How to make work experience meaningful

Work experience is an opportunity to inspire young people and help shape their future.  

When done right, work experience can really inform young people of all the options available to them, inspire their future careers. And even bring fresh ideas and enthusiasm into business - it's a win-win for everyone.  

So in our opinion, it's a real shame that the UK Government removed work experience from the national curriculum in 2021. And we're not alone. In total, 83% of teenagers and 93% of business leaders think it should be made compulsory again.  

And there are positive signs.  

In 2018, government introduced the Baker Clause - which says schools must now allow vocational training, and apprenticeship providers to advertise their courses to pupils aged 13-18. It means that employers and training providers are now allowed to talk in schools about career opportunities. This is a game changer for young people and will hopefully help to showcase the importance of meaningful work experience.   

What makes work experience meaningful? 

Key to delivering meaningful work experience is to treat young people with respect. Give them real, worthwhile tasks, and trust them to do the job well. This will give them a taste of working life and help them learn new skills that aren't taught in the classroom:  

• Solving real-life problems and seeing the impact of their work   
• Researching market conditions and learning how they affect businesses  
• Communicating with different people with different skill sets
• Learning about new technologies and how they're used in the workplace  
• Working in different roles to see what they entail on a day-to-day basis  

This is even more important in deprived areas, as finding appropriate placements for students can be a challenge.   

At Onefile, we recently welcomed three work experience students from Oasis Academy, Oldham.  

The students worked with different departments on real tasks - from research projects to sales pitches. They then worked with marketing to brainstorm ideas and create their own social media advert. One of our candidates, Georgia, said this was her favourite part, 'I really enjoyed designing an advert. I thought I was a creative person, but I never put my ideas out there as I thought they wouldn't be good enough. But at Onefile, you've taught me that thinking outside the box is a good thing and it's how businesses attract attention.'  

And that's what meaningful work experience is all about - inspiring young people, boosting their confidence, and giving them an insight into the working world.  

Another candidate, Phebe, added: 'It's had such a big impact on us as we've learnt about a whole new environment which really prepares you for the future.'  

There are also so many lovely people to meet - we didn't expect that. Each department is like a little family within the bigger family. We've felt really welcome.'   

Welcoming young people into your business and trusting them to do a job well is really important. It'll boost their self-esteem and make them feel like a real member of the team. At Onefile, we gave our three students their own desks, laptops and logins to Onefile's learning software. Of course we organised their learning on Onefile, so they could see their tasks, manage their workflow and upload evidence of their learning. This gave the students autonomy and helped them feel like a trusted part of the team. Sian said, 'This experience has taught me so, so much and I'll take away so much. I've had a truly amazing time and have found out so many interesting things.'  

Having a positive, meaningful experience makes a huge difference for young people. It's often their first taste of the working world and can influence what direction they take in the future.   

If you're planning work experience activities, download our checklist to make sure they're meaningful and will have a positive impact on your young people.