This week I am writing to you at the end of a very busy and successful week at St Peter’s Prep School. This has included our first duathlon appearance for Year 4 pupils, continued swimming lessons, cricket matches and Sports Day preparation work. The end of year drama productions have started their rehearsals in earnest; around every corner you turn at school you can hear showstoppers being belted out! Keep up the hard work and effort, St Peter’s pupils; it will be so worth it.
However, it is the Careers events that have stolen the show and dominated the week.
The purpose of the week is outlined below:
- A job is a job and when you need money you sometimes have to graft really hard for it! A starting job may not be what you want to do, or indeed, end up doing. Speakers referred to their earliest experiences of work so that the children could see that everyone starts work somewhere to gain experience.
- To know that no career needs to last a lifetime in 2022. Career paths can change and grow as you change and grow.
- Jobs can challenge societal norms. You would think that in 2022 stereotypes would have moved on from the 80s, but I fear they have not moved far enough. Hopefully, this week has helped them to do just that.
The programme has been:
| Speaker | Career Presentations |
| A Darbey | Physcology and criminology – being a police dog trainer and handler |
| M Simms | Being an Army Doctor |
| R Sinclair | From TV to Airbnb – a fresh approach to being in business |
| R Beckett | Working at the Met office – STEM for all |
| A Gilles | Being a GP |
| A Robbins | The missing entrepreneurial spirit |
| K Cowman | From jewellery design with Swarovski to cyber security |
| T Haygarth | The chiropractor |
| D Swallow | The forgotten food industry |
| C Richman | Pharmaceutical industry and how to completely retrain later in life |
| H Plumridge | The world of Recruitment |
| M Trueman | Cyber Security – IT Tools for the job |
| C Hamel | Professional Musician |
Pupil feedback and follow-up work have been extraordinary:
‘I loved the career talks. All of them. My favourite was about the Met office and also the one about how to be an entrepreneur’.
‘Our favourite was the police dog: Merlin was ace. How does he learn everything so quickly? The lady was SO brave with him.’
‘My Dad really surprised me. He was one of the career speakers and he was funny, interesting and kind of embarrassing! Eating all the cakes makes me think I might work in the food industry myself!’
‘I did not have a favourite speaker – I loved them all – but the Army Medic really interested me – it has certainly made me think all week that employment is a really rather exciting prospect of the future which I had not thought about before.’
I would personally like to say a massive THANK YOU to all the Careers guest speakers across this week. It was an absolute pleasure to host you on site. The positive impact that you have had on our pupils from Nursery to Year 8 has been significant. It is these types of events where we see our charges really come to life and shine. Remember, you kids:
I will leave you with the best photo of the week. Here is our local legend and hero, William M receiving his Excellence Certificate and Jubilee award for being the bravest and most determined pupil during his return to school.
Lucy Ball
Deputy Head, Teaching and Learning
