A school defied coronavirus challenges to prepare its students for their future careers by holding a week of work experience and employability activities.

Shirebrook Academy pulled out all the stops to send its Year 10 students out to work for local companies, participate in work-related activities, and take part in online sessions, all in a bid to give them an insight into the world of work.

The academy said the ongoing pandemic crisis means many schools have abandoned their efforts to arrange work experience and employability projects for their students because of local firms’ understandable reluctance to host them or come on site.

However, although the numbers of students who undertook work experience with companies was down, the academy was able to send a third of the year group into the community to work at firms while the rest stayed at school during the World of Work week event.

Those who went to other places ended up working for family and friends at a range of businesses, including a hairdresser, building firms and a T-shirt printing company, while one group undertook a manual handling training course delivered by HME Training, based at the Tangent Business Park, Shirebrook.

Another group of students took part in a coaching course held by Derby County, which included a session at the club’s Pride Park home and a stadium tour.

Others put together packaged afternoon tea treats for residents at the Richmond Care Home, which is next door to the academy.

In school, students took part in mock interviews and joined an online business workshop with leading educator and Channel 4 Gogglebox star Baasit Siddiqui.

The activities was organised by the school’s personal development co-ordinator Tracy Horton, who had to use plenty of contacts, persistence and imagination to put the week of work together.

She said: “The pandemic continued to have an impact on numbers during the week and many of the companies we usually work with weren’t able to participate, but overall it was extremely successful.

“I am very grateful to the individuals and companies who got involved.

“We weren’t able to do anything like this last year for our Year 10s and it was a real shame because these activities teach students so many skills that they don’t get access to in school, like how to plan and co-ordinate a project, team-work and liaising with people in the workplace.

“It’s all extremely valuable and I have no doubt that it has helped them to start thinking about what they would like to do as a career and inspired them to find out more about whatever it is they’d like to do.”

ABOVE: Students from Shirebrook Academy took part in a coaching course and visited Derby County’s Pride Park stadium as part of their involvement in the school’s week of work experience and employability activities.