What we do

When does a career start? When you have finished school? When you start work?

We Aspire

We Aspire is a career-related learning provider for primary schools, passionate about starting early to inspire children to explore the world of work and get them thinking about what their future careers might be.

Career-related learning helps children to see the relevance of the knowledge and skills they’re developing to the world outside school, giving additional purpose to their learning and increasing motivation. It makes a significant contribution to preparing pupils for a successful transition to secondary school.

"It opens their eyes, helps them to develop a sense of ambition and to understand and motivate them to work hard in school." Mr Dutton, Head Teacher, Wellfield Junior School



How we do it

The Aspirations programme gives children a head start for their futures by helping them to recognise their strengths and starting a conversation about potential careers. The programme is modular and highly interactive, engaging children in group activities and games. It helps them to develop career exploration skills and improve their self-knowledge and self-awareness.

The Aspirations Programme

The national curriculum in England states that "Every state-funded school must offer a curriculum which [..] prepares pupils at the school for the opportunities, responsibilities and experiences of later life."

  • Independent research has shown that this type of career-related learning programme at KS2 can also make a significant contribution to certain learning outcomes as defined in the National Curriculum in England and key Ofsted judgements:
  • How well pupils develop a range of skills, including communication.
  • How pupils are prepared for the next stage of education, training and employment.
  • How pupils behave towards and show respect for other young people and adults.
Would you like to get involved?
Contact us to get more information or to commission the Aspirations programme now: info@we-aspire.co.uk; Follow us on Twitter

“It was very interesting. It made me think about the career I want without directly asking me about it. I will continue to use what I learned from Aspirations programme throughout my life” (Logan, Y6)

Collaboration is the key to success

Preparing children for life is a joint effort between schools, parents, and business and guidance practitioners. If we collaborate we can inspire them to achieve the best possible outcomes for their futures. Consequently, this will benefit society and the economy.

Thank you to all the businesses that encourage their employees to attend our careers fairs.

“Fantastic to see the children gain an understanding of the world of work” Parent (Firs Primary careers fair, 2016)

Schools

Commissioning our Aspirations Programme is a great way to fulfil your school's responsibility for supporting children's understanding of the world of work. The programme is delivered by qualified career guidance practitioners with expert knowledge and a variety of resources and activities to capture the children's imaginations. Our Aspirations Programme is informed by the CDI (Career Development Institute) Framework for Careers, Employability and Enterprise Education for KS2 and covers many elements of the PSHE syllabus, and is specially designed to broaden children's understanding and knowledge about the world of work.

Contact us at
info@we-aspire.co.uk to find out more.

Businesses

Do you want to help children to have a better understanding of the world of work?
Help them to become aware of essential skills and qualities?

Then join us in our effort to give them a head start for their futures!
Collaborating with We Aspire is a great way for you to do this and to engage with the local community to fulfil your Corporate Social Responsibility.

  • How you can get involved:
  • Take part in our Careers Fairs to give children the chance to ask questions about your work and inspire them to explore their own career ideas.
  • Sponsor the Aspirations Programme for a school.

"Young people are less likely to be NEET (Not in Employment, Education or Training) where they had experience of employer engagement activities while at school" Anthony Mann, 2012.

Parents

We all have the best intentions for helping children achieve their potential and have a happy and successful life.

So how can you help your child?
Start the conversation with your child about what you wanted to be when you grew up and the work that you do now or did in the past. Encourage your child to take up activities and hobbies to develop their strengths. Talk about useful skills and how these are important in any job. Encourage your child's school to commission our Aspirations Programme, and volunteer to talk about your work at the careers fair.

Children

We Aspire wants to give you an opportunity to explore who you are and learn more about the world of work.
You:
Do you know what you want to do when you are older? Do you know what you are good at? What things you like to do? What you are not so keen on?
Work:
Which skills are used in different jobs? What's good about work? What's not so good?

If your school commissions our Aspirations Programme we will help you answer these questions and more.

DO NOT BE AFRAID to ask grown-ups you know questions about their work. You will be amazed how much you can learn from someone's experiences.

"We Aspire empowers children to take control of their learning and their futures."

Who we are

Nursel Tok is a qualified Careers Guidance practitioner and a founder of We Aspire. She is passionate about giving children a head start for their futures by helping them develop a sound understanding of their talents and strengths and the world of work while they are exploring their future career aspirations.
Nursel wears many hats, from the delivery of the programme to the promotion, marketing and development of all aspects of the Aspirations programme and services.
She is a member of the Career Development Institute.