More emphasis needed on careers education, committee says

According to the Education Committee, young people need to be equipped with the right skills to prepare them for work.

MPs have voiced their concerns over the lack of adequate careers advice being delivered in schools, warning that it could be contributing to the UK’s skills crisis.

Options

There are now concerns that school leavers are not being given the opportunity to consider future work options, and a new subcommittee created by the Education Committee noted that recent policy changes and initiatives have failed to improve the situation.

The Education Committee has now called for schools to take action to ensure that careers education and advice is made a priority.

Neil Carmichael, Chair of the Education Committee, said: “Careers advice should be a core part of a young person's schooling but at the moment it is little more than a poorly thought-out add-on. Schools should be incentivised to treat careers education, advice, information and guidance as a priority.”

The Education Committee now recommends that Ofsted takes a bigger role in ensuring that careers guidance meets expectations by “downgrading those who do not deliver high quality provision”.

Mandatory

According to Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Childcare and Education, Sam Gyimah, there is now the lowest-ever number of people not in education, employment or training and the highest-ever number of young people entering higher education.

He also remarked that it is now mandatory for every school and college to provide careers guidance to all students aged 12 to18 years and that £90 million will be invested to “transform careers education and guidance.”