Leading wealth management company Blue Sky Financial Planning has renewed its Young Chamber sponsorship of Queen Elizabeth School in Wimborne.
With the Government’s Careers Strategy published in December placing emphasis on ensuring every school meets requirements for interaction between business and education, the role the Young Chamber is more prominent than ever.
While QE School is proactive with its engagement of businesses through its careers service, the Young Chamber Programme supports this activity by coordinating with companies across Dorset Chamber’s membership who are happy to engage with schools.
The Programme’s tailored approach includes contacting Dorset Chamber members to provide speakers on specific subjects, arranging for students to visit companies, enabling teachers and staff to spend time in industry, helping schools to access businesses to help with mock interviews and careers fairs, and recruiting governors where needed. In some schools the programme has also led to businesses helping with specific areas such as mentoring and inspirational talks for disengaged students.
Martin McLeman, Head Teacher at QE School, said: “We are a forward-thinking school when it comes to careers provision. The Young Chamber programme complements this by engaging with companies in the Dorset Chamber membership on our behalf and coordinating activity, ultimately allowing us to focus staff resource where it is needed. We are delighted that Blue Sky Financial Planning is continuing this support and we look forward to building on our relationship with them and with the Young Chamber.”
Gary Neild, Managing Director at Blue Sky Financial Planning said: “I have been impressed by QE school with regards to their passion for providing students with added learning opportunities, particularly when linking with businesses. It’s important to look outwards and ensure that academic studies have a sense of purpose and relevance. They certainly get this at QE and I am delighted to announce that Blue Sky will once again be sponsoring QE as part of the Dorset Young Chamber programme.”
Young Chamber is a British Chambers of Commerce and Industry initiative designed to bridge the gap between business and education whereby schools have access to business experts and their resources to help facilitate the pathway for students into adult life.
Young Chamber in Dorset is working closely with the Careers and Enterprise Company and Local Enterprise Partnership all of whom are addressing the need for greater involvement between businesses and schools, for the benefit of young people entering the world of work.
Joan Senior, Young Chamber Coordinator, said: “Young Chamber in Dorset does not rely on public funding, therefore the support of businesses such as Blue Sky Financial Planning is invaluable. The Programme works by creating an initial engagement between the sponsor and the school, whilst also unlocking the potential for schools to access 700+ Dorset Chamber members, ranging from SMEs to global enterprise companies across a wide range of sectors. Our remit with QE School is to identify areas where Young Chamber can complement their existing activity, whilst being accountable to QE School and Blue Sky Financial Planning in terms of programme delivery.”
Young Chamber in Dorset is sponsored and supported by Bournemouth University and TeamJobs. The Programme currently has several schools seeking business sponsors, as well as schools asking for speakers and site visits for students in different sectors. For more information, please contact Joan Senior, Young Chamber Coordinator at joan.senior@dcci.co.uk