This blog is designed to keep you up-to-date with Careers Education, Information and Guidance (CEIAG) available locally, nationally and through the school. I’ll be posting information about employment and training opportunities available locally as well as details of open days and useful websites. The world of education, employment and training opportunities is changing rapidly so keep checking in for the latest information.

Mr Cross


Monday 12 December 2016

Russell Group Informed Choices

The latest Informed Choices (2016-17) booklet, created by the influential Russell Group of universities, has been published. It contains guidance about applying to universities and which combinations of its "facilitating subjects" it recommends for various degree courses and careers. You can view a video about it and download the latest copy of the booklet here.

Sunday 4 December 2016

"Generation Rent"

A study, led by Pete Redfern, chief executive of the house-builders Taylor Wimpey, has said that 62% of people living in rented accommodation cannot see themselves buying a property in the next 5 years. The proportion of property owning households has fallen to a 30 year low of 62%, whilst the average age of a first time buyer has risen to 34 in London, and 30 elsewhere. Earlier this year a survey by the charity, The Equity Trust, found that 86% of renters (around six million households) do not have the minimum £8,838 needed for a 5% deposit on the average UK home. Experts say that around 250,000 new homes need to be built every year to meet demand, but in 2013/14 only 125,000 were built.  [source GTAssociates]

Downturn in wages predicted

The Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) has said that workers will earn less in real wages in 2021 than they did in 2008, with a squeeze on pay lasting for over 10 years. Paul Johnson, director of the IFS, said, "This has, for sure, been the worst decade for living standards certainly since the last war and probably since the 1920s. We have seen no increase in average incomes so far and it does not look like we are going to get much of an increase over the next four or five years either." He said that, the "outlook for living standards and for the public finances has deteriorated pretty sharply over the last nine months". Real average earnings, which factor in the rising cost of living, were forecast to rise by less than 5% between now and 2021, which is 3.7% lower than was projected in March. Mr Johnson said, "One cannot stress enough how dreadful that is, more than a decade without real earnings growth. We have certainly not seen a period remotely like it in the last 70 years." The IFS said that the biggest impact on income in recent years has been felt by younger workers. Those aged 60 and over, in contrast, have seen living standards rise.  [source: GTAssociates]

Labour Market Information: November 2016

  • Unemployment is 1,604,000, down 52,000 from last month’s published figure (quarterly headline down 37,000).
  • The number of claimant unemployed is 803,300, up 9,800 on last month, the claimant rate is 2.3%.
  • The number of workless young people (Not in Education, Employment or Training) is 1,022,000, up 1,000 on the quarter, representing 14.2% of the youth population (up 0.1%).
  • Youth unemployment (including students) is 591,000, down 36,000 on the quarter.
  • There are 2.1 unemployed people per vacancy.
  • The employment rate is 74.5%, no change on last month’s published figure