Transcript Work Experience

Work Experience 2015
Dates of Work Experience 2015
Monday 20th to Friday 24th April
Choosing where to go…
Any local employer can be approached to provide a work
experience placement as long as:
The employer has BOTH
Public Liability Insurance
and
Employer’s Liability Insurance
(this will be checked)
and
The paperwork is returned to school by
the deadline date
The choosing of an employer and the application
process are important parts of the overall work
experience programme
Past experience has proven that placements
organised by students (with or without
assistance from parents), have a very high
success rate compared to placements
organised for students by school
Therefore, students are
responsible for finding their
own work experience
placement
(With
needed)
With assistance from a parent/guardian if needed
Can students attend placements
outside of Exeter?
Placements outside of Exeter are possible - but
only with early planning
(This is due to the extra time involved in organising relevant Health & Safety checks)
Students also need to consider the additional
travelling time and costs involved
Work placements outside of Devon are discouraged
due to the additional Heath & Safety/Risk Assessment
requirements and costs
Should a student choose to organise a placement outside
of Devon, paperwork absolutely must be returned well
before the deadline and any additional costs will need to
be met by a parent/guardian
These costs vary depending on the part of the Country but can range from £50 to £150+
Work Experience placements out of the
country are not possible
What is Veryan Webview?
The Veryan Webview database is compiled by the
Devon Education Business Partnership, the
organisation who ensures all placements meet
current health & safety legislation
The database has details of all the local employers
who have accepted work experience placements in
the past
Students are strongly encouraged to use this
database for assistance if they are unsure which local
employer to contact
(instructions and logon details for access to this database
are included in the booklet)
How are applications made?

Mail shot
Some students find a ‘mail shot’ approach successful – posting application
letters early then choosing which placement to attend if they receive
more than one positive response
(a guideline to writing a letter of application is included in the booklet)

Telephone
Other students prefer to telephone employers to enquire whether they
could offer a placement, and then follow up positive telephone responses
with a more formal letter enclosing the paperwork

Word of Mouth
Very often students find placements through contacts such as family
friends, older siblings, neighbours etc.
Whichever approach you feel will work best for
you, please ensure that you do it as soon as
possible to avoid disappointment as some
employers are popular choices for students, and so
operate a ‘first come, first served’ system of
acceptance
A word of warning
Almost every year there are a number of students who receive
verbal agreement from an employer, but fail to ‘see it through’
and get the paperwork completed… the employers then
accepted other students in their place
MAKE SURE THE
PLACEMENT IS 100%
FINALISED AND SECURE BY
GETTING THE PAPERWORK
COMPLETED AND
RETURNED TO SCHOOL AS
SOON AS POSSIBLE
Please be aware…
There are several employers in the Exeter locality
with whom students have had very little success
securing placements for general work experience
week. These include:
◦ The Met Office
◦ The Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital / GP surgeries
◦ Scientific placements
◦ Sporting Goods retailers
This is for various reasons (including
confidentiality and insurance issues) but it is fairer
to point this out to students rather than have
many disappointed if negative responses are sent
back to school
Students should also be aware that the following
services organise their own work experience weeks at
various times in the school year:
◦ Armed Services
◦ The Devon & Cornwall Constabulary and the Fire Service
◦ Royal Devon & Exeter Hospital
These opportunities will be advertised through tutors
but students should be aware that attending these
organisations for general work experience week will,
very likely, not be possible
What paperwork is involved?
There are two important pieces of
paperwork that need to be included with
letters of application to employers:
Employer’s Confirmation
Form
and
Risk Assessment Form
Employer’s Confirmation Form
The student’s name and the dates of
work experience are to be entered
by the student prior to sending this
form to their chosen employer. The
employer will complete the rest of
the form before returning it to
school
This form will give students all the
information they need for their first
day on placement (hours, what to
wear etc.)
Risk Assessment Form
The top half of this form
requires completion and
signature by a
parent/guardian stating any
information about their child
they feel an employer should
be made aware of
The employer will then
complete the bottom half of
this form and return it to
school with the Employer’s
Confirmation Form
Paperwork continued…
The final item which should be included
with the student’s letter to employers is a
copy of a letter from the school
explaining the work experience program in
more detail
Completed paperwork
Once the completed paperwork is sent back
to school by the employer, it will be
photocopied and copies sent home for
parents/students information
The deadline for paperwork to be returned to
school by employers is
Fri
th
6
Feb 2015
This then allows sufficient time to inspect any
employers who do not have current valid Health
& Safety checks prior to school breaking up for
the Easter break
What is a Health & Safety check?
All work placements are Health & Safety checked
by an organisation called the Devon Education
Business Partnership (DEBP)
The DEBP carry out premises inspections and
ensure the necessary insurance requirements are
in place for every placement
These checks are a safeguard to ensure the safety
and welfare of students on work experience
placements and are non-negotiable
Without clearance from the
DEBP, school cannot allow
placements to go ahead –
even with parental
permission
Difficulties…
Unfortunately, there is no such thing as a list of available and
confirmed placements to distribute to students.
If a student is having genuine difficulty finding a placement,
of course school can assist them, however, finding
‘acceptable’ placements for all students would be a full time,
year-round role. Therefore, if students require assistance,
they must please appreciate that they would have to accept
the first available placement found for them by a member of
school staff and they will be expected to attend the
placement for the entire week.
Point to note, it is actually more challenging for school to find placements
than students/parents as some employers automatically refuse applications
made by school on behalf of students!
….and finally!
All the paperwork mentioned is available for you to
take away this evening. There is also a checklist
bulleting the basic steps of applying for a work
experience placement on the back of the booklet
THANK YOU
for your support in attending this evening