |
| Savannah and Tom | John Ruskin College and East Surrey College |
| Issy, Parris and Alex | EngageTech |
| Dawn Huish, Sarah Hutson and Megan Morris | Surrey and Sussex Healthcare NHS Trust |
|
Hellen Ward, alongside: |
STEM Ambassadors Hub |
| Anna Taylor | Innervate Careers Services |
| Army representative | The Army Careers Centre, Victoria. |
| Sarah Crush | Thakeham Homes |
| Representatives | Portsmouth University |
| Representatives | Greenwich University |
| Representatives | South Bank University |
| Our very own Judith, Claire and Paula | Tandridge Learning Trust |
| A large delegation from | Biggin Hill Airport |
| Representative | Croydon Works Employment Support |
| Craig Constantinides | Go2Games |
| Seargeant Sarah Ginn | The Metropolitan Police |
| Simonetta d’Ottaviano and Charlotte Slingsby | Nettoken |
| Sheena Desai | Aviva Investors |
| Peter Hutchinson, Data Centre Manager | Digital Realty |
| Gloria Louis and a delegation from | Delfont Mackintosh Theatre Group |
| Natalie Lue, self-employed author and podcaster | baggagereclaim.com |
| Kirsty Leighton and Reggie Okehie | Milk and Honey PR |
| Rachel Starling | Chartered Environmentalist |
Feedback from a Year 12 Student
I attended the very first Futures Fair at school as part of the Aim Higher Days on the 7th of June and it was amazing! There was a range of universities there, each offering a multitude of different courses which are unique to the university and tailored to fit the students that study there. Universities such as Portsmouth, Surrey and Greenwich to name a few had a couple of representatives
which were keen to answer questions about any course and provided everyone with so much information about studying at that university, the entry requirements and the components of each course.
I also got the opportunity to speak to people from a variety of different companies and find out about a whole range of careers, including, the NHS, Army and Engineering. It was really useful to receive information about each stand in advance of the fair and to have the opportunity to receive advice about the application process and the interviews. The overall experience was so helpful and provided me with lots of information that is useful to me as I start applying to university and consider by next steps after Warlingham Sixth Form College.
Izzy, Year 12