Planning for the future after school can be daunting but careers advice from SDS can boost confidence and provide guidance to set young people on the path to success

Teen Charly Simpson thought her future was floundering until help from her school careers adviser led to a dream career in engineering.

Today the 18-year-old is on the road to success and working in renewable energy as part of the effort to create a greener Scotland.

When Charly started S4 at Bertha Park High school in Perth, she was finding it difficult to study. A talk from the school’s careers adviser, Maxine Scott, gave her the motivation to get help.

Charly said: “I had completely given up on school when I started S4. The teachers were great but I was struggling.

“Coming back into school after Covid, I was still getting used to learning. I wasn’t really looking into the future at this point. I had a job in a café in Pitlochry and thought that would be something I could do when I left school.

“Maxine joined a school assembly meeting to speak to my year about the help she can give pupils and I spoke to her after that.”

Maxine explained: “We spent a lot of time together working out what Charly wanted to do in the future. I could see that she took inspiration from her dad, who worked in forestry, and she also loved to help him fix and refurbish old cars.

“Charly spoke about how she enjoyed doing practical things and she couldn’t see herself working in an office.”

Maxine suggested that Charly investigate apprenticeships as an option, as these offer the chance to get into a job that provides hands-on experience while working up to a qualification.

Charly was 15 at that point so used the time at school to work with Maxine to get ready for interviews. They met once a week to check any new opportunities, see what employers were looking for from candidates, and visit careers events. It was at one of the careers fairs that Charly had the opportunity to speak to people at energy company SSE Renewables.

Charly was keen and applied for some of the company’s apprenticeships. She said: “The apprenticeships at SSE Renewables sounded great, because of my interests in the environment and engineering.”

When Charly made it through to the rigorous interview process, Maxine was there to support her every step of the way, with coaching and support through each of the five stages.

Charly’s determination paid off and she started a Mechanical and Electrical Engineering Modern Apprenticeship in August 2023, which takes up to four years to complete.

The support given to Charly by Maxine is part of the free expert advice from Skills Development Scotland (SDS), available to anyone looking for help to make learning and career decisions.

SDS delivers vital career information, advice and guidance services in schools, in SDS centres, and in community venues across Scotland, as well as through its freephone helpline 0800 917 8000, and online at My World of Work.

The potentially life-changing support offered by Scotland’s career services is to be recognised through Scottish Careers Week, taking place from November 11-15. Co-ordinated by SDS, the week will feature activities and events in schools and communities all over the country to support people at all ages and stages of their career journey.

The first 18 months of Charly’s apprenticeship are spent training at Rosyth dockyard with Fife College. Charly also spent the summer getting experience on site at Clunie Power Station in Pitlochry, where she’ll be based at the start of the year. Charly said: “I love my apprenticeship because there is a lot to learn and renewables progress every day. Seeing all the turbines at the power station is really interesting.”

Maxine said: “Charly is an inspiring young person who was open to explore the opportunities and along the way, with her careers coaching, she built up her confidence,which enabled her to find a career she didn’t know existed.

“With a bit of careers coaching, anyone can start to take control of their career path and feel confident with their decisions in setting goals and making plans.

“As a careers adviser, it’s my role to support and coach but our customers have the hard work, as they need to be able to do the rest.”

Charly added: “I didn’t expect the kind of help I got from Maxine but she was amazing. I wouldn’t be here in my dream job if it wasn’t for Maxine. She made me get out of my shell and look forward to the rest of my life.”

Find out what’s on at Scottish Careers Week and register to attend national and local events by visiting myworldofwork.co.uk/scottish-careers-week

(Image: Skills Development Scotland)

Programme puts care right at the heart of support

The ways in which the national skills agency will support young people who are Care Experienced is the focus of a new plan from Skills Development Scotland (SDS).

SDS’s Corporate Parenting Plan 2024-27 has been published to coincide with Care Experienced Week 2024 and contains three new commitments which will guide SDS activity over the coming three years.

SDS is part of a group of 24 public bodies defined as corporate parents under The Children and Young People (Scotland) Act, with a series of statutory duties aimed at supporting care experienced young people.

The plan commits SDS to ensuring products and services meet the needs of the Care Experienced community by listening to Care Experienced individuals and acting on what they say.

SDS will also promote the interests of and improve the wellbeing of Care Experienced people by supporting colleagues to be caring, active and responsible Corporate Parents.

Collaboration with other Corporate Parents and the wider Care Experienced community is also central to the plan in order to support transitions and improve the outcomes of Care Experienced people.

The new plan is also accompanied by a report outlining how SDS performed in fulfilling the ambitions of its 2021-24 plan.

Damien Yeates, Chief Executive of SDS, said: “As Scotland’s national skills body, we recognise we have a fundamentally important role to play in supporting young people who face particular disadvantages, and this includes those who are care experienced.

“There remains a great deal to do, but as we look ahead I’m confident the progress outlined puts us in a strong position to continue developing the support we offer Scotland’s Care Experienced young people in the coming years.”

The plan features the story of Care Experienced 17-year-old Tiffany Cummins, who received support from SDS careers adviser Mark Harrison to pursue her interest in social care and childcare.

She had moved to Edinburgh from her native Newcastle, with Mark helping her secure volunteer work at an after-school club. She is now studying at Edinburgh College.

Mark explained: “Tiffany told me she had two interests; social care and childcare. This was mainly down to her own experience and she wanted to help other people in situations like hers.”

Mark suggested that Tiffany get some experience of working in care and got in touch with Volunteer Midlothian, which runs the Transform Project for young people from 14 years old who need some extra support to get involved in volunteering. 

Mark helped Tiffany prepare for an informal interview to successfully land a placement at Woodburn Primary afterschool club.

Mark also introduced Tiffany to the Y2K project to give her the opportunity to socialise with other young people. The project is a welcoming space that aims to tackle loneliness by offering fun activities, skill development and a focus on building confidence. 

After a year, Tiffany moved to another volunteer programme that she still supports, organising activities for elderly people in a residential care home.

Tiffany explained: “After supporting young people, it’s been great to get experience of supporting elderly people, which has really helped me to understand the type of job I’d like to do in the future.”

Having enrolled on to an introductory course at Edinburgh College last January, Tiffany has progressed on to studying at the college towards her dream career in Social Services.

Tiffany said: “Mark helped me get into volunteering, create a CV and find jobs. He also helped me with mock interviews, which really helped.

“I really like college because I got to choose what I wanted to do. I’m working towards an HNC qualification and my plan is to go to university to get a degree.

“Meeting Mark was really important because, before I met him, I didn’t know anyone, have an education plan or go out much. Mark got me into volunteering and college and I have made friends, so he’s made my life better.”

The support given to Tiffany by Mark is part of the free expert advice from SDS available to anyone looking for help to make learning and career decisions.

Mark said: “Everything I put in place has helped Tiffany to get out, get to know her new area and feel confident living in Midlothian, developing her network and gaining a sense of belonging.”

Read the Corporate Parenting Plan 2024-27 and the Corporate Parenting Plan 2021-24 Report at skillsdevelopmentscotland.co.uk/about/policies/corporate-parenting