Year 9 and 10 tackle the challenge of the Bright Future Business, Employability and Finance workshop.

As part of our extensive Careers and Future Skills Programme, Bright Futures Ltd were once again invited into school to deliver a Business, Employability and Financial workshop to our Year 9 and 10 budding entrepreneurs.

Year 10 students focused on developing employability skills, entrepreneurial abilities, and financial acumen. Steve from Bright Futures was delighted with the day and said:

“St Mary’s students surpassed all expectations as they enthusiastically participated in activities such as CV exploration, understanding desirable attributes, money management, public speaking exercises, business planning, and even risk-taking within an entrepreneurial context. One of the teams was sensational, winning the money box activity with the highest score we have ever seen amongst the hundreds of schools we deliver to.”

The students found this a beneficial and an enjoyable experience with almost everyone stating they had learned more about the skills needed in the workplace. In summing up their experience, Year 10 agreed that:

• The teamwork was engaging, and the challenges were fun
• The workshop was 'super-engaging' and fun, with very helpful information and useful skill development
• They liked how Bright Futures Ltd provided a lot of information and a lesson in negotiation
• They liked learning about CVs and the requirements for certain jobs. It was interesting to learn the CV processing tends to be done with technology/robots. (ATS)
• The activities were fun, interactive and collaborative.

Year 9 students developed their financial acumen with activities to highlight the skills and knowledge needed to make good financial decisions. These include budgeting, small print (terms and conditions), fraud, financial terminology, credit and store cards, and payday loans. They finished the afternoon learning about wealth creation, taxes and how money goes around in society. Bright Futures were particularly impressed by the student’s attentiveness and their overall attitude to learning and taking on board new information, which they described as: "nothing short of exceptional”.

Comments from Year 9 on the value of their workshop included:

• Everything was clearly presented and explained, and the activities were very enjoyable. Overall, very fun – thank you!
• How useful it is to know how to manage money and understand all the things you must pay for around the house.
• Budgeting is about balancing money coming in with money going out.
• The workshop showed me where to spend my money in the future, and it taught me more about tax.

From budgeting to understanding interest charges, and business planning to risk-taking, these workshops give a vital understanding of life skills that all the students will benefit from in their own bright futures.