Business students head for the Capital to experience life at one of the UK’s top employers
Ten students from South West College, Enniskillen headed to London on Monday 29 and Tuesday 30 November to get a taste of life at “Freshfields, Bruckhaus, Deringer”, the international law firm and official legal provider to the London 2012 Olympics Games and one of Britain’s most influential organisations, to boost their employability skills.
The eye-opening visit was part of the annual event, ‘A Capital Experience’, organised by aspiration-raising business-education charity Career Academies UK. The day involved more than 1,500 students, as well as over 50 leading London-based employers.
On Monday, the Business Career Academy students were hosted by “The One Show” at BBC Television Centre, meeting the presenters and production team and receiving an in-depth insight into live television.
On Tuesday, Freshfields, Bruckhaus, Deringer provided the students with a ‘behind the scenes’ look at how the organisation works, including a workplace tour and presentation by Alex Kelham, from the London Organising Committee for the Olympic games 2012.
After the visit, the group made their way to The IndigO2 at the O2 Arena, where they got the chance to network with other young people from across the country taking part in the programme and participated in business-related activities to boost their employability skills, led by motivational speaker Action Jackson.
During the afternoon, they also received valuable advice from speakers including The Apprentice finalist Claire Young, Career Academies UK Chief Executive James McCreary, and former Career Academy student Emmanuel Akintunde and got the chance to watch entertainment from the sensational group Bollywood Dance London.
Yvonne Megahey, Career Academy Manager, said: “Our students really enjoyed travelling to London to find out more about the inner-workings of leading organisations like “Freshfields, Bruckhaus, Deringer” and the BBC. They shared their experiences with other Career Academy students from all over the country. We hope that ‘A Capital Experience’ will inspire and motivate our students, and help open their eyes to what they can achieve if they set their minds to it.”
James McCreary, Chief Executive of Career Academies UK, said: “With the need for excellent workplace skills high on the Government agenda at the moment, this kind of event is more relevant than ever. The day was a fantastic introduction to the Career Academy programme, designed to offer unique work-related learning experiences and inspire students to aim high. We hope that by visiting some of the UK’s largest employers, the students will realise that anything is possible.”
‘A Capital Experience’ is the biggest national one-day event in the Career Academy calendar and kicks off the two-year programme for young people taking part. This is the first year that South West College has been running the programme at their Enniskillen campus.”
Set up by the business community in 2002, Career Academies UK is a registered charity which leads and supports a movement of employers, schools and colleges, working together to raise the aspirations of 16 to 19-year-olds.
More than 3,000 employee volunteers from over 900 organisations around the UK contribute time and skills to a Career Academy – as guest speakers in the classroom, one-to-one mentors, or by hosting workplace visits or summer internships.
72% of Career Academy graduates go on to higher education, often the first in their family, and a further 15% go into employment.
