Careers
Promoting a career development culture is an essential part of the vision and values of Uplands Academy. We aim to support the aspirations of all our learners and to ensure that they gain the understanding, skills and experience they need to make progress and succeed in learning and work.
We believe that effective careers education and guidance not only contributes to the well-being of individuals but also to the wellbeing of their families, the communities to which they belong, wider society, businesses and the economy.
Our Careers Team
Careers Programme and Support
Uplands Academy has a high-quality Careers Education Information Advice and Guidance (CEIAG) programme for all students in Years 7- 11, which aims to raise the aspirations of all students whilst being tailored to individual needs. The programme will inform students of the range of opportunities available to them, encouraging them to aim higher and make choices relevant to what they feel they can achieve.
- Opportunities to engage with a range of local businesses, apprenticeship and training providers (provider access statement link)
- Extensive careers resources, encounters and useful websites
- Economical and work/life balance awareness sessions delivered through our holistic PSHE curriculum
- Year 9 Options taster sessions/days to support with career choices
- Optional access to independent and impartial advisors via group sessions and a referral system, including one to one advice and careers interviews.
- Professionally guided workshops aimed at highlighting and improving employability skills, including writing effective applications, covering letters and CVs
- Mentoring and Leadership opportunities, including within our own student council
- Life in the workplace advice and guidance
- Understanding the job seeking process
- Careers Fairs, UCAS support and employer taster days
- Annual careers evening – open to years 9 and above, attended by a variety of employers and industry speakers
Programme Review and Measuring Impact
Our careers programme is self-evaluated three times per year via the Compass+ evaluation tool, provided by the East Sussex Enterprise Hub with a focus on the eight Gatsby Benchmarks. In addition, regular feedback from our key stakeholders is used to contribute to the ongoing review and development of our careers programme to ensure it meets the needs of all students.
Please see our Careers Education Programme overview below.
Throughout the year our students have a number of opportunities to engage in activities to further support their careers pathway and choices. These include:
- Careers in the creative industries (assembly)
- Careers in law and the Civil Service (assembly)
- Careers in Medicine (assembly)
- Post-16 Provider’s marketplace
- Presentation by Plumpton College
- Careers in Finance (employer encounter with Bank of England)
- Finding out about apprenticeships (presentation and workshops delivered by ASK)
- Post-16 destinations (workshop with the Youth Employability Service)
- Visit from Brighton and Hove Medical School
- Visit to East Sussex College
- Visit from North Kent College
- Careers Evening (featuring 12 different industry speakers)
- iCAN SEND Careers Fair
We are excited to be launching our work experience programme at the end of this year for Year 11. Our programme will aim to ensure that all students have had at least one first-hand experience of a workplace by the age of 16, additional to any part time jobs they may have. Further details will be available in due course.
We invite our former students to share their achievements and career journeys through our alumni network. Throughout the year, our students have several opportunities to meet our alumni and listen to insights about their careers to help guide and motivate the next generation of Uplands students.
For more information about our alumni network, please contact our Head of Personal Development lharrison@uplands-academy.org
We have provided some useful weblinks below for where you can find some additional advice and guidance.
Helping young people make education and career choices Helping young people make education and career choices | National Careers Service
Post 16 options Post 16 options | National Careers Service
Post 18 options Post 18 options | National Careers Service
Getting a job Careers advice | National Careers Service
How2Become - UK's Leading Career, Recruitment & Educational Specialist
Uplands Academy believes in giving FE, HE, and training providers the opportunity to talk to students at the school. Please see our Provider Access Statement to see more information.
We engage with local employers, businesses and professional networks, inviting visiting speakers, to inspire our students, particularly alumni with whom students can relate to. We organise activities such as careers talks and fairs, transition skills sessions, CV writing workshops, mock interviews and employability workshops.
If you are interested in supporting our students as part of our career programme, please contact Mr Cunningham in the first instance:
