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Careers Excellence Seminar 6

Excellence in career-related learning: how can challenging stereotypes support primary pupils to successfully transition into secondary education and beyond?

The Careers & Enterprise Company’s sixth Careers Excellence Seminar will focus on excellence in career-related learning at primary. 

Our research shows that when primary schools are supported by a Careers Hub and provided access to training:

  • School careers provision and leadership commitment improves
  • The influence of stereotypes in pupils falls 
  • Employers want to engage more  

The expert panellists will reflect on the significance of starting early for laying the foundations and smoothing transition between primary and the careers education system in secondary schools. 

By attending the seminar attendees can: 

  • Gain a greater understanding of the value and impact of career-related learning (CRL).
  • Understand more about challenging stereotypes and preparing pupils for transition into secondary education and beyond  
  • Learn about the benefits of taking a holistic and systematic approach to CRL, for example by working within the curriculum and with secondary schools and employers 
  • Be inspired to take action to enhance career-related learning for primary pupils
  • For secondary Careers Leaders, find out about the foundations your feeder schools are laying in the careers space and how you can work with them to support transition into your careers programme.

Don't miss out

Register now to join our sixth Careers Excellence Seminar online:

Wednesday 12 March 2025 | 10:30am - 12:00pm | The Wellcome Collection​

Register

Questions?

Get in touch if you have any questions about the seminar.

Contact us

Meet the panel

Jonathan Baggaley Photo

Jonathan Baggaley - Chairperson

Chief Executive, PSHE Association
The PSHE Association is the national membership body and charity for personal, social, health and economic (PSHE) education, the school subject dedicated to preparing children and young people for life, and work. Jonathan has worked at a national level in education for many years, bringing particular expertise in educating young people about risks, harms and opportunities of online technologies. Besides his CEO role, Jonathan is also founder and editor of Fully Human – the PSHE Association’s research and development arm – and a member of the Ofcom Making Sense of Media Advisory Panel. Jonathan led the Association’s successful efforts to improve PSHE education’s status on the curriculum, and is keen to build on this to ensure every young person gets the careers education they need. 
Abid Hussain

Abid Hussain

Assistant Principal: Student Experience at Boston College
One of Abid's key strategic leadership functions is to ensure students have access to high quality Careers Guidance, driven through the College Careers Strategy. Previously, Abid started off as an ESOL teacher within FE and has held senior leader roles in a variety of colleges. He currently leads several cross college professional services teams including: learner services, SEND, marketing, enrichment, libraries. Abid is passionate about student progression and seeing colleges are at the heart of the community.
Erika Nabeshima Picture

Erika Nabeshima

Primary Personal Development Lead for Ark Schools
Ark Schools is a multi-academy trust comprising 39 schools across London, Birmingham, Hastings, and Portsmouth. In her role, Erika supports 23 primary schools within the network to deliver high-quality personal development provision. With a background in primary education and social justice, she is passionate about equipping students with the knowledge, skills, and character traits needed to thrive both in school and beyond. Erika has been instrumental in driving initiatives to ensure that every school places high aspirations and outstanding careers education at the heart of its provision. She developed the Primary Careers Assessment, aligned with the Gatsby Benchmarks, establishing a strong foundation for careers education across Ark Schools. By leveraging the power of the network, Erika creates meaningful opportunities for pupils to broaden their horizons and aspire to ambitious futures.
John Snell

John Snell

Executive Headteacher at Midsomer Norton Schools Partnership
John is also an educational consultant working closely with charities, businesses and educational settings, both within the UK and internationally, to help provide students and pupils with the very best opportunities for learning and life. He has a real passion for career related learning in primary schools and has seen first hand the power that this has on shaping young lives. With over 25 years working across a range of educational sectors, John has developed a keen interest in identifying innovative ways to provide the very best opportunities for children. He believes in the power of pupil voice and strongly advocates for the early introduction of career-related learning into a child’s school life.
Phoebe Gale Picture

Phoebe Gale

Southern Social Value Manager at Tilbury Douglas
Tilbury Douglas is a construction and engineering company. Phoebe works alongside project teams to embed and deliver quality social value for communities and stakeholders. Phoebe has been a passionate advocate for innovative and fun support for local education providers, delivering a range of activities designed to change perceptions of the construction industry and encourage young people to broaden their career aspirations. Tilbury Douglas supported the Start Small; Dream Big primary pilot, delivering talks, site visits for teaching staff, and workshops for SEND providers through the Virtual World of Work. Phoebe is also an Enterprise Advisor for a local Alternative Provider School, and within her workplace, chairs the Tilbury Douglas Pride Network. Her prior education, volunteering, and employment have all focused on these core values of inclusivity and sustainability.
Sophie Addison

Sophie Addison

Executive Headteacher at Critchill School & SEND/AP Hub Lead
Sophie is Executive Headteacher at Critchill Special School in Frome, where she and colleagues created the ‘Working Futures’ programme, which runs throughout the school, from reception to Post 16. The programme has been instrumental in ensuring that pupils are fully prepared for adulthood and the world of work and employment, including establishing robust links with local employers, a school catering van and a ‘profoundly personalised’ curriculum for each individual pupil, centred around their own individual aspirations. In 2022 Critchill was the first special school in Somerset to achieve the Quality in Careers standard and in 2024 the school's CEIAG offer was deemed ‘exceptional’ by Ofsted.