Understanding theUpdated Gatsby Benchmark 1
A stable careers programme
Every school should have an embedded programme of careers education and guidance that is known and understood by pupils, parents and carers, staff, governors, employers and other agencies.
Criteria for schools
- Every school should have a stable, structured careers programme that has the explicit backing of governors, the headteacher and the senior management team, and has an identified and appropriately trained careers leader responsible for it.
- The careers programme should be tailored to the needs of pupils, sequenced appropriately, underpinned by learning outcomes and linked to the whole-school development plan. It should also set out how parents and carers will be engaged throughout.
- The careers programme should be published on the school’s website and communicated in ways that enable pupils, parents and carers, staff and employers to access, and understand it.
- The programme should be regularly evaluated using feedback from pupils, parents and carers, teachers and other staff who support pupils, careers advisers and employers, to increase its impact.
Every provider should have an embedded programme of careers education and guidance that is known and understood by learners, parents and carers, staff, those in governance roles, employers and other agencies.
Criteria for colleges
- Every provider should have a stable, structured careers programme that has the explicit backing of those in governance roles, leadership and the senior management team, and has an identified and appropriately trained careers leader responsible for it.
- The careers programme should be tailored to the needs of learners, sequenced appropriately, underpinned by learning outcomes and linked to the whole-institution development plan. It should also set out how parents and carers will be engaged throughout.
- The careers programme should be published on the provider’s website and communicated in ways that enable learners, parents and carers, staff and employers to access and understand it.
- The programme should be regularly evaluated using feedback from learners, parents and carers, subject staff and other staff who support learners, careers advisers and employers, to increase its impact.
Leaders have a crucial role to play. They set the direction and the values of their institution and they implement leadership structures that are effective for their setting.
Good Career Guidance: The Next 10 Years
Case study: St Thomas More school
St Thomas More School’s careers leader is also a member of the senior leadership team. They have responsibility for curriculum, assessment and personal development. This keeps careers on the agenda in leadership discussions and ensures alignment with the school development plan.
This approach has changed attitudes to careers provision, as the assistant head explained:
We are motivated to treat careers like every other aspect of curriculum and have applied the same curriculum principles – clear objectives that sequence learning over time, support timed to meet need, integration into quality assurance processes and annual evaluation that includes pupil, staff and stakeholder voice.
Assistant Headteacher, St Thomas More School
The careers leader is supported by a curriculum coordinator and a Level 6 qualified careers adviser employed by the school. The careers leader, careers adviser and SENDCO work together to review careers as part of the school’s annual quality assurance cycle. The careers leader feeds back to the rest of the senior leadership team and updates governors.
Case study: United Learning
At United Learning, the largest multi-academy trust (MAT) in England, careers is seen as a core way to raise standards. Trustees and the executive leadership team created the role of central strategic careers leader, which operates in a similar way to that of a careers hub leader in a region.
The central strategic careers leader is at the heart of the Trust and works closely with regional education directors to ensure that careers provision is discussed with individual school leaders and is reflected in the values and aims of each school. The Trust has aligned its provision to the Gatsby Benchmarks. Every school carries out termly auditing and action planning using the Gatsby Benchmarks, and a dashboard allows the Trust to review progress each term. Career competencies are embedded into lesson delivery in every school, and communication strategies ensure young people know what they are entitled to and are clear about what they can expect from the careers programme.
Hong Kong: Careers guidance as a whole-staff endeavour
The Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust initiated the development of a set of careers benchmarks informed by Gatsby’s work.[i] This has helped to encourage increasing involvement in careers guidance from school principals and senior management teams. Previously, the work of careers teams in Hong Kong schools was isolated from the wider staff. This is now changing, thanks to schools having a clear framework to work towards which emphasises the value of engaged leaders.
Careers is increasingly seen as part of everyone’s responsibility, and training is being provided for teachers. These staff have started to expand their horizons beyond the school boundaries, actively seeking external opportunities and building employer networks in order to better support their students. Approximately one-third of secondary schools had adopted the Hong Kong careers benchmarks by 2024.
Case study: The Learning Curve Group ITP
The ethos of Learning Curve Group, an ITP, is to transform lives through learning. A full-time careers leader is responsible for developing the institution’s careers strategy and implementing the careers programme. The careers programme outlines the whole-institution approach to careers and its objectives, as well as setting out the responsibilities of everyone involved. The careers leader ensures every young person receives the careers support they need to make well-informed choices.
Jump to Benchmark
Updated Benchmark 1
A stable careers programme
Updated Benchmark 2
Learning from career and labour market information
Updated Benchmark 3
Addressing the needs of each young person
Updated Benchmark 4
Linking curriculum learning to careers
Updated Benchmark 5
Encounters with employers and employees
Updated Benchmark 6
Experiences of workplaces
Updated Benchmark 7
Encounters with further and higher education
Updated Benchmark 8
Personal guidance
Publications
Good Career Guidance: The Next 10 Years (Final Report)
The Next 10 Years - Summary for Leaders (Schools)
The Next 10 Years - Summary for Leaders (Colleges and ITPs)
Appendix 1: Acknowledgements
Appendix 2: Consultation Report
Appendix 3: Informational Interviews Report
Appendix 4: Literature Review
Appendix 5: Insights on the Gatsby Benchmarks
Appendix 6 (International Case Studies)
Appendix 7: Youth Voice Insights on the Gatsby Benchmarks
Appendix 8: Review of the British Chambers of Commerce Labour Market Insights
Appendix 9: Comparing the Original and Updated Gatsby Benchmarks
Good Career Guidance: Perspectives from the SEND sector (2019)
Good Career Guidance report (2014)