Y11 2025-26 Final exams are here. Now we wait….

[UncomfortableSilence]

New thread for all things Y11, did they cook or are they cooked. We will find out in 10 weeks😉

@Caddycati don’t think so. The old rules used to be as long as you had your national insurance number which gets sent when they’re around 15 1/2

It depends on the job as well.

My DC all did a paper round from the age of 13. I think that's the only role you are allowed to do as young as that tho. Also hahah you need to live somewhere with oldies who still take the paper!

To work in a pub or similar you need to be 18 as a rule (tho it depends on the role and the pub I think – pot washer may be fine). But DS2 was offered summer shifts at his year 10 work exp place (a leisure venue, not a pub) that summer when he was only 15. On a casual basis tho. And IIRC a lad in my form had a casual job (at a wedding venue so quite seasonal) from the age of about 14/15.

I don’t understand the logic in this at all. Where is the risk?!

I guess it is the staff, the food, the travel to get to the venue? I am not actually sure. We never got told, just that they had to cancel as it was too dangerous

Livery yards allow kids to work much younger than 16 (if you're in the Pony Club you're even allowed to work from 11 😬 but 13 otherwise).

My daughter did a bit of work at a pub at 14/15 but only to wash dishes (which she hated and said was disgusting 😂) but not allowed anywhere near customers or alcohol. We just saw the "staff wanted" sign outside and she asked if they'd have her.

I think best thing to do is make a CV and just take it round to various places - cafes, shops etc and also email it around. Some just ignore you but some do respond.

Stupid question but what useful stuff can they put on CVs at this age? DD did DofE so some volunteering with that but not something like working in a charity shop or something else that directly relates to a kind of job she is likely to be after. It was along the lines of litter picking / nature surveys rather than helping at a particular organisation with a contact who could vouch for her. I'm so out of touch with how this all works. I'd struggle to know what she could put down that would be relevant for any customer service or food prep/service style job.

helicopter @Caddycat?! I thought I was being generous giving DD money for an Uber home!

I can assure you at our city state comp no one will be arriving my helicopter!
Id be very annoyed if prom cancelled having spent £200 on dress, shoes and due hair and nails. And that’s a fraction of what some people I know off have spent

DD has done hers for work experience. She's put in her gcses predicted grades, her volunteering at her dance school and in school (and elaborated on this), her dance grades and big productions she was in, and languages spoken. We've now added the work experience from y10. We've added a photo to fill the page a little ;-)

Hhaha we added a photo to fill the page too 😂

I had a super proud mum moment last night. DS did his third shift in the local pub and was dreading going as it was obviously so hot. I managed to persuade him he had to go and he did so well, we went in to watch the game and he was dripping with sweat on glass duty but he did it! We got lots of lovely comments about him too which was a delight to hear after the utter grumpiness at home.

I was really surprised at how much he's allowed to do in the pub. He can take orders as long as they are on card (the pub is full table service), he can serve food and booze, and clean up. The only thing he can't do is actually pour out the alcohol.

I also laughed when one of the barmen asked if he was home from uni. He was stunned when I said he'd just finished GCSEs.

It all a bit strange. You can serve alcohol at 16 and 17 if it’s as part of a meal, but not on its own. And you can’t sell it at a supermarket without getting the each transaction checked. Was great fun for my daughter age 17 on the tills at Sainsbury’s on Xmas Eve last year!

Very sad for the kids having proms cancelled, especially at an aircon venue! The only reason I could think of is if they're worried kids would be drinking and going to after parties - combo of alcohol and heat could be very dangerous.

DD enjoyed induction day, she said it was all things she knew but there were a lot of externals there and it was nice to meet the ones she got to talk to.

Other than that she's currently ploughing through series of The Mentalist.

DS went to his support meeting at college today. I couldn't go so DH went with him and it seems to have been positive but getting any real info out of either of them is a struggle. He also has some sort of taster day coming up that he seems to be looking forward to so now we just really need to hope he gets the results he needs.

DD has just done 3 sixth form induction days, one at her current school (safety choice in case is all goes wrong, but she is desperate to leave as they still make them wear uniform), and 2 at other highly regarded sixth forms. It was a bad week for it as she is still exhausted after finishing last week, leavers and prom stuff and it has been hotter than the surface of the sun in London this week and 2 of the schools involved multiple bus/tube rides. Today is the first proper day of the school holidays and she looks a bit shellshocked.

@coffeeagogo I feel you. DD was very reluctant to go to a potential taster day today but I told her she should as she's away next week and missing all the others. I haven't seen her yet but got a message saying it was "sooo nice" which I'm pleased with.

DS had his first glass collecting shift last night. It was a bonkers bingo event. His eyes have been well and truly opened! 🙈😂 I hope those that were wanting jobs over the summer are managing to find something its so hard these days I really feel for them.

DTs did induction day yesterday at sixth form. Bridging work set seems like it’s only a few hrs. DT who is planning to do psychology (and this is a new subject for her) was pleasantly suprised some of the bridging work is to watch some named films, tv shows and listen to a podcast. So apart from the aforementioned bridging work we are all done her till results on the 20th which seem a long time away.

Hope you’re all coping in the heat! DD had prom Thursday night, it was 37 degrees here and I thought she was going to pass out during her blow dry.

They all had a lovely time though we didn’t get as many pics at home as we would have liked due to the heat in the garden.

Well done to those completing taster days and who have got jobs. DD has two this week and one the following. When DD1 was her age it took months for her to finally find a job, she ended up getting one towards the Christmas of Y12 and stayed there until she got her job at the end of Y13, she absolutely loved it and still talks about it now. I hope DD will be able to find something but like PP have said it is definitely not as easy as it was.

Haha, mine is doing her first proper shift at a kids' soft play today. She doesn't even like kids 😂 but the prospect of getting paid has hopefully made her friendly

She's brave @XelaM! I hope it goes well for her.

DS ran out of pants on holiday. I spotted a clothes shop outside the hotel so had a look and asked if they sold pants. The shopkeeper brightened, said "of course" and brought out a packet of extremely large white Y-fronts. I almost bought them just to troll DS but settled for making him do some hand washing in the sink instead.

DS is sitting beside me watching YouTube videos, and just spent 5 minutes telling me that he had literally nothing that he had to do, and that he was so glad his exams were over 😄.

dd is staying at her school sixth form. She’ll get 6-7 x 45mins lessons per subject per week… is that pretty standard? I guess I assumed she’d have a double lesson of each per day 🤷🏻‍♀️

edited to add: they all start with 4 alevel subjects and then drop one at half term…

Five hours a week is fairly standard (often five x 1 hr lessons obvs). Six x 45 mins is 4.5 hours so that fits. Supposed to do an equal amount of work outside lessons.