How Jesmond Park Academy transformed student outcomes through its careers programme

Making careers a strategic priority at every level

I make sure the careers programme is driven forward at every level of the organisation: it is a regular agenda item at the very top level of Trust leadership, we get staff buy-in through CPD sessions and informal knowledge-sharing between teachers, and we elevate it within the student body through our careers champions initiative.

That accountability extends upward too. Careers guidance is so central to the Gosforth Group Trust that we have made a public pledge to all students: ‘You will be prepared for your future education and employment in the North East and beyond.’ By having this level of transparency and accountability, it focuses our efforts as a leadership team to ensure we prioritise careers guidance and deliver on the promise we have made to all students and their families.

Supporting every student, especially those most at risk

NEET prevention is not something we address at the end of Year 11 — it begins before a student even walks through our doors. Our careers leader uses information from feeder primary schools to identify students with NEET risk indicators before they join us in Year 7, so that personalised support is in place from day one. A student flagged as at risk might join an intervention group such as IntoUniversity, which supports aspiration towards higher education from underrepresented groups.

Because we have invested the time in ensuring all staff value and understand the impact of the careers programme, they recognise that careers guidance is a great motivator for students who are struggling to see the point of education — and can use elements of the programme to re-engage those students if behaviour or attainment starts to slip.

Equipping staff and elevating student voice

Every year, our CPD schedule includes dedicated time for careers education within the curriculum — teachers commit to embedding careers into subject lessons, across every topic and every year group. We draw on resources from Unifrog and Labour Market Information from the North East Ambition Careers Hub to support this. A supportive enterprise adviser and a dedicated careers governor hold us to account through termly strategic meetings.

Alongside staff, we have invested in student leadership through our careers champions initiative, created in 2020. There are at least two careers champions in every year group from Year 7 to Year 13. They advocate for careers guidance among their peers, bring student voice into termly meetings with myself and our careers leader, and take an active role in organising our careers fair and coordinating events like Green Careers Week and National Careers Week. As one Year 13 champion put it: “As a careers champion, I’m proud to be able to speak for the rest of my sixth form community, to make the transition from school to work, apprenticeships or further education easier and more exciting.”

Building real employer partnerships

Our relationships with local employers are strong — strong enough that employers regularly approach us to offer work experience placements, rather than the other way around. We host an annual careers fair at school and take all Year 10s to an external careers fair run by Newcastle City Council. Employer encounters — mock interviews, mentoring, talks and workshops — are structured carefully so that students have time to prepare beforehand and reflect meaningfully afterwards.

The results: attendance, attainment and Ofsted recognition

The impact of this whole-school commitment is visible in our data. Persistent absence among our students has fallen significantly below the national average — a shift that has been particularly pronounced for our disadvantaged pupils. On attainment, we have been nationally recognised by the Department for Education for the progress our Year 11 disadvantaged students are making: our Attainment 8 score for disadvantaged students in the 2025 cohort was 43.4, against a national figure of 34.9. Our Progress 8 score for disadvantaged students in 2024 was +0.06, compared to a national figure of -0.57.

At our most recent Ofsted inspection, rated Good overall, inspectors noted how well we match careers education to pupils’ individual needs and how “such guidance helped the overwhelming majority of Year 11 pupils progress to education, training and employment.” We also achieved the Quality in Careers Standard.

We are proud of what we are doing and the impact it is making on students and the school’s performance as a whole. But we do not see the careers programme as done. We plan to continue developing and delivering outstanding careers guidance and ensure that every single student leaves with an exciting future.