In-school employment activities with Access Aspiration

Bradley Hession is the Mayor’s Fund for London’s School Project Manager, supporting students aged 16-18 to gain opportunities to enhance their careers through our Access Aspiration programme. Bradley reflects on our in-school career talks that have been taking place in schools across London.

This Spring Term we’ve delivered a bumper series of in-school talks with over 600 students taking part. Our speakers come with relatable stories and backgrounds helping motivate students, supporting them in understanding the roles they can aspire to as well as teaching essential employability skills. These talks enable young people to engage with potential future employers, make key connections and gain invaluable insight into the world of work. We are tremendously proud to continue to support young Londoners to boost their employability skills as well as gain more clarity on their next career steps.

Each of our in-school activities could not have been completed without our valued corporate partners. Through our partnerships, we are Bridging the Gap between the world of work and young people in education. Thank you to each one of our partners who have supported our in-school activities this year and made a positive impact on students’ lives. Our thanks also go out to schools for showing a great eagerness to work with us to support their sixth-form students. We’re proud to work with all of you.

90% of student participants agree that in-school activities have enabled them to gain more connections and helped them to understand where to look for career opportunities. At one of our recent mock interviews, one student demonstrated the success of Access Aspiration and that exposure it gives to our corporate partners saying: “It was really nice to be able to talk to the interviewer… she was really amazing and told me about her life working in the City, which is my dream. Overall, it was great!”

1,500 students have now taken part in 10,000 hours of careers education and employability sessions since September through our Access Aspiration programme including these speaker sessions, mock interviews and students going into businesses experiencing work.

Thank you once again to all our partners involved so far this year.

If you’re a London employer looking to widen your reach and impact get in contact we would love to hear from you. Please email our Business Engagement Manager Poonam pgill@mayorsfundforlondon.org.uk