Careers, Work Experience, Volunteering & Enterprise
We have successfully expanded our vocational curriculum which now includes an Upcycling afternoon option, Woodwork and several volunteer projects.
Our Baking group now make and prepare stock for our Elevenses Cafe, which is not only open for staff but also welcomes parents and the local community on a Friday morning.
These vocational units have focused on developing important life skills, such as communication, collaborative working and problem solving.
Involvement of the local community has features prominently in the curriculum and we work with the Make Southend Sparkle team where our students have been planting and litter picking in a different local park each week.
Students have the opportunity for relevant work experience and this includes placements at the Attic, Waitrose, Margaret Raymond Florist and Grumpies we have also had new placements at St Michael of all Angels Pre-School. Indeed, the student at the pre-school has been so successful that they have asked the student to extend her hours of work.
We would like to extend our thanks to all our community partners for offering these experiences to our students.
Work Experience
At Lancaster school we believe that work experience must be purposeful and relevant to a young person’s study programme and aspirations. The school links curriculum learning to the workplace by the creation of a range of placements outside of the school. Currently we have over 8 weekly placements that all our students are expected to access.
Volunteering
At Lancaster School we expect all learners to take part in community volunteering projects. A key element to vocational learning is direct involvement in the local community and the world of work so the school has strong links with the local community and has created a robust and sustainable volunteering programme. We have been working on a ‘parklife’ project with the Make Southend Sparkle team and working with ‘Can Do’ at Rochford Road allotments.
Enterprise
‘Learning beyond the classroom’ is vitally important to all learners. Enterprise features prominently in the curriculum for all students. This term our students have been cooking cakes and then running the Elevenses Cafe.