🛠️ Early and Inclusive Work Experience Reform

What is the issue?
Young people across the UK often face their first job or placement without having had any structured preparation or hands-on exposure to real work environments. The current model of work experience is inconsistent, limited in duration, and often reduced to shadowing or low-value tasks. This fails to prepare young people for the emotional and practical realities of employment — especially those who are not already connected through family or social networks.

What is being proposed?

1. Structured and progressive work exposure
   Introduce early and repeated exposure to work environments starting in Year 6/7, with inspiration and away days, followed by structured placements beginning in Year 9 and continuing through Years 10–11. This creates space to build confidence, skills, and informed choices over time.

2. Diversify the concept of 'work experience'
   Recognise that valuable exposure includes inspiration days, site visits, shadowing professionals, and even short-term collaborations — not just unpaid week-long placements. All formats should be valid and meaningful.

3. Build networks between schools and employers
   Establish long-term, local partnerships between schools and employers so young people gain access to real workplaces and role models. This includes industries not traditionally represented in schools.

4. Define and embed 'careers education'
   Ensure that schools begin career education as early as Key Stage 2, introducing not only job roles but also skills like resilience, teamwork, and navigating challenges, as reflected in the play. Learning should connect dreams to action.

5. Address inequality of access and support
   Create support mechanisms — transport, mentoring, follow-up — so that work experience is not limited to those with parental support or personal networks. This includes recognising the emotional labour young people face when entering hostile or disempowering work environments.

Reactions from the play that support this proposal:

• Young people showed a lack of preparedness and confidence when entering real-world jobs.

• Many were unsupported by their families or schools, and found existing websites and tools unhelpful.

• Characters expressed frustration at feeling unheard and unaware of their rights, or ending up in dead-end placements.

• Viewers emphasised the importance of relevant, respectful, and empowering work environments as part of career discovery.

Who would be responsible?

• Department for Education

• Local education authorities

• Schools and academy trusts

• Employer networks and local enterprise partnerships

• Youth organisations and mentoring programmes

Expected benefits:

• Stronger career confidence from a younger age

• Broader awareness of future pathways and job sectors

• More equitable access to meaningful work experiences

• Better preparation for transitions into employment or further study

• Reduced stress, confusion, and mismatches in post-16 choices