Careers Advice for Parents/Carers

As a parent or carer, you have a leading role when your child is making decisions about their career. That’s why it’s important to be prepared and feel confident when they come to you for advice.

For year five and six students we want them to develop an awareness of careers and their own skills and attributes as well as what people in their community do. This prepares students and supports their transition for further careers investigation in Key Stage 3. In Years 7 and 8 students will continue to look at the world of work, moving on to look at how GCSE subject choices in Year 8/9 affect career options.Young people today have more choices about what to do in the future than ever before but there are a number of factors that affect them. Youth unemployment, an increasingly competitive job market and fees for higher education all impact on a young person’s future, making it even more important for them to make the right choices for their education, training and employment. Look out for regular updates in the fortnightly parent bulletin. 

How can you help?

As they make choices and plans for the future, young people need support from the people who know them best; their families. Talk to your child about careers they are interested in. Find out what they know already and encourage them to explore the online careers resources and speak to people you know in those fields. It is also worth regularly referring to labour market information to identify growth sectors within the North East and beyond.

Starting the Conversation

  • Pick the Right Moment: Have informal, relaxed chats during a car journey, over dinner, or while doing a hobby, when your child is most receptive. Avoid forcing a discussion when they are stressed or distracted
  • Ask Open-Ended Questions: Encourage self-discovery by asking questions like: “What subjects are you enjoying most at school?” “What project were you most excited about?” or “What sorts of things do you love doing in your free time?”
  • Focus on Skills and Interests: Talk about what they are good at and what they find fulfilling. This helps identify transferable skills (e.g., teamwork, problem-solving, communication) which are valuable in all careers
  • Relate to Everyday Life: Discuss your own job or the jobs of family and friends using simple language. Explain how work relates to things they are familiar with, like their favorite hobbies or the concept of making money to pay for things

Guiding and Supporting

  • Listen More Than You Talk: Withhold your own opinions and ideas initially. Listen actively to their thoughts and ideas to understand their perspective and make them feel heard
  • Be Open-Minded and Positive: Support their aspirations, even if they seem unrealistic (like wanting to be a mermaid or a professional gamer). Maintain a positive and encouraging attitude, as your words have a big impact
  • Encourage Exploration: Help them research different careers and the paths to get there, including university, apprenticeships, and vocational training. Use resources like the National Careers Service job profiles or the Talking Futures conversation cards to explore options together
  • Provide Opportunities: Encourage work experience, part-time jobs, volunteering, and extracurricular activities to help them develop skills and gain exposure to different environments
  • Don’t Dictate: Ultimately, it is your child’s decision about their future direction. Your role is to guide and support them, not to choose for them

By fostering curiosity, supporting their passions, and exploring options together, you can help your child feel confident and prepared for their future career journey

Why it is never too early to discuss careers

The future at 5 report 

Many of us will remember being asked at a young age what we wanted to be when we grew up. What answer did we give, and why did we give that answer? What shaped our ideas about the working world? Children’s understanding of which jobs are available is often influenced by what they see the adults in their lives doing, which in turn influences their choices and motivation in school. According to new evidence from the OECD International Early Learning and Child Well-Being Study (IELS), gender norms are evident in what many five-year-olds say about what they want to be when they grow up, leading to imbalanced gender representation in certain fields later on in schooling – and later on in life. This factsheet presents findings on how early aspirations can be constrained by traditional expectations and stereotypes, meaning children limit their horizons and ambitions. 

Resources for parents 

Careers and Job Profiles

University Applications

Apprenticeships

Please visit the resources for all page on the school website for more information (please link the word resources for all term to tab 7).