Post-16 Options
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Knowing what your next steps are.
You may already have an idea about your future studies or career. However, it’s quite common to feel undecided, or confused, about what to do next. It’s important to make sure you get the advice you need. You can talk to your parents, teachers or a career adviser. In Year 11 you will have a planned 1:1 meeting with a careers advisor to support you with your choices, but you can access them at any time if you need to you do not have to wait.
If you already know what you want to do, make sure you know what your next steps are and always have a back-up plan, in case your first choice doesn’t work out or you change your mind.
What Are My Options?
In England, the Raising the Participation Age (RPA) regulation means you must continue in education or training until your 18th birthday.
This doesn’t necessarily mean staying at school because learning can be in different settings. Whether you live in England or Wales, your main options at the end of Year 11 are to continue your education full time, either at school or college, or to start working and continue your learning in the workplace, perhaps through an Apprenticeship or T-level.
Other options include undertaking a programme that will give you the experience and support you need for your next steps (such as a Traineeship or Kickstart).
Advice & Resources
Remember to:
- Start thinking about your options as soon as possible – don’t leave it until the last minute
- Look at lots of information and explore options, routes and pathways
- Be realistic about the GCSE grades, or equivalent, you are likely to achieve
- Remember, there may be more than one route to reach your goal
- Base any decisions on what is important to you – don’t follow what your friends might be doing
Don’t forget that you will be expected to continue learning English and maths after Year 11 if you have not already gained GCSEs at grades 9-4/A*-C in these subjects! There are lots of resources you can access to help you at this time too.
Visit the school career platform ECLIPS password in your planner. There is specific information about education and choices at 16.
CareerPilot has lots of information and videos that you can look at too.
The Government site is also available for this type of research.
You can also take a look at the Youth Employment website.
Post 16 Providers
There are many providers in the area and a little further afield that offer the courses you may be interested in, see the links below. All of them have open evenings and events along with information and application processes online
HAD Sixth Form
Telford College
Juniper Training
Landau Training
Nova Training
Telford 16 to 19
Shrewsbury Colleges
Job Vacancies at West Mercia Police
Job Vacancies at Shropshire Fire and Rescue
Out of Area Further Education specifically for specialist subjects not on offer within the Telford & Wrekin area:
North Shropshire College
Rodbaston College
Reaseheath College
The Armed Forces
The Armed Forces offer a wide range of jobs and apprenticeships, click each of the main disciplines below for further details.
The local recruitment office for all the armed forces is:
Armed Forces Careers Office
2nd Floor Princess House
The Square Shrewsbury
SY1 1JZ
Hours: 9am – 5pm Monday to Friday
Phone: 01743 232678
Employment
Being able to find a part-time job not only allows you to earn some money while you are studying but also builds your employability skills for the future. Before looking for a job it’s important to have an up-to-date CV.
Use the links below to help you create a standout CV:
Create a CV for free
CVs and Cover Letters
CV writing for Young People
When looking for employment many people use online providers to search for jobs. Here, you can filter your search to specific locations, sectors and even salary:
Find a Job – GOV.UK
Job Search | Indeed
Monster Jobs: Find a Job Today
What’s Next?
Whilst considering your post-16 options it may be useful to also take into consideration any ideas you have for when you complete them. You can explore this further in the post-18 section of our website.
Some other useful websites that can support at this time:
For Parents
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Learning Resource
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Please don't hesitate to get in touch, we’re here to help and answer any questions or queries you might have.