Thinking about pursuing a career in law can be quite daunting. Students often worry about how to decide what law sector to specialise in, how to get onto the right pathway, or worry they don’t have the confidence to study law at all. 

Relatable role models are crucial: network as much as you can

Take it one step at a time and break it down:

• Research, research and… more research. If you’re interested in a career in law, this step should actually be the fun part. Do you know the difference between a lawyer and a solicitor? The routes available to get into law? Check out the information on Prospects website as well as our video with former student, Lorenzo, now studying law at university:

• Do a skills check: do you enjoy attention to detail, working methodically and interpreting large amounts of information and analysis? Find out more.
• Network: are you and your school / old school a Future First member? We can help connect you with relatable role models working in law.
• Start thinking about your personal statement.

If you have been to a law firm open day or assessment centre, or even completed some work experience with a firm, you may have noticed the striking number of private school students compared to state school students. Admittedly, some firms are much better than others at promoting diversity, but this is a problem affecting the whole legal industry and we are delighted to be working with partners such as Taylor Wessing to change this.

Taylor Wessing and Future First: bringing law careers to life

Future First works with Taylor Wessing to deliver activities in order to bring careers in the legal sector to life for students across the country and helps build their confidence to strive for success. 

Check out Taylor Wessing’s video for Black History Month on ‘Journeys into Law’

Future First facilitates Year 12 students and Taylor Wessing mentors to work together in activities to develop the skills needed to succeed at a law firm like Taylor Wessing. 

• Setting goals for the future
• Developing interview skills
• CV writing
• Writing cover letters and applications
• Reflecting on strategies for overcoming challenges 
• Demonstrating resilience 

Students and mentors work together in groups, giving students opportunities to ask questions about what it’s like to work at the firm, and to identify the pathways, qualifications, experiences and skills that would help them to access these opportunities in the future.

After the most recent programme, students commented:

“The mock interviews made me think about what employers are looking for. It improved my skill of quickly adapting to specific questions. I was very nervous but the personalised feedback I received gave me confidence and advice I will take to all future interviews.”

“The Taylor Wessing volunteers spoke about their range of experiences which made me consider routes into law that I hadn’t considered beforehand.”

In addition to offering a mentoring programme, Taylor Wessing support young people through Law Insight Days and Employability Skills workshops. Over the last 5 years this has brought careers in the legal sector to life for more than 500 students across the country, building their confidence and knowledge to strive for success.

View related content

Barrister inspires young people to aim high
Why networking is the most important thing you’ll do this summer
Finishing school or college?
Careers in Banking and Finance Panel to inspire students’ next steps

By Alaya Seoudy, Alumni Engagement Assistant

It’s 26 March 2021, an email comes through on my phone and it reads “As part of the government Kickstarter scheme, Future First are delighted to be recruiting for two vacancies”. It was the best email I received in a long while and I started to complete the application form straight away. 

I’m now four months into my role as an Alumni Engagement Assistant at Future First. The reason why I received that email in the first place is that my previous college was signed-up as a Future First member school and, in turn, I had signed up to my alumni network upon leaving that college. 

Who knew that an alumni network I signed-up to years ago would enable me to get the job I’m in today? It just goes to show the importance of sowing seeds today, that you will be able to reap in the future. 

My experience has taught me that some of the most important seeds you’ll sow today come in the form of networking. After all, everyone knows the quote ‘it’s not what you know, it’s who you know‘.  

Networking seems daunting at first but it’s not. Let’s break it down with some simple tips to help get you started: 

1. Know yourself and Identify your ‘personal brand’

It’s important to spend some time reflecting on what it is you enjoy, what you’re interested in, what your goals and values are, as well as the skills and attributes you have and the experience you possess. This will make reaching out to people a lot easier and help them to better understand you and what you’re after.

Check out prospects.ac.uk – there’s some great resources and quizzes to help you figure things out and the Prince’s Trust can help you navigate your personal brand. 

2. See it as making friends, not connections

You would probably feel awkward if a stranger approached you to merely use you as a stepping stone. A good working relationship is built upon establishing common ground, trust and maintaining that rapport. Put it this way, would you be more inclined to help your friend or a stranger? 

Watch this video about how to network in the right way, and check out some advice from the professionals that we recorded for National Careers Week 2021

3. Make a LinkedIn profile 

Not only do an increasing amount of employers ask for a LinkedIn profile on applications, it’s also the easiest way to connect with people from everywhere! Start by connecting with people you know, perhaps your peers, those who attended the same school, college or university as you. Then consider connecting with a speaker you enjoyed listening to or follow organisations you’re interested in. Doing these simple things will instantly open your eyes to a whole new world of opportunities.

Here’s some tips for students who want to get started on LinkedIn, and there’s some really useful videos here on simply getting started with LinkedIn, have a look at this one first:

4. Be proactive and seek networking opportunities 

Lockdown meant a lot of in-person events were cancelled, while we wait for the world to fully open up again, attend webinars and connect with speakers and other attendees. People are more open to virtual networking now more than ever – this is your chance to expose yourself to a variety of important contacts. 

Check out free events on Eventbrite – just use the search bar to find the subjects you’re interested in and filter by online courses / free courses.

5. Join a mentoring scheme

There are so many mentoring schemes available, your mentor will support you with both personal and professional development but could also be the vital contact helping to unlock your next opportunity. Remember mentors have set time aside to help you!

Check out Avado’s FastFutures programme – it’s a free 12 week course including 1-1 mentoring for those aged 18-24 and the deadline is 31st August 2021.

6. Join your schools/ the national alumni network

You spent a large portion of your life within school, once you leave those gates the support doesn’t have to end there. Joining your school’s alumni network is your safety net, where people help support and guide one another. You will be able to connect with former students who have progressed into further education, training and work. You will gain insight into a variety of roles and industries and have access to great volunteering opportunities to bolster that CV. Look at my own experience – you have no idea what opportunities people can help you unlock unless you try. So why dismiss an entire community waiting to connect with you? 

Join your school’s alumni network today!

View related content
Leaving school or college? Here’s why you should sign up to your alumni network
The benefits of volunteering with Future First: what’s in it for me?
Virtual work experience: Health and Social Care
Finishing school or college?

We’re delighted to be working with Career Ready, the UK-wide social mobility charity, to host young people for internships.

The pandemic has cut the opportunities available for young people, especially those from less advantaged backgrounds, and we’re proud to be working with Career Ready to help fix this and invest in young talent.

Over the coming weeks our new intern, Nardos Sheshay, will work across the charity on a range of different projects, developing the skills, confidence, and experience she needs to kickstart her future. As an employer, this is also a great way for us to connect with young, diverse talent.

With Career Ready, we’ll make a transformational difference to young lives, boosting their social mobility, attainment, and wellbeing:

• 95% of Career Ready alumni secured HE or FE qualifications, compared to 77% of their non-programme peers
• 90% of Career Ready alumni said they developed key workplace skills
• 87% of Career Ready alumni said the experience had a positive impact on their life

Here’s what Nardos had to say:

“Raised in Manchester, I’m someone who enjoys understanding different ideas and environments and expressing my creativity through a variety of mediums. Therefore, since taking the opportunity with Future First I am excited to have been able to participate in a variety of activities, such as being given the responsibility to set up meetings, which allowed me to gain practical IT skills and be adaptive and independent instead of being reliant on other people. This helped push my out of my comfort zone in a positive way!

I have also participated in assessing some prototypes for our new platform and presenting my honest feedback. This allowed me to express my creativity and challenge my immediate thought process. I believe that divergent thinking is a critical skill and this activity has helped with that. Also, another amazing opportunity that I have taken part in is making a conclusive presentation concerning Future First and presenting it to members of staff. This has given me the chance to build many skills such as self-reliance, interpersonal skills, and confidence.

In the future, I have a desire to study human behaviour by way of higher education, whether that will lead to a clinical route or the counselling route I am still to see. However, I believe that through this great experience as an intern, I have gained the gems that every student will need to excel in their chosen career! So, I highly recommend any student to take on an internship regardless of who they may be, opportunities will never cease to come your way but it’s up to you if you want to take them, you have nothing to lose – go for it, you’ll gain more than you would have expected!”

View related content
Meet our two new Kickstart recruits: Melina and Alaya
The benefits of volunteering with Future First: what’s in it for me?
Virtual work experience: Health and Social Care
Leaving school or college? Here’s why you should sign up to your alumni network

By Melina Joannides, Digital Assistant and Kickstarter 

Class of 2021: I wonder how many times you’ve heard the following questions:

“What sixth form, college or university are you going to?”
“What are you going to do now?”
“What are your plans for your future?”

Some of you may know exactly where you are heading next, which is great! 

However, some of you may still be figuring it all out which is perfectly normal. It can all be incredibly overwhelming, I’ve been there. The most important thing to remember, is to do what feels right for you. 

What do I mean by this?

It can be easy to be swayed by those around you. Perhaps of all your close friends are heading to the same college, sixth form or university. It can be tempting to simply follow in their path – but is that the right path for you?

When I was at secondary school, the message seemed to be that continuing education at sixth form or university was preferable and this led many students, including myself, believing that sixth form or university was a necessity to succeed in life. Yet, I discovered that this is not the case. There are numerous avenues. 

What options are there? 

• Internships
• Apprenticeships
• Gap Year
• Employment
• College 
• Sixth Form
• Start your own business 
• University 

And more….

For example, Future First alumni volunteer, Abbie decided to complete an apprenticeship: 

 “You may be surprised to know that I will qualify as a Chartered Accountant before a graduate from university. In addition, I would also have an extra three years’ worth of work experience”. 

There is often a misconception about students who do not attend University, Sixth form or College. Abbie is one of the many examples who combat this misconception!

University, College or Sixth form isn’t for everyone. Perhaps you’re interested in pursuing something else in the list above. If so, utilise the internet and do lots of research to learn about your endless options and where they can take you. 

Who can tell me more, where can I look?

Just a few suggestions:

• Prince’s Trust – Gain experience, skills, training and the confidence to help you into work with the Prince’s Trust, or take that idea you’ve been dreaming of and, with Prince’s Trust Enterprise training, mentoring and funding, become your own boss.
• Not Going To Uni – Showcases the alternatives to the standard university route to school and college leavers.
• Career Ready – Building networks with employers, educators, and volunteers across the UK to give young people the career support, experiences, and insights they need to kickstart their futures.
• Avado / FastFutures – In just 12 weeks you’ll learn the practical skills that employers really need, build your network, and increase your confidence through 1-2-1 mentoring.

View related content:

Sign up to your schools’ leavers’ network
The benefits of volunteering with Future First: what’s in it for me?

Graham Calvert is an alumnus of Nower Hill School and a Future First alumni volunteer who has run sessions with students to talk about LGBT issues, mental health and confidence building. For Pride Month, we asked Graham about what it was like being at school during a time of greater discrimination, and what he wished he could tell his school-boy self.

I left Nower Hill School in what for many will seem like centuries ago.  Back then, in 1981, the first cases of what was to become known as AIDS were recorded in America followed in 1982, when I was just 17, by one of the first deaths in this country of Terrence Higgins.  

Back then it was actually illegal for me to have a relationship or for anyone to have a relationship with me: it was a potentially imprisonable offence.  So, when, in the words of a famous song, I look back upon my life it is tinged with a sense of shame – a shame imposed on me by the school and its view of what was ‘normal’, the emergence of this new disease and the law which criminalised my feelings.  And so the one thing I would tell my younger self – and the one thing I wish I had known then – is that there is no shame in being gay.  

Things may have changed but there are still many forces acting to make us as LGBTQ+ people feel ashamed of the feelings we have, the love we wish to express openly, and the joy we have in just being ourselves.  

In the years since then, I have learned that the greatest power comes in being a group of people.  We have decriminalised gay relationships, we have fought and begun to win the battle against AIDS, we got rid of Section 28 and we can even get married if we chose to.  

The thing I have learned is that these gains are fragile and can easily be lost if we do not remember that many still see us as ‘outcasts’, but together I know that great things can be achieved.  The rule is to learn to enjoy being you in whatever way you can be you.

View our related resources:

FREE LGBT+ History Month – Assembly and Workshop Activity Pack 

FREE Template email for alumni support

Future First has been working closely with Widening Participation in Medics Network, an organisation that exists to break down barriers to the profession by forming a supportive community, offer tips, resources and advice for prospective and current medical students from underrepresented groups. 

We are delighted to provide a free, downloadable, virtual work experience pack which provides an insight into the health and social care industry and helps students practice key employability skills to help them access future opportunities.

What’s included?

Our Work Experience in Health and Social Care pack is a week-long work experience programme which includes a workbook and a guidebook. The packs include the following: pre-recorded video messages and guided presentation slides; a student workbook which will be used simultaneously with interactive activities; top tips on pursuing careers in Medicine, Nursing, Social Work and Healthcare services from our alumni volunteers.

Through the use of this easily accessible and helpful resource, students can develop and strengthen their insight into a range of opportunities related to health and social care.

What are the benefits of taking part?

Why would you not take part in a free, downloadable, experience-gaining opportunity?

• You will receive a certificate accrediting your achievement when you send us your completed student workbook
• An excellent experience to add onto your CV and application forms 
• You will receive live feedback from one of our alumni volunteers or employer partners on your final challenge task 
• A great opportunity to develop your interpersonal skills
• Self-evaluation, viewing your progress, skills and targets

Why the Health and Social Care Industry? 

The health and social care industry is one of the largest employment sectors in the UK, working towards giving people a better quality of life, the difference and impact you can make can be life-changing. Not sure if you’re interested in health and social care? There are over 350 health and social care careers – here are just some of the many career paths within the industry:

Healthcare
Consultant
Doctor
Health Visitor
Hospital Porter
Intensive Care Unit Technician
Midwife
Nurse
Paramedic
Pharmacist
School Nurse
Speech and Language Therapist
Physiotherapist

Social Work and Counselling
Clinical Psychologist
Care Assistant
Counsellor
Social Worker
Care Worker
Nursery Nurse
Youth Worker
Occupational Therapist
Community and Support
Outreach Worker

By Fiona Murden, Psychologist and author

Simon has been struggling with what ‘goes on in his head’ for some time. He really wants to sort it out but isn’t quite sure how. And although more and more people are saying ‘it’s ok to not be ok’ and talking about mental health it still doesn’t really feel like something that he can open up to anyone about. Maybe he’s alright after all. Maybe he’s just imagining it. What would people think if they knew what he was thinking? Would they treat him differently? Would they think he was weak? Or a failure? Or not the person they’ve always thought he was? 

Simon recalls the visit they had last week at school. Some guy came in to talk about ‘stuff’ relating to mental health. He was so messed up that he tried to take his own life. He survived and now that’s what he does – goes around telling school kids about it. Trying to make it seem ‘normal’. Simon thinks to himself ‘I’m not that bad, yeah I’m OK, I just feel a bit angry and upset sometimes but that’s alright, I mean it’s OK to not be OK right?’ 

By the time Simon reached the age of 26 his mental health had deteriorated considerably. He’d begun taking drugs and drinking heavily and had even attempted to take his own life. 

This is happening more and more. 

What’s the problem? While we’re doing more and more to help with mental health, to raise awareness and to address the issues it still isn’t enough. For example:

We don’t thread through teaching about mental health and the mind from start to finish. While there has been a dramatic uptick in the number of interventions in schools – Simon’s visit by ‘someone who had been there’ is just one example – they are not joined up. They need to be weaved into the curriculum from early years to when children leave the school system to build on knowledge and understanding and help to make sense of what’s being taught. It’s like teaching addition in year 2 of school, then no more maths until year 8 when algebra is introduced. It just wouldn’t make sense and wouldn’t work. 

It’s often not based on evidence. There’s a nuanced difference between interventions that have been researched and those that have not. For example, colouring in framed as mindfulness is actually relaxation. Learning mindfulness properly involves understanding how to engage and disengage with emotions and cognitive thought processes. 

We don’t provide children with the opportunity to ‘try it and see’. Once both of the above factors are in place, children need to be able to try out the (evidence based) strategies and approaches and see which ones work for them. Then use them and practice them to make them easily accessible when they need them most. Over time this will allow children and young people to build a manual to their own mind – equipping them with skills for life.  

We don’t recognise that these skills are essential to career success. There’s a huge emphasis on cognitive skills attainment yet research shows that as technology and Artificial Intelligence increase, so will the need for social and emotional skills. These are the same skills that build emotional resilience and protect mental health. 

Teachers are not supported, and stress is contagious. If teachers are stressed there is evidence to show that it increases levels of stress in pupils. Teachers need support and training to enhance their own wellbeing. Not only because they deserve it but because it’s also critical to providing the environment in which children can bolster and understand their own wellbeing. 

While this is a lot to tackle there are ways to do it and what’s more there are more accessible options available that we’re not fully leveraging – the power of role-models and mentors. 

Research carried out on a mentoring scheme in the US, similar in type to Future First has shown that young people who had mentors were 46% less likely to start using drugs and 27% less likely to drink alcohol. They were also less likely to skip school. The mentoring relationships resulted in improved confidence, levels of trust and relationships with parents and peers. They were more hopeful about the future, had improved communication skills, interpersonal skills, decision making and self-management skills. All of these factors not only improve life outcomes but also underpin better levels of mental health. 

And from our work at Future First we have seen first-hand that young people who are mentored feel better about themselves and as a result are better able to engage with schoolwork and have a greater resilience to face the challenges in their current and future life. Mentoring also helps them to connect what they learn in the classroom with what’s happening in their lives, homes and communities. Relatable mentors and role models really should be part of the wider prevention framework.

Simon is now in his late 20s and doing OK. He still has problems with his mental health but has learnt how to manage it. The question is – if the processes above were fixed – if he’d been taught these skills earlier on, would he be in a better place now? 50% of mental health problems are established by age 14 and 75% by age 24. This not only highlights our need to intervene early but as we see rates increasing also suggests that we’re not doing enough to combat this. 

Schools provide the ideal setting to foster good mental health habits early on in life. This won’t prevent mental ill health, nor will it eradicate difficulties, but it will, if done right, improve a child’s life trajectory and equip them with the skills to more effectively navigate their internal and external worlds. Let’s start doing this properly – looking at inoculation and not just cure. 

View related content

Alumni volunteers share their thoughts for #MentalHealthAwarenessWeek
#MentalHealthAwarenessWeek: staff daily blog
The power of role models

Future First has featured on a new social mobility podcast aimed at young people from less-advantaged backgrounds to inspire them to achieve career success.

Alumni Programme Manager, Akeem-Chavez Williams, spoke to Gary Izunwa founder of the Climbing the Rungs podcast about their start in life, their background and education and what led them to work for Future First.

Climbing the Rungs features a story each month by professionals from less-advantaged backgrounds who have gone on to progress well in their careers. The podcast guests share their unique stories to inspire listeners, raise awareness of socio-economic issues and provide practical advice to help democratise information that can sometimes be difficult to access.

In the episode, Akeem-Chavez talks about the ‘network gap’ saying: “[Future First] gives state school pupils a network that will help them in their early careers and can also help those establishing their careers to give back – because we know that a network is something that is missing for a lot of young people.”

Since launching at the end of February 2021, Climbing The Rungs has partnered with a number of universities, charities and influencers such as the University of Bristol, The Sutton Trust and Afzal Hussein, founder of Simpley, the peer-to-peer consulting and mentoring app, to raise awareness and start a conversation about social mobility.

So far, episodes have included topics on unpaid internships and the effect on social mobility, why professionals from less privileged backgrounds take 25% longer to progress through pay grades in Financial Services than their privileged colleagues, and ‘unlearning’ parts of your upbringing in order to progress in your career. Needless to say, these topics resonate with Future First’s work and mission on many levels.

Gary continues: “At the moment we are planning our second season which will take a bit of a different approach from the first one so watch this space! We are also exploring the possibility of running events and a mentorship programme alongside the podcast, so there’s lots to be excited about. My hope is that by sharing the stories of successful professionals from less privileged backgrounds and raising awareness of socio-economic issues, that others can begin to own their low socio-economic background and employers can begin to account for socio-economic diversity.”

“Future First fits into what we’re doing perfectly as they work with one of our target audiences: young people in state schools. Between Future First inspiring students by connecting them with relatable alumni role-models and Climbing The Rungs encouraging young people to get involved in the conversation by highlighting the significance of socio economic issues, I am hopeful for the progression on the social mobility agenda.”

Introducing you to Emmanuel Balogun, an inspiring young CEO of two successful start-ups: Find Your Feet Careers & Enterprises CIC and easySEO.

Emmanuel is 29 years old and grew up in Stockwell, South London and recalls having a happy childhood but that apart from his mother, there were no clear role models to look towards. Emmanuel says: “I knew I wanted to be successful, but I didn’t exactly know how I could become successful. Everyone that I looked up to that was a ‘role model’ didn’t really look like me or didn’t really come from the same background as me”.

Emmanuel explains that his immediate environment included a lot of youth crime, gang violence and drug use and that he didn’t want that life for himself, so instead took a job offered by “someone who believed in me”, and then found his way to the Prince’s Trust.

With the help of the Prince’s Trust, Emmanuel set up a now successful digital marketing agency – Find Your Feet – and also partnered with Sir Stelios Haji-Ioannou (founder of easyJet) to create easySEO. Since embarking on this journey, Emmanuel has delivered programmes to Facebook, YouTube, Amazon, The Princes Trust, easyJet and many more.

Through Find Your Feet, Emmanuel supports charities and organisations by commissioning workshops and delivering programmes tailored to providing digital skills and online marketing to young people so that they can learn how to run successful Digital Marketing campaigns. This allows them to gain the fundamental work skills and the tools necessary to step into a career in digital marketing or start a new business.

Future First is pleased to be partnering with Emmanuel and Find Your Feet Careers & Enterprises CIC for the benefit of young people. Emmanuel adds: “Future First is a charity that help the type of young people that I once was. Working to change the lives of young people from disadvantaged backgrounds is something I’ve found great passion in as a role model to young people – it’s great to work with an organisation that is doing similar work within the community”.

Watch this space for further announcements about our work with Emmanuel and Find Your Feet.

Councillor Adam Jogee, 29, is the Mayor of Haringey for 2020-21 and is the youngest mayor Haringey has ever had.  Adam grew up in Hornsey, right in the middle of the borough and attended Weston Park Primary School and Highgate Wood Secondary School.

Cllr Jogee is very proud of his Zimbabwean and Jamaican roots as well as the fact he is the first Mayor of Haringey from the Muslim community.

What was your favourite subject at school?

My favourite subject at school was history because if you don’t know where you’re from, you don’t know where you’re going.

Tell us about your school career and how you ended up becoming Mayor of Haringey
I went to Weston Park Primary School which borders Hornsey. My mum and dad ran the shelter scheme next door and I was one of the first few pupils to start at Weston Park in the early nineties. Because it was a new school there were no classes older than us, it was a very interesting environment to be in because we were kind of filling up the school as we went along. 

I ran for the school council in year 3, 4 and 5 and lost and then I won in the last year, year 6. My political interests were clearly there at an early age and this message of perseverance is one that I’d certainly take from my early childhood memory. 

I went to secondary school in Crouch End and then, after that, I went to college and then to SOAS University (the School of Oriental and African Studies). A mixture of all those educational opportunities, my big mouth and interest in politics took me to Haringey council in the local elections in 2014. I was 22 when I was elected – so the youngest elected councillor. I was re-elected in 2018 and then I had the immense privilege of being elected as the mayor of Haringey in 2020. 

What does a typical day in your job look like? 

There’s no typical day in the mayor’s life. Because I became mayor during the second lockdown, I didn’t get the opportunity to do the things that many other mayors do – being out and about with tonnes of engagements and so on. I’ve tried to do as much as I can by meeting people on Zoom and in as socially distanced ways as possible. There’s no real typical day but my main responsibilities would be providing a sort of moral leadership for the council, acknowledging and celebrating all the good things that happen here and providing support to residents when bad things happen or upsetting things happen. I get lots of emails so there’s lots of talking to people, but moreover, I think the most important and typical thing is being a part of Haringey and making sure people know what a great place it is to live and work in. 

What is your favourite thing about your job? 

My favourite thing about being mayor, (despite me saying that I haven’t been able to meet all people I’d want to) is probably being able to meet people, and learning about all the good things people are doing, hearing their concerns and being able to celebrate Haringey and its people. 

What advice would you give to a young person who’s interested in having a job like yours or becoming the Mayor?

It’s probably less advice and more a sort of, call to arms: politics is a noble profession and an important one, it’s vital that all people from all communities are able to stand up and be heard and be counted. If you think the world could be a better place and you think you have the will to make it so, then stand or run and make sure your voice is heard.

Join a political party, whichever one it is, because that is the vehicle to which you’re able to contribute to making your community a better place. More importantly, you’re in the room when all the existing politicians need to be re-selected for elections and you’ll soon see they show an interest in you and your issues. So be in the room and make sure you’re heard. 

You do make sacrifices in terms of family and friends and how much time you can spend with them but the ability to make or help make people’s lives better is an immense one and I would recommend anyone who has that passion to make the world a better place to run for office. Maybe one day you’ll be able to wear a chain like this.

To be a mayor, what sort of skills do you need and did you learn any of them at school?

You have to have some personal attributes like being able to give speeches, for example, that can be very nerve-wracking. You have to have the ability to hold your tongue when you need to – which I’m still learning – some may say! You also need to be able to empathise and understand where other people are coming from – what they’re experiencing, where their concerns may be, which isn’t always easy. We all have our own issues and challenges and when we take on other people’s, that can sometimes feel very full on.  You’re in a role to help make people’s lives easier and better, that is the job, in essence. 

In terms of the other skills you might have learnt in school – being respectful to people, how to work with people, understanding that there’s nothing wrong with asking a question if you don’t know the answer and that sort of team spirit vibe that you get from primary school in particular. 

It’s not necessarily true to say ‘I don’t like public speaking, I can’t be a politician’, you can get support and training with that, or ‘I get a bit embarrassed talking to people I don’t know’, well you learn that the more people you speak to, the easier it becomes. 

Each person brings their own life experience into how they do the job too so there’s no kind of set, definitive list of skills. 

If you care enough, everything else falls into place. 

What advice would you like to give to young people today?

The most important thing I’d say is speak up, speak out and speak often but never allow anyone to tell you that your voice, your view, your opinion doesn’t count. As I said earlier, if you think that you can make the world a better place, show people that you can, ask for help, build the alliances and relationships that you need to bring people with you.  Most importantly, never be shouted down and never allow anyone to tell you that your voice doesn’t matter because it does. Please make sure that you know your power and use your power as and when you have the opportunity to do so.

Adam met with child School Councillors from Bounds Green Primary School’s in March and inspired them to continue working for the good of their school and community, below is a thank you letter from a Year 2 student:

By Fiona Murden

We often think of role models as being heroes or heroines, sports stars or world leaders, change-makers or those who are dramatically impacting the world – people who are out of reach and infallible.

But in reality, we are surrounded by role models both good and bad. We are also role models influencing others day in and day out ourselves. We all know the impact a teacher can have on a young person, and the same is true of all meaningful encounters a young person can have with adults, especially when the adults are relatable, and they can see ‘people like me’ in them.

Role-modelling happens via mechanisms in our brain known as the mirror system. We literally mirror and absorb the behaviour, attitudes, values and moods of those around us often without realising, continually learning and adapting to the world we live in. From small behaviours like a smile or a yawn to lasting behaviours like attitudes and values. Take for example, a study published in 2007 by New England Journal of Medicine observing more than 12,000 participants for 30 years which found that people are more likely to gain weight if those they interact with gain weight. The chances of gaining weight increased by an astounding 171% if a close friend had done so, in other words ‘someone like me’.

We almost absorb the behaviour of those around us – particularly those we’re close to and connect with – by osmosis. And this isn’t just true of gaining weight; it covers almost everything we do. In fact, this mirroring is critical to developing the social and emotional skills that lie at the heart of being human. We don’t just ‘get’ these skills they need to develop through iterative interaction, repeated thousands of times in order to enable the systems in our brain to develop and grow. This occurs throughout life but is heightened in adolescents when the social brain is undergoing extraordinary levels of development.

So, what happens when that’s missing, when children don’t have the close relationships with people who believe in them, an adult who they can connect with? A study carried out by the Early Intervention Foundation found that the impact of neglecting to develop the social and emotional skills which can only be learnt through this type of relationship cost the government around £17 billion annually – a result of ‘picking up the pieces of damaging social issues affecting young people’. Whereas the authors explain that helping children to develop these social and emotional skills leads to hugely positive outcomes including better mental health, improved physical health, and a higher likelihood of getting a good job.

These skills are not only essential to life outcomes, but they are also becoming more and more critical to the future of the workforce too. A report published by leading global consultancy McKinsey found that with an increase in automation and Artificial Intelligence there will not only be a higher need for technical skills but also a far greater need for well-developed social and emotional capabilities. The report states that ‘the demand for social and emotional skills will grow across all industries by 26 percent in the United States and by 22 percent in Europe by 2030.’  Meanwhile they predict that the need for basic cognitive skills will decline.

So, these skills are critical. But if they are learnt through interacting with and modelling the behaviour of others, especially those who are trusted – who young people can connect with and are exposed to – how do we improve children’s access to them? As teachers there is the opportunity to be more conscious of the need to really connect and be present and have meaningful interactions. The same is true for parents and relatives, by simply spending more time face-to-face and building trust and connecting with kids it will begin to build these skills. But with an ever-increasing pace and an already packed curriculum and more time spent looking at screens this isn’t always easy. And for the teachers who have huge classes it’s nearly impossible to give that attention to every child. So, what can we do – especially for those children who don’t have any positive role-models in their family life?

This is where mentoring provides a critical lifeline. Mentors enable social and emotional skills learning without us even being consciously aware of ‘how’ that is happening. Simply being with a teen and showing interest in them allows the natural mechanisms in the brain to grow and develop.

Each mentoring relationship has the possibility of unlocking the innate potential of each teen that they connect with. The opportunity for teens to connect with a real person who is there purely for them – the one-to-one attention will develop their social and emotional skills, it’s just the way it works. But better still these mentors provide a line of sight to what’s possible and how it’s possible. These relationships are most effective when a mentee can connect with someone like me due to something known as the ‘homophily principle’.

In the same way we tend to think of role models as being infallible we also tend to think of mentors as needing to have been model pupils or to be doing exceptionally well with their careers in order to play that role. But we are more likely to form trusting connections, essential for the natural mechanisms of the brain to work, with people who are similar to us based on characteristics like age, race, gender and ethnic origin. And this is especially true for teenagers. Counter to what we may naturally think of when considering mentors – that may not be someone who was academically brilliant. What’s critical is that teens can see ‘someone like me’ to connect with. And if we train mentors effectively, research shows that the mistakes they made provide an immensely powerful lesson to the mentee.

We are all role models to youngsters and we have the opportunity to have a profoundly positive impact on their lives. You don’t have to be perfect to be a good mentor or role model. Nor do the mentors we match with youngsters through Future First. By providing the mentors with the right training: an improved level of self-awareness, an understanding of their own journey and an understanding of how to relate effectively we can match them with ‘someone like me’. Working in this way, the power of mentoring offers the opportunity to provide hundreds more teens with not only better career options but also the chance to live a healthier and more fulfilled life.

Extract from Mirror Thinking – Why Role Models Make Us Human

The story of Terrell and Terence – mentoring in practice:

A brilliant example of how this plays out can be found in a U.S. mentoring scheme which has been running for over 100 years. The Big Brother Big Sister scheme matches young people from low-income backgrounds with young adult volunteers who are typically between 20 and 34 years of age.

Mentors are encouraged to form a supportive friendship with the youths, as opposed to modifying the child or adolescent’s behaviour or character.  There are numerous moving stories of the outcomes.

For example, 11-year-old Terrell was, according to his aunt, in a ‘really dark place’ and ‘missing something’ from his life. He was signed up to the scheme and matched with Terence, who had himself been mentored when he was younger. Terrell lived with his aunt because both of his parents were in prison. His little brother had died aged three and he was separated from his older brother and younger sister. Unsurprisingly, he had deep issues with trust and anger, responding quickly and aggressively to situations he found difficult. Terrell’s aunt and uncle wanted to help, but also had reservations about the scheme. Given what Terrell had been through, the last thing they wanted, in his aunt’s words, was ‘to introduce him to someone new who could potentially not hang around’. Terrell was also reticent, talking about how he felt at the time: ‘With my background, with what I’ve been through in my life, I didn’t trust people a lot.’

But Terence was committed and developed the connection needed to help Terrell. He never pushed him to talk about things he didn’t want to, but remained consistent, showing him that he wasn’t going anywhere. A year into their relationship Terence recalls how Terrell first began to open up. They drove past a cemetery and Terrell said ‘my brother’s over there, he’s buried over there’.

His aunt recalls: ‘Terence stepped right in and before I knew it, I could see the light start to glow in Terrell again.’ Terrell says that being able to open up to Terence and having him as a role model has changed his life. Terrell doesn’t skip class when his friends do. He knows what he wants out of life and is focused on getting there. ‘My future plans are to go to college, join the National Guard, be a dentist,’ Terrell says. He also wants to be ‘a Big Brother like Terence and pass it on’.  Having someone to model provided Terrell with a guide to how he could be and how things could turn out learning from someone very similar to himself. This was someone who could provide the opportunity for direct social and emotional learning, typically less available in a busy household or environment where carers are struggling to make ends meet.

View related content:

The power of role models
Future First launches partnership with award-winning psychologist, Fiona Murden

Tens of thousands of state school pupils benefit from partnerships between independent schools and state schools every single year.

These partnerships help to build relationships between schools so they can share valuable resources and knowledge, enable staff to collaborate and share expertise and importantly, enable pupils from different backgrounds to learn together and build mutual respect for each other.

Future First is interested in exploring how these partnerships could be expanded to benefit all. 

Future First helps state schools broaden their students’ horizons by connecting them with relatable role models and our purpose is to see every state school and college supported by a thriving and engaged alumni community, so students gain the confidence, motivation, and inspiration they need to live successful lives. 

Independent schools have successfully utilised their alumni networks for generations and state schools are still trying to catch up – while 67% of independent school teachers used alumni to offer students access to careers and world of work opportunities, only 26% of state secondaries did so in 2019.* At Future First, we seek to provide a strong framework for state schools who may not have the same capacity as independent schools.

In such a challenging economic and social landscape, our help could be invaluable to young people and so we are reaching out to independent schools with existing partnerships for advice through this anonymous and short survey.

*Teacher Tapp. 21 05 2019

International Women’s Day is about celebrating women’s achievements, challenging bias and taking action for equality and with 2021’s theme being #choosetochallenge, we spoke to Danielle Hewitt – a woman forging her own path in the male dominated world of music promotion.

Danielle is an alumna of Coleg y Cymoedd, a Freelance Music Events Manager, Social Entrepreneur and Co-founder of W.O.M.E.N, a network that provides support to women and non-binary people, who are beginning their careers in the music industry, by providing opportunities of mentorship, networking and skill development.

Danielle has been working in the music industry since 2006, initially beginning her career as a Music Promoter and on completion of her degree in Events Management, went on to work with a number of industry organisations such as Live Nation, SWN, Greenman Festival, Orchard Media and Entertainment and undertaking roles at Reading, Download and Slam Dunk festivals.

Danielle is now a lecturer of Entrepreneurship, Digital Marketing and Events Management at BIMM Bristol.

Danielle, tell us about your career path and why you chose music and events promotion?
I studied Events Management at Cardiff Met University, I chose this degree because I had set up my own music promotions company whilst I was still in college, working with unsigned bands in the local area. After graduation I worked as a freelance events manager and festival assistant, while volunteering with The Young Promoters Network (YPN). The YPN is part of Rhondda Cynon Taff Council and aims to upskill young people who wish to work in the music industry. I volunteered for several years with the YPN and became a volunteer coordinator with them. It is through this experience that I realised how much I enjoyed helping others reach their career goals. Ultimately this led me to gain my PGCE in post-compulsory education before becoming the Enterprise Officer at Cardiff and Vale College and now I am an A-Level Lecturer at the college and an Associate Lecturer at a university in Bristol where I teach Events Management to the next generation of music managers.

What has been your biggest challenge as a woman in your employment?
Entering a male dominated industry came with a number of challenges, the most prominent of which has been counteracting the perception of women who work in the music industry. These perceptions and attitudes play out in numerous ways, and so having to work harder than my male counterparts to prove my worth has been the most challenging.

How does your work positively impact women?
In addition to my freelance work and teaching work, I run a social network called W.O.M.E.N (Women of Music and Events Network). We are an online community for women and non-binary persons that provide support for one another as well as opportunities of mentorship and networking, to better prepare one another for the barriers we encounter working in the music industry.

What woman has positively inspired you and why?
I have been lucky to grow up around several strong female role models – my grandmother, mother and aunties each carved out their own paths in life and taught me that there are no limits to what I can achieve. It is their guidance and support that has always empowered me to pursue my goals and ambitions.

Describe three characteristics about yourself that you believe has led to your success.
The first thing I would say was being organised. This allows me to manage a number of projects I am working on all at once and achieve a number of goals. The next is being passionate about my industry and the projects that I am working on – my passion drives me forward when things get tough. Lastly, it would be resilience: we are always going to encounter barriers, setbacks and difficulties, but it is how we respond to them that’s important. Being resilient allows me to deal with these setbacks and adapt – it doesn’t stop the pursuit of my goals.

View related content:
FREE International Women’s Day resource pack 
Wales leads way with Future First alumni initiative
FREE – Employability Skills: Entrepreneurial resource pack

In celebration of National Careers Week and to highlight the many and varied career paths available, we asked our own CEO, Lorraine Langham, about her career journey and any tips she has on the route to the top.

“I left school aged 16 in a recession that saw one in 10 people out of work”, Lorraine begins, “no-one in my entire extended family had attended further or higher education so in spite of having 10 O’Levels, and a personal visit from the Headteacher to talk to my parents about the possibilities of staying on – I left.”

It may seem surprising that there isn’t a degree in Lorraine’s background when you discover that her career successes span both the private and public sectors, including local and central government. She held board level positions in four London boroughs and spent seven years working at Ofsted, including as the Chief Operating Officer and right-hand person to Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector.  Along the way, she also built a successful Joint Venture Company providing communications and management consultancy. But tellingly, Lorraine says: “Careers advice at school was a 10-minute chat: ‘you like people – be a bank clerk’”.

With this inspiring advice, Lorraine headed out on her own course: “I applied for many, many jobs before I got one as a junior clerical assistant at the Local Government Training Board. That set me on a career in local government; 13 years later I was on the board at the London Borough of Camden. It made the national press. I was one of the youngest women chief officers in the country.”

It’s pertinent then, that later in her career, Lorraine came to work at Future First where providing state school students access to alumni and relatable role models as well as helping schools achieve Gatsby Benchmarks around career guidance and access to employers is part of its mission.

Now, as CEO – a route usually arrived at from a heavily operational or financial background rather than a communications background – Lorraine is keen to emphasise the importance of work experience and knowing your own worth. In a recent report by the Chartered Institute of Public Relations, of which she is a past Fellow, Lorraine explains: “Coming up through communications roles gives someone a broad range of invaluable skills, strategic thinking, crisis management, problem solving, interpersonal skills, wonderful written and oral skills, political nous- reading the room, negotiation and brokering, partnership and collaboration. These are many of the skills needed in senior roles rather than the ‘old school’ finance or legal routes to the top.”

Her tips for others wanting to reach senior positions involve doing your homework and contributing widely, “create a reputation from the inside as someone who can add value, who has something to bring to the table. Put yourself forward internally – take opportunities to get involved”.

“I looked for difficult projects or parts of the organisation that no one wanted, that needed a turnaround or a good manager and sought to take them on… I grew the work and built a corporate role and became seen as a general manager who could drive performance in any service, not just my specialism.” Lorraine also studied at night school and went on to become a Fellow of the Institute of Directors and a Chartered Director.

Crucially, Lorraine explains: “Be good at what you do, deliver what you said you’d do, demonstrate the wider impact, then you can argue ‘if I can do that here, I can do it somewhere else’.”

Future First alumni volunteer Abbie Hartley is a Professional Accounting Technician Apprentice working full-time with Whiting & Partners. She took time out of her busy day to tell us more about her career path, why she chose an apprenticeship and why she’s glad she chose this route over going to university.

Tell us a bit about your Apprenticeship and the route you are taking to get qualified?

My role as a Trainee Accountant consists of being responsible for undertaking high quality accounts preparation services for a range of business clients, including sole traders, partnerships and limited companies. I work full time at Whiting & Partners alongside being on an AAT Training Agreement and Apprenticeship – I study part-time at First Intuition Accountancy College in Cambridge. I am now studying for the AAT Professional Diploma in Accounting as well as the Professional Accounting Technician Apprenticeship, hopefully after I finish this in March 2022, I will move onto ACCA or ACA alongside the Professional Accountant Apprenticeship.

Out of all the routes open to you, why did you decide to do an apprenticeship? What are your future goals?

The main reason I was interested in an Apprenticeship is because I learn and work best in a professional environment where I can gain knowledge from those with experience. 

Since starting work at 16 I have always had the motivation to work – and so studying for three or four years at university was something that I knew wouldn’t suit what I wanted to do. 

An Apprenticeship has a clear progression route and has allowed me to focus on my career with training and qualifications that link directly to the tasks I deal with at work. As an apprentice I learn from colleagues with more experience than I have, and I have a brilliant mentor who is always happy to run through anything work or study related. 

Financially, an Apprenticeship made more sense to me than university: my employer covers my college fees, whereas if I had gone to university this would have cost me £27,000 in tuition fees. Now I have no debt whilst being paid to study and work! 

My long-term aim is to qualify as a Chartered Accountant by the age of 23 and eventually become a Partner of the firm. I hope to progress at work and through job titles, from Trainee, Qualified, Assistant Manager, Manager, Associate, Partner. I recognise this requires dedication and I will work hard to make sure I can achieve as much as I can in my career. 

Since I have been at work, I have seen colleagues who were in the exact same position as me when I started at Whiting & Partners five years ago, now qualifying as Chartered Accountants. This makes me want to work hard as I know if I put the effort in, I can also achieve this. Having colleagues to look up to has been a real driver to put the most I can into the Apprenticeship.

What did you find challenging at school and how did you overcome this?

Something I found a challenge at school was writing. Accountancy is a client-based industry and written communication is key. The Apprenticeship allows me to focus on this skill where I am required to write essays regularly. I have also taken opportunities to improve from my time volunteering with Future First where I have written articles for students about the Apprenticeship pathway and other careers advice. But I very much have to work hard to achieve the results I wish to – at the start of year 11 I was between two grades in Maths. To push myself to achieve the higher of these two grades I went into school an hour early three times a week to revise Maths, this worked out to be an extra 100 hours of revision covered in the year! 

As an Apprentice, what does an average week look like for you? 

My average day is varied across the week; I could be working from the office, or on an audit at a client’s premises. I do a range of work for clients in the sector specialisms of Agriculture, Construction, Contractors, Manufacturing, Property Investment, Retail, Road Haulage, Technology, and UK subsidiaries of overseas companies. This means I am able to gain experience in many different services through hands on experience and at college. Currently, I specialise in Company Secretarial and Book-keeping. Company Secretarial involves tasks such as change of ownership of business, share distributions, appointment of directors, all of which I produce and file forms with Companies House to make sure business records are up to date. I enjoy tasks like this as I recognise it is so important that the client’s records are correct. Book-keeping involves keeping business records up to date, analysing expenses and income from invoices. 

With the Apprenticeship, 20% of my work is ‘off the job’ where I attend college at First Intuition Accountancy College in Cambridge. My college courses are usually once a week and each course lasts around eight weeks and then there is an exam. 

Work has been brilliant at supporting my college courses to make sure I am prepared for my exams. Importantly, I am able to link what I have learnt at college to work, and even what I have learnt at work to college.

View our related resources:

Thinking of doing an apprenticeship? Read Abbie’s top tips

Real stories: Katie and Lewis on apprenticeships and the impact of alumni role models

FREE National Apprenticeship Week activity pack for schools

FREE Template email for alumni support

As part of our support for National Apprenticeship Week, Future First caught up with Bottisham Village College alumna and Future First alumni volunteer, Abbie Hartley, who is currently undertaking a Professional Accounting Technician Apprenticeship. Abbie works as a Trainee Accountant for Whiting & Partners and as part of her apprenticeship, attends First Intuition Accountancy College for ‘off the job training’ 20% of her time.  We asked Abbie for her top tips for those thinking about the apprenticeship pathway.

Abbie’s top tips

You do you – find something that interests you: All of my college friends went to university, but I decided this wasn’t the right option for me because I knew what industry and job I wanted to go into. Don’t be overly influenced by your peers – when choosing a career, it is important to look long term – where could you be in that industry in 50 years’ time?

Work hard and try your best at everything you do: No one is going to put in the work for you, you can only do this yourself. When doing anything, do it well, with 110% effort – whether this be studying at college or at work. The more you put in the more you will learn.

Research – consider your end goal: When looking into a career in Accountancy I researched the different areas and different qualifications available to decide which route I wanted to take. As an 18-year-old deciding on how to start my career I felt it was really important to make the right decision.  My research showed that you still had to take the Accountancy exams after you finish university to become a Chartered Accountant, as well as having to have 36 months’ work experience; by taking the Apprenticeship route, you may be surprised to know that I will qualify as a Chartered Accountant before a graduate from university. In addition, I would also have an extra three years’ worth of work experience. It is just a different route to get to the same end goal.

Undertake work experience: Don’t underestimate the value of work experience. I undertook work experience at two accounting firms, and as I enjoyed one of the placements so much, I was invited back for some more work experience and after that was offered my job. 

Motivate yourself: I received job offers and accepted one from Whiting & Partners before I even undertook my A Level exams – I felt this gave me extra motivation to do as well as I could in the examinations because I had something to aim for.

Prepare: When I was preparing for video interviews for my Apprenticeship, I created A4 pieces of paper with details of potential discussion topics, for example ‘work’, ‘education’, ‘outside of college’ and questions I had for the interviewer. This allowed me to identify my key achievements and anything that made me ‘stand out’ in a competitive job market. I was then able to bring these discussion topics into the interview when relevant.

Once you are there, keep organised: Whether at school, college or work, organisation is key in any career. For example, in Accountancy, January is a busy month for tax returns. To keep organised I make a list of all the tasks I need to do in order of priority, then tick them off the to do list once complete, adding new ones when needed. I send an email at the end of the week to all of the partners and managers so they can see where their tasks are in my list. This allows them to update me if their task has become more urgent or if some tasks need to be delegated elsewhere. Since March, due to the pandemic, I have been working from home. I make sure I keep my calendar up to date so my managers can see what clients’ work I am due to work on. As a result of keeping organised I have been able to work effectively and continue to work from home without being furloughed as a Trainee – showing that my managers have trust in me to work independently.

Who is an Apprenticeship for?

Apprenticeships are for anyone above the age of 16 and entry requirements are set by the company offering the apprenticeship. The level of apprenticeship you can apply for will differ depending on your qualifications. For example, if you have achieved five good GCSE grades and good post 16 results you may want to look at an Advanced or Higher Apprenticeship. If you like the idea of earning while learning and are motivated and committed, an apprenticeship might be a good next step to look into.

Here are some useful links for those thinking of the Apprenticeship route:

• National Apprenticeship Service (http://nas.apprenticeships.org.uk/) – this is a great website where you can search for opportunities as well as watch videos about current apprentices.
• Get In Go Far (www.getingofar.gov.uk) – government funded website on apprenticeships
• Not Going to Uni (http://www.notgoingtouni.co.uk/)
• Plotr (www.plotr.co.uk) – Plotr is a one-stop-shop for everything you need to know about career options. There’s lots of information about apprenticeships, interesting articles to inspire you, and lots more.
• Student Ladder (www.studentladder.co.uk) – check out Student Ladder for a range of opportunities including ‘School Leaver Programmes’, which are also known as Higher Apprenticeships.

View our related resources:

Real stories: Katie and Lewis on apprenticeships and the impact of alumni role models

FREE National Apprenticeship Week activity pack for schools

FREE Template email for alumni support