CAREERS FAIR FIRST FOR CHESHIRE SEND COLLEGE

Learners at Petty Pool marked National Careers Week with their first ever careers fair at their campus in Cheshire.

The college provides vocational training and education for young people with learning disabilities and difficulties and forges links with employers to secure meaningful outcomes for their 121 learners.

Local employers including The Hollies Farm Shop, Bidlea Farm, BEPO, Higher Farm, Blakemere Village and The Design Shed all attended the event along with representatives from local colleges and charities. Learners were able to gather information about the roles on offer and the skills needed to undertake them.

The event marked the end of a week of activities centred around careers with learners participating in training, careers talks and workshops from local organisations including Cheshire FA and the Samaritans. They visited local employers such as Liverpool John Lennon airport and took part in CV building masterclasses.

A lack of opportunity currently exists for young adults with learning disabilities with just 4.8% who are known to their local authority in employment. The college  offers vocational courses in horticulture and grounds maintenance, hospitality and catering, animals and environments, business, retail and customer service as well as independent life skills.

Petty Pool Careers Lead Katie McGlynn comments:

“It’s been an incredibly productive week with learners focusing on their future career aspirations and putting the wheels in motion to achieve them. Our learners have a range of skills and capabilities to offer employers and many of them are keen to secure paid employment. We’d like to thank all the employers and organisations who came along to the careers fair and who continue to work with our young people.”

Petty Pool is a registered charity that was first established as Mid Cheshire Sheltered Workshop in 1981 and was recently named as being in the top 5 Best Companies to work for nationally in the Education and Training sector.

College Principal and Deputy CEO, Wendy Bowyer comments:

“Learners at Petty Pool have so much to offer employers and events such as the careers fair are incredibly important to promote neurodiversity in the workplace. The national statistics for the numbers of young people with learning disabilities in paid employment are shocking and as a college we are proactive about changing them. We have had many learners move into employment across various different sectors, we also offer supported internships which involve our job coaches supporting employers to meet individual needs and working to ensure a sustainable paid outcome is achieved. We would urge local businesses to contact us to discuss working together in the future to offer internships to our talented and motivated learners.”

Businesses and organisations are being invited to attend a conference organised by Petty Pool about how to incorporate diversity and inclusion in the workplace with guest speakers at Carden Park Hotel on 14^th June.

For more information and to book a place please contact: 

faye.jenkins@pettypool.org.uk

About Petty Pool Trust: 

Based in Sandiway Cheshire, Petty Pool is a charity set up in May 1981, with operational activities divided between Petty Pool Vocational College, which provides education and training for young people with learning disabilities, Petty Pool Outdoor Centre, providing personal development through adventurous activities and our Petty Pool In The Community service linking young people to leisure, vocational and community activities.

Pictured -  L - R: Learners Oliver Dutton and Thomas Lawson with Petty Pool Careers Lead Katie McGlynn.