 Jonathan Kestenbaum, CEO, NESTA
Reading, writing and arithmetic, are no longer enough when young people are setting out on their careers today. Career pathways are also less straightforward than ever before, with more people having a series of different jobs in their lifetime.
Combine these factors and we come to a situation where we need to equip our next generation workforces with a new flexible set of skills that can’t always be learnt in the classroom. As a result the need for work experience or work-related learning opportunities is now greater than ever.
Innovation
NESTA, the National Endowment for Science, Technology and the Arts (NESTA) in partnership with the National Institute of Economic and Social Research (NIESR) have released a report ‘Delivering Work-Related Learning For an Innovation Nation’ (available at www.nesta.org.uk), which shows us clearly that work experiences within small businesses, where opportunities to learn entrepreneurial and innovative skills exist, are critical factors in the world of work today.
The types of skills required in today’s workforce extend beyond traditional qualifications to areas such as communication, team-work, problem-solving and risk-taking. These are the types of skills that too often set successful business apart from the rest.
Schools and local business
The first step to providing valuable work-related learning opportunities is to establish strong relationships between schools and local business. Together they can identify and create unique work experiences that will provide benefits far beyond the up-skilling of the young people involved.
The benefits of work-related learning opportunities to both students and businesses are many. Introducing young people to business environments can result in a range of positive outcomes including strengthening key economic sectors, invigorating communities and developing successful private, public and third sector enterprises.
Businesses are also given a rare opportunity to spot and develop future workplace talent, utilise and develop fresh ideas for their businesses, and take a hands-on role in tailoring the curriculum of young people involved in the study or their sector.
Educational programmes
To show how work-related programmes can work, NESTA, in partnership with the Department for Children, Schools and Families, has launched a series of work-related educational programmes across some schools in the UK.
These will expose 14-19 year olds to sectors representing the most innovative growth areas of the economy - the creative industries, the third sector and the rural economy. As part of this, young people will work closely with local businesses to get ‘real-time’ experience of entrepreneurship and innovation.
Shaping future career paths
The programmes – Connexions in Cheshire and Warrington; Future Foundations in Greater London and Real Ideals based in Devon, Bristol and Cornwall have been developed by local employers, schools and young people. They will be involved in authentic business experiences such as pitching for work, negotiating and communicating and delivering products and services to deadlines.
The young people taking part in these pilot programmes will be given an opportunity to experience and test their technological, innovative thinking and social enterprising skills, which will ultimately help shape their future career paths.
This programme is vital in showing young people how they could set up a small business at school or help a small firm locally to resolve marketing dilemmas. In time, this programme could transform and enhance the traditional curriculum setting a new benchmark for developing a flexible and dynamic workforce for the UK.
We’re living in a fast paced world of constant change and innovation. By maintaining this pace through quality work-related learning we can help ensure that the future world of work is meaningful, inspiring, and sustainable.
About the Work Related Learning Programmes
The three programmes are: Connexions Cheshire and Warrington; Future Foundations in Greater London and Real Ideals based in Devon, Bristol and Cornwall.
Connexions Cheshire and Warrington
Connexions Cheshire and Warrington will allow employers made up of the Corporate and Public Sector, SMEs and Sole traders from the Creative Industries to work as a network for carrying out Creative Courses aimed at 14-19 year olds in the local area. The courses will involve live work projects on a ‘commissioned’ basis with authentic business interactions.
Future Foundations in Greater London
Future Foundations in Greater London will develop a new approach for work related learning that is created and managed by young people, and will help third sector organisations. University students and school pupils will work together in flexible project teams that will work remotely through online portals to set up their own third sector organisations.
Real Ideas based in Devon, Bristol and Cornwall
Real Ideas based in Devon, Bristol and Cornwall is a partnership with Kingsbridge Community College in south Devon; Brislington School in Bristol; and Eye 2 Eye, a young photographic agency in Cornwall. Together they will each identify groups of 14 to 18 year olds to work with NESTA and industry partners Matt Pontin, a freelance photographer developing a social enterprise; and Spike Island, a design business incubator in Bristol operating as a social enterprise. The partnership will build online and physical marketplaces for the small scale products and services the young people will develop. It will also develop a marketing toolkit for young creative social entrepreneurs and a work related learning programme for creative social enterprises.
Delivering Work-Related Learning For an Innovation Nation
‘Delivering Work-Related Learning For an Innovation Nation’ argues that in a rapidly changing economy and society, Work Related Learning needs to help young people learn as much about the future as the present world of work. New jobs will be differently structured and are most likely to be found in innovative growth areas of the economy. This is as true of the third sector or public sector as the private sector.
The report looks at three innovative growth sectors in the UK’s economy. The Creative Industries has grown by 6 per cent per year between 1997 and 2005 and is the largest creative economy in the European Union in terms of GDP; the Third Sector consists of an estimated 170,000 registered charities in England and Wales with combined revenues of over £44.5 billion and the Rural Economy is currently experiencing a period of intense challenges, stimulating the development of new products, processes, services and business models.
The full report is available at: www.nesta.org.uk
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