Careers Guidance

In Key Stage 3, we help students ‘bridge the gap’ between the classroom and their future. Every subject lesson includes dedicated time to show students how their current learning connects to real-world jobs, helping them understand the value of every unit they study. A major highlight of our calendar is National Careers Week, there is whole academy involvement including guest speakers, employer visits, and exciting activities. We are also here to support your family during the Year 9 options process; our Careers Leaders and partners from local colleges attend our Options and Family evenings to help students make informed choices about their next steps.

Please see our Careers Programme and Careers Journey.

At Key Stage 4, our focus is on preparing students for the ‘real world’. We provide hands-on opportunities like work experience and mock interviews to build the confidence and professionalism employers look for. Through careers fairs and visits to colleges and universities, students are encouraged to research their next steps and create their own Personal Action Plans for success.

Support for families is a priority; you will find our careers team at all Year 10 and Year 11 Families Evenings, ready to answer your questions. In the classroom, teachers link every topic to potential job roles, making learning relevant. Year 10 students also spend time each week exploring Labour Market Information (LMI) to understand which industries are growing and what they pay. We value our students’ voices and regularly use their feedback to make our careers programme even better.

Please see our Careers Programme and Careers Journey.

Measuring and assessing the impact of our careers programme on students:

At Newhouse academy we use the 8 Gatsby benchmarks as a foundation when planning our careers programme. The effectiveness of our careers provision is reviewed annually by the careers team.

Compass Plus is a digital tool, funded and recommended by the Department for Education. It enables us to benchmark, track and report on our careers provision at individual learner level. Completed at the end of every term this helps us see where we are up to with each Gatsby benchmark, this ensures the development of careers education is ongoing.

We collect annual destination data to track the further education paths and course levels chosen by former students, which shows the effectiveness of the careers program and post-16 options.

We conduct an annual Beewell survey with two year groups through the Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) to assess the impact of our careers provision, helping us evaluate and take action based on the results.

Readiness for post 16 options –

• Careers within PSHE lessons for all year groups

Year 9 –

• Option choices
• Rochdale Sixth Form College ran a Year 9 options event where 45 of our students attended
• Meet the colleges

Year 10 –

• Work experience
• University taster day
• College taster days
• Colleges attend families evening
• 1:1 interviews start with our Positive Steps Careers Adviser

Year 11 –

• College assemblies
• CV writing
• Personal statement writing
• Applications support sessions ( different colleges attend every week )
• Apprenticeship support sessions
• Transition work
• Mock interviews
• Colleges attend families evening
• 1:1 interviews with our Positive Steps Careers Adviser ( every student will complete this )
• Apprenticeship assembly with an external provider

Xello helps students discover relevant, college, university, apprenticeship and career options based on personality, skills, and knowledge.

BBC Bitesize Careers is a free online, curriculum-linked resource designed to help young people (primarily aged 11–16+) explore career options, understand the world of work, and make informed choices

icould – Career ideas and information for your future
See how different factors and situations can shape careers. Be inspired · Advice and guides. Handy guides on GCSE choices and future pathways, as well as revision, exams and finding work.

A Guide to Post-16 Options – The options available after Year 11 can often be confusing for students and their parents/carers. There are a number of routes and pathways for young people to take and choices need to be thought about carefully. This guide will give you an overview of the different post 16 options there are for a Newhouse Academy Student.

Newhouse Academy provides comprehensive advice and a wide range of opportunities to ensure our students develop a strong awareness of future careers. Our Academy is committed to delivering a robust, full careers programme designed to guide every student effectively through their pathway planning.

Dedicated Careers Support

Our Careers Lead, available by telephone or email, is the primary point of contact for all careers-related matters. They actively participate in Families Evenings for students in Years 9, 10, and 11, providing timely information and guidance to both students and families.

Special Educational Needs and Disabilities (SEND) Provision

For students with additional needs, our Careers Lead ensures integrated support by attending relevant review meetings across all year groups, offering tailored information and guidance where appropriate to meet individual needs.

Useful Resources:

Government School Leaving Age Information

16-19 Bursary Fund for financial help whilst at college

Our Pass  – Free bus travel for 16-18 year olds

A Guide to Understanding Apprenticeships

The National Careers Service – Free and impartial information, advice and guidance to help you with your decisions about careers, courses and work.

National Apprenticeship Service – Information on apprenticeship vacancies.

UCAS – Information on degree courses, entry requirements.

SACU – A free site, take a quiz and find out your course, career and apprenticeship matches. With links to universities, employers and degree apprenticeships.

Icould – Real-life career videos with Labour Market Information.

Newhouse Academy offers specialist careers advice and impartial careers guidance. This is provided by the Positive Steps Adviser. Specialist sessions are delivered by outside agencies.

Your Positive Steps School’s Careers Adviser is Christine Pugh
Email: christinepugh@positive-steps.org.uk

 

At Newhouse Academy, we recognise that our teaching staff are an influential part of our students’ decision-making processes. We are committed to supporting all staff in delivering outstanding careers education by providing the following resources:

• Our Careers Programme: A comprehensive framework to guide student development.
• Inset Day CPD: Ongoing professional development to keep staff informed of the latest career trends.
• Our Subject Specific, Teacher Careers Ambassadors
• Curriculum Integration: Careers information is embedded within every subject area’s scheme of work. 
• Website Links: Curated resources for teachers to pass on to students for independent exploration.
• Subject-Specific Posters: Visual aids for classroom displays that highlight career pathways.

We expect our staff to be confident in discussing career opportunities related to their specific subject areas and to understand the various routes, pathways, and skills currently in demand from employers.

Gatsby Benchmarks

The Government’s new Careers Strategy, published in 2017, set out the plan for building a high-quality careers system that will help young people to succeed. The Gatsby Benchmarks define all the elements of an excellent Careers Programme.

Benchmarks 4 and 5 (Linking Curriculum Learning to Careers and Encounters with Employers and Employees)

We have successfully implemented dedicated careers activities into all units of work. Examples of these slides are provided below our internal guidance documents.

• Art Careers Activity Example
• Construction Careers Activity Example
• Social Worker Careers Activity Example

ROCHDALE SIXTH FORM

College Road, Rochdale, OL12 6HY

Tel: 01706 769 800

Email: info@rochdalesfc.ac.uk

HOPWOOD HALL – MIDDLETON CAMPUS
Rochdale Road, Middleton, Manchester, M24 6XH

Tel: 0161 643 7560

HOPWOOD HALL – ROCHDALE CAMPUS
St. Mary’s Gate, Rochdale, OL12 6RY

Tel: 01706 345 346

Email: enquiries@hopwood.ac.uk

BURY COLLEGE

Woodbury Centre, Market Street, Bury, Manchester, BL9 0BG

General Enquiries: 0161 280 8280
Email: information@burycollege.ac.uk

Admissions Enquiries: 0161 280 8200
Admissions Email: admissions@burycollege.ac.uk

HOLY CROSS COLLEGE AND UNIVERSITY CENTRE
Manchester Road, Bury, BL9 9BB

General Enquiries: 0161 762 4500
Email: information@holycross.ac.uk

Admissions
Tel: 0161 762 4510
Email: admissions@holycross.ac.uk

OLDHAM SIXTH FORM

Union Street West, Oldham OL8 1XU

Tel : 0161 287 8000
Email : info@osfc.ac.uk

OLDHAM COLLEGE
Rochdale Rd, Oldham, OL9 6AA

General Enquiries: 0161 785 4000
Email: info@oldham.ac.uk

THE MANCHESTER COLLEGE

Course Enquiries and Admissions
Tel: 03333 222 444*
*Calls to this number are charged at local rate

Email: enquiries@tmc.ac.uk

Head Office
The Manchester College, Ashton Old Road, Openshaw, Manchester, M11 2WH

ROCHDALE TRAINING
Fishwick Street, Rochdale, OL16 5NA

Tel: 01706 631417
Email: info@rochdaletraining.co.uk

GMACS Beeline puts you on the path to all the great job opportunities right here in Greater Manchester.

The Greater Manchester Apprenticeship & Careers Service, or GMACS, is here to help you plan your future.

Destination STEM is a NEW dedicated STEM careers website for 13-19-year-olds curious to explore exceptional science, technology, engineering, and mathematics opportunities, boost skills, and hear from industry experts.

Careers information, advice and guidance from the National Careers Service.

Gov.uk – Finding an apprenticeship

Gov.uk – How apprenticeships work

Gov.uk – School leaving age

We are always looking to network with employers and the wider community to support us with our CEIAG provision.

If you are interested in supporting Newhouse Academy we would like to hear from you. 

Evidence suggests that students are less likely to find themselves not in education, employment or training after they finish school if they have had contacts with employers, further education providers and training providers before leaving school.

See below for a range of activities that can make a difference to our students.

Ways you could get involved:

Future Foundations Careers Fair

If your business offers Post-16 opportunities such as apprenticeships, why not contact us and become a part of our Careers Event. You would get the opportunity to meet and engage with all students from years 7-11

Work Experience

Our Year 10 students engage in a 1 week work experience in the summer term. Does your business offer such opportunities to help young people get the valuable experience that they would benefit from?

Work Place Visits

Many of our curriculum areas would like the opportunity to bring groups of students to visit a workplace to give them the experience of the real world of work.

The college and career readiness software we use in school unlocks every student’s potential by opening their eyes to future possibilities. It helps students discover relevant career options based on their personality, skills and knowledge.  This means we can select students to visit a workplace who are truly interested and matched to the workplace they are visiting.

This would be a great way to give students the insight into your business.

If you have any other suggestions for working with our academy we’d really like to hear from you.
Any enquiries or suggestions to be made to JamiesonL@newhouseacademy.co.uk

Are you a former student?

Would you be interested in sharing your experiences since you left school to where you are now?

If you studied at Newhouse we want to hear from you!

We are looking to expand our alumni network and would love to know about your further education and career journeys. We would like to build up a support network of people who would help us in offering guidance and support along with an insight into a range of different industries. Get in touch with us by emailing Miss Jamieson at the address below.

Careers Administrator JamiesonL@newhouseacademy.co.uk

Dylan Jones

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Economics (A) Mathematics (B) Politics (A*)
2025 – University of Oxford – Studying Philosophy, Politics and Economics

James Pitts

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Chemistry (A) Further Mathematics (A*) Mathematics (A*) Physics (A*)
2025 – University of Oxford – Studying Engineering

Bradley Trickett

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Chemistry (A) Further Mathematics (A*) Mathematics (A*) Physics (A*)
2025 – University of Oxford – Studying Engineering

Lucas Bates

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Drama & Theatre (B) English Literature (B) History (B)
2025 – The University of Manchester – Studying Drama and English Literature

Robin Cretol

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Biology (A) Chemistry (A) Mathematics (B) EPQ (A)
2025 – UCL University College London – Studying Neuroscience

Ben Harrison

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Chemistry (B) Further Mathematics (A*) Mathematics (A*) Physics (A*)
2025 – University of Bath – Studying Mathematics

Ethan Holt

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Film Studies (B) Politics (A) Sociology (A)
2025 – The University of Manchester – Studying Politics and Social Anthropology

Imogen Holt

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Law (B) Psychology (C) Sociology (A)
2025 – Degree Apprenticeship with Greater Manchester Police – Police Officer

Leighton Kevlin

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Law (A*) Mathematics (B) Physics (B) AS Further Mathematics (A)
2025 – The University of Manchester – Studying Astrophysics

Darcie Kilcourse

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Economics (C) Further Mathematics (A) Mathematics (A)
2025 – The University of Manchester – Studying Mathematics with Finance

Erin Leech

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Film Studies (A) French (B) Sociology (A)
2025 – University of Huddersfield – Studying Filmmaking

Alison Ogunmwenkha

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Biology (C) Chemistry (D) Psychology (A)
2025 – Manchester Metropolitan University – Studying Psychology

Alfie Simons

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Biology (B) Chemistry (C) PE (C)
2025 – University of Leeds – Studying Biological Sciences

Zuzanna Wysocka

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023
Rochdale Sixth Form College – A-Levels in Chemistry (C) Economics (B) Mathematics (B)
2025 – University of Salford – Studying Interior Design

Wesley Mottershead

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2023

Since leaving Newhouse and never really mentioning my acting life while I was there, I’ve built up a strong range of acting experience across stage and screen. I’ve performed in productions including Footloose, where I played Reverend Shaw and received a NODA award for the best supporting actor in a youth musical. I’ve been in Alan Bennett’s The Wind in the Willows, portraying Albert the Horse with a mix of physical comedy and grounded character work. My most recent role was Gordon Shakespeare in Nativity! The Musical, continuing to develop my comedic and musical theatre skills with my upcoming role as Orin in little shop of horrors 

On screen, I’ve gained professional experience with a walk-on role in BBC’s Waterloo Road, supporting artist work in ITV’s The Tower, and in Runaway and Crongton Knights. Alongside performing, I’ve led acting workshops for children, helping younger performers build confidence and explore character work.

Since leaving school, I’ve focused on constantly improving my skills, gaining new techniques and finding agents, and taking every opportunity to grow as a versatile and committed performer.

Tilly Moore

Newhouse Academy – Class of 2022
Apprenticeship – Apprentice at ITAL Logistics
Tilly completed her apprenticeship and moved on to utilise her skills and knowledge in her role as a doctor’s receptionist

Newhouse Academy Careers Education and Guidance Policy

Newhouse Academy Provider Access Policy

Newhouse Academy Moving On Individual School Report 2025