Coventry and Warwickshire announced as Careers Hubs to help transform careers education

Coventry and Warwickshire are to become two of 20 Careers Hubs, following an announcement from the Secretary of State. The expansion of the successful hub model follows news last year that careers support is improving across England and is now strongest in disadvantaged areas.

The Coventry and Warwickshire Careers Hubs will give every school and college in the area the opportunity to work together with universities, training providers, employers and career professionals. Each Hub brings together a group of up to 40 schools and colleges to improve careers support for young people in their area, through a relentless focus on best practice. 

These are the first Hubs to be established in the area and the Warwickshire Careers Hub will be integrated with Warwickshire County Council's Skills for Employment Programme to provide a co-ordinated and coherent approach to careers activity in the county.

In September, The Careers & Enterprise Company launched the first 20 Careers Hubs across England.

Schools and colleges in this first wave of Careers Hubs are already outperforming the national average across all aspects of careers education nationally. After two terms, schools and colleges which are part of the first wave of Hubs are:

• outperforming the national average on every single one of the eight Gatsby Benchmarks of good careers guidance
• the majority (58%) are providing every student with regular encounters with employers
• the majority (52%) are providing every student with workplace experiences such as work experience, shadowing or workplace visits

The announcement today is for a second wave of 18 new and two expanded Careers Hubs, backed by a further £2.5m investment. Just over 1,300 secondary schools and colleges (around a quarter of those in England) will now benefit from being part of a Careers Hub.

Schools and colleges will have access to support and funding, including an expert ‘Hub Lead’ to help coordinate activity and build networks, a central fund to support employer engagement activities, and training for a ‘Careers Leader’ in each school and college.

Employers are vital to the Hub model’s success, with all Hubs required to demonstrate strong engagement amongst local businesses and a clear plan for increasing employer engagement.

As well as support from the CBI, more than 100 ‘Cornerstone Employers’ across the country have committed to driving and championing all-important connections to the world of work. Cornerstone Employers work with a specific Hub and underwrite careers provision in these areas. 

The Careers Hubs are based on a model first piloted by the Gatsby Foundation and the North East Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) from 2015-17. Schools and colleges in the pilot made rapid progress against the Gatsby Benchmarks, and independent evaluation showed increased attainment and career readiness among students.

Monica Fogarty, Chief Executive of Warwickshire County Council, said:

“Warwickshire County Council welcomes this new funding which will build on and expand the work that we have been doing with our schools and colleges for a number of years through our Skills for Employment Programme.

“We know effective careers and employability advice and support are critical components of a successful labour market, while also providing clear social benefits, increasing the likelihood of successful employment outcomes and lifetime earnings.

“Ensuring that all our young people develop strong employability skills, and are provided with effective and appropriate careers advice and support, is a key priority for the County Council.”