Careers Overview

The Gatsby benchmarks were introduced in 2013 to support the delivery of good Careers education. There are 8 of them in total, they are:

1.  A stable careers programme
2. Learning from career and labour market information
3. Addressing the needs of each pupil
4. Linking curriculum learning to careers
5. Encounters with employers and employees
6. Experiences of workplaces
7. Encounters with further and higher education
8. Personal guidance

More detail regarding the Gatsby Benchmarks can be found here:

At Lakelands Academy we ensure our provision is the best it can be by engaging with a variety of employers from different sectors across the Marches area; ranging from AICO, West Mercia Police, Perspective Wealth Management, The Military and a variety of local self-employed creative business owners.

We ensure that students are aware of all pathways available to them by highlighting the importance and availability of apprenticeship providers such as SBC Training and County Training. We engage with universities (e,g. Wrexham University and Harper Adams University), so that students are fully aware of the routes they offer and what they can lead too, understanding how these could benefit them and their chosen career path.

Vicky Wilkinson, Careers Leader and Guidance Counsellor, meets with our school’s Enterprise Coordinator regularly to discuss and measure how Lakelands Academy is faring against the Benchmarks, set out above, as well as how we comply with Statutory Guidance and Provider Access Legislation. We consistently achieve 100% against all benchmarks and are extremely proud of what this means for our school leavers. Regularly, 98% of Lakelands Academy students move on to appropriate destinations post-16. This demonstrates that our caring and nurturing approach to careers provision across all subjects, and during our career focus sessions, leaves our students feeling empowered and ready to make their next steps.

Lakelands Academy Compass+ Report (Gatsby Benchmark performance)