Careers Service

[newspap]

I would like to start a campaign about what is happening to the Careers/Connexions service in this country. Can anyone tell me how to go about it? Does anyone else out there know we are losing it to cuts, slowly and quietly, and our teenagers wont be able to access a service unless they are from a 'priority group'?

I'm sorry to say it newspap but I think most of the connexions services across the UK have already been decimated and now in many schools there is only a connexions service for SEN kids. The govt are proposing a new all age careers service to start sept 2012 (but who will staff this who knows, as many excellent advisers have already lost their jobs), also there is new govt legislation coming in to say that from sept 2012, all LEA's won't have direct funding to provide a careers service free to schools, and that all schools/colleges will have to buy the service from the LEA. Any existing connexions services (and there aren't that many whole services left) will probably face more severe cuts. Unfortunately the tories don't think that any young people are entitled to any careers advice from independent trained specialists, who have young people's bests interests at heart. The reality is many schools will buy in a cheaper alternative or delegate this job to someone in school, who is not trained as a careers advisor and is not impartial. Connexions have been left in a very sorry state indeed. There is a facebook group-connexions services need to unite, and many MP's have been approached by connexions staff and the MP's have raised concerns in the house of commons but to no avail. If there are any impartial connexions staff left they only have funded jobs until Aug 2012, after that who knows what will happen.

The government have talked about an ' All Age Careers Service' which in reality looks like it will be a website. Support in schools will only be for targeted pupils. All other pupils will have to make important decisions without the help of careers specialists. Often, FE and 6th form colleges only want to sell their courses, rather than looking at what would best suit the student. Teachers' knowledge of FE and University is often limited and sometimes out of date, and teachers simply do not have the time to cover careers in the 3.2 minutes they have spare in form time. When students are paying £9000 a year for a degree, they need to choose the right one.
By the time the promised 'all age careers service' comes on board we won't have any trained advisors left. I have a degree, a masters, an NVQ 4 in Guidance, and Postgraduate Diploma in Careers Education. Schools will be allowed to employ less qualified staff at a lower rate - but everyone needs to remember, its your children they will be advising!

I agree! It's an outrage that at a time when Youth Unemployment is at an all time high Connexions/Careers Service is being decimated. Websites and call centres are no replacement for face to face independent, impartial advice and guidance from a trained professional. We will pay the price for this in years to come, unfortunately by the time the impact of these cuts are realised it will be too late for the teenagers that are being failed NOW!