Developing the Young Workforce

West Lothian Council, working alongside Developing the Young Workforce, wants to transform how businesses and education engage in West Lothian.

Overview

West Lothian Council has always been at the cutting edge of developing an educational curriculum that responds to labour market opportunities, integrating vocational skills, and promoting enterprise. We strive to support our young people in order to make the most of their opportunities in life.

Commitment 

We are committed to improving the educational attainment of our pupils and ensuring that they develop the essential skills for work in order to become effective contributors to our local community and to compete in a modern, integrated society.

Employer Support

An ambition of Developing the Young Workforce and of the Young Person’s Guarantee is to work with employers in order to shape the curriculum, and to expand upon the number of work-related learning opportunities available to our pupils, in order to inform and better equip the workforce of the future.

Examples of Support:

• Form a meaningful partnership with a school to directly contribute to the development of individual subjects
• Offer a short work placement
• Supporting one of our schools’ programmes (see below).

Why Get Involved?

Employers supporting the programme report that it helps them:

• Achieve their CSR commitments
• Engage with their future workforce
• Provide staff development opportunities.

The Career Ready Programme helps raise young people’s aspirations and life chances by bridging the gap between education and work. The two-year programme provides middle achieving students who have low/undefined aspirations and low social mobility with access to a real experience of the world of work.

The 5 elements of the programme are;

• A mentor from the world of work,
• A paid 4-week internship,
• Masterclasses,
• Events, and
• Workplace visits.

Key contact person: 

Michelle Robertson (Education for Work Officer)

Providing onsite/online work placements, or offering a work inspiration activity (such as a site tour or careers talk) to students enables them to gain insight into the fast-changing world of work and identify the relevance between their studies and their employment options.

Placements may take many forms, ranging from a few hours a week to something longer term, depending on the availability of the employer and the circumstances of the student.

 All placements undergo a pre-placement check, support and guidance are offered accordingly.

Key Contact Person:

Michelle Robertson (Education for Work Officer)

Working in partnership with West Lothian Council, the employer led DYW West Lothian Regional Group connects employers with education and young people.  As part of a network of groups throughout Scotland, our work supports the delivery of the Young Person’s Guarantee, which includes a dedicated DYW School Coordinator in every secondary school to embed DYW employer offers within the curriculum.

Employers can support a range of activities by partnering with a school, providing career insight sessions, developing employability and soft skills or offering job and apprenticeship opportunities. 

To find out more about the benefits that young people can bring to your business and how we can support you, please click below.

Key Contact Person:

Lauren Brown (DYW Project Liaison Officer)

Lauren.Brown@dyw-wl.com

Click the arrow below to view quotes from employers and students that have participated in our programmes.