Recently Adviza’s BEEP team worked in partnership with a local employer, Advantage Smollan Group/Powerforce to create a fun, engaging and inspirational employer experience day for local special educational needs (SEN) students. The aim of the day was to support the students in raising aspirations and developing their awareness and self-confidence.

It was a fantastic example of our employer partnerships in action, and an insight into the many ways local employers can work with Adviza’s various regional employability programmes.

How it happened: a case study

Individuals from an Advantage Smollan project team reached out to Adviza via our website, after being challenged by their senior leadership team to do a piece of work to support the local community.

Adam Barnard from Advantage Smollan told us, “In our 2022 summer conference we were challenged by the wider business to present initiatives that we would like to see the business support in 2023 and beyond, ensuring they covered key touchpoints such as community and environment. What was evident from the submissions is the amount of people that were passionate about giving back to others in the community who require more support from others to get themselves into the workplace.”

We wanted to show people the workplace isn’t scary and to make it a fun, engaging and supportive place to come.

BEEP Project Coordinator, Jemma Disney, met with the project team to discuss how Adviza could collaborate with them to create an experience that would support a specific group of SEN students. We agreed that an employer experience day, being both interactive and inspirational, would help raise the aspirations of the group. The Advantage Smollan Team created a presentation pitch to its senior leadership team, which included a video filmed by Jemma. The pitch was approved.

The team at Advantage Smollan created a full day’s schedule for the SEN students, which included activities focusing on self-awareness and employability skills. Adviza staff supported the process by attending Advantage Smollan team meetings, providing feedback and sharing student needs so that the day could be catered for and managed in a way that would ensure their comfort.

As Adam says, “We felt passionate about creating something which was giving back to people who require more support from others to get themselves into the workplace. A lot of this comes down to confidence and self-belief, so we wanted to show people the workplace isn’t scary and to make it a fun, engaging and supportive place to come.”

The experience day

It was truly fantastic and wholesome to see the smiles on the students’ faces...The feedback from the school support staff and assistant head teacher was fantastic and gave us the encouragement we needed to continue with this partnership.

To begin with, and to set the tone for the day, there was an icebreaker exercise which encouraged students to work together as a team. The students moved onto building spaghetti towers and were proud to receive badges for their achievements.

The next activity, called Colours, was an interactive exercise that used Lego to develop self-awareness and help each student understand what type of learner they are—with different learning styles associated with different colours of Lego.

This exercise was used as a recurring motif throughout the day as staff shared stories linked to the “colour” their own learning styles corresponded to. It helped to bring learning styles to life for the students, who were intrigued by how different styles translate into the workplace. Their new knowledge also helped them understand their own attributes, and how they could apply them to a certain job role.

The students then moved onto an activity called Jungle Survival, which challenged them to develop their problem-solving skills. The students came to understand why certain decisions were made within the task and—with more continuity from the Colours workshop—how this influenced and related to their personality types and learning styles.

Adam, who led this piece of work, said, “It was truly fantastic and wholesome to see the smiles on the students’ faces. We tried to ensure the sessions were relevant, interactive and short to ensure engagement remained high, and I think we certainly saw that reflected in the student participation throughout the day. The feedback from the school support staff and assistant head teacher was fantastic and gave us the encouragement we needed to continue with this partnership.”

Creating rapport and a lasting impression

Lunch was very popular with the students: they enjoyed fresh pizza and had the opportunity to build rapport with the Advantage Smollan staff as they shared what they had achieved in the morning sessions. The staff took a genuine interest in the students and their hobbies, which made the students feel at ease. They interacted enthusiastically—something they would normally find a challenge.

The afternoon consisted of a CV-building workshop which aimed to help students identify their skills. Delivered in a practical way that incorporated fun activities which enhanced student learning, it was a great session with high energy levels and enthusiastic presenters who ensured the students enjoyed it.

At the end of the day the students received boxes of goodies to take away with them; a great memento of an already-memorable day for them, and one that was made possible thanks to huge energy and passion and a fantastic and warm welcome from the Advantage Smollan team.

Conclusion: changing perception and losing fear

It was a great collaborative approach and we are delighted with the outcome.

The experience day demonstrated to these SEN students that the workplace can be fun. It gave them a confidence boost and an understanding that the world of work is something that they can aspire to.

Each of the sessions were well-structured, planned and executed, and designed with the needs of the students in mind. The welcome the students received made them feel at ease from the very beginning of the day. The enthusiasm and energy levels of the trainers and Advantage Smollan staff were fantastic throughout the day.

Adam says, “It was important we were giving back to the community and to those who need more support than others. Having a group like Adviza (Jemma Disney & James Hobson) really helped us ensure the commitment and numbers were there to do it in the first place. The Adviza team really supported the planning by visiting the office to meet the team and also to ensure our content and agenda was hitting the sweet spot. It was a great collaborative approach and we are delighted with the outcome.”

 

Calling Employers in Berks and Bucks!

Learn more about how you can get involved with Adviza’s employability programmes in these regions by emailing us.

Berkshire Education Employer Partnership (BEEP): [email protected]

Buckinghamshire Skill Up Bucks (SUB): [email protected]

 

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