Assessing Impact
Wrotham School will assess the impact of its careers programme on students through the following activities:
- conducting a Compass+ evaluation of the school’s progress towards the 8 Gatsby Benchmarks. This will be completed three times a year and include input from the Careers Lead, our Careers Consultant (from the Careers and Enterprise Company), our careers link governor and, where appropriate, our Enterprise Adviser.
- analysing destinations data in line with activities that students have taken part in while at school. This will be conducted annually in Term 2, following the publication of the school’s performance figures.
- completing an annual student survey (the Future Skills Questionnaire) with all students to help us to identify and plan around gaps in their knowledge and confidence around careers education and the options available to them.
- student evaluations and feedback will be sought after key events using our Morrisby careers platform.
- staff confidence audits will be conducted annually to identify requirements and opportunities for Continuing Professional Development.
- the views of parents and carers will be surveyed after key events e.g. support for them from our Careers Advisor, Careers information evenings, Work Placement Day, Year 12 Work Experience and so forth.
- employer and staff feedback will be surveyed after key employer encounters where appropriate.
Key findings from the Future Skills Questionnaire
Please note that the Future Skills Questionnaire is an annual student survey that assesses career-readiness. Questions are slightly different for each stage of a student’s school journey.
- Year 7 complete the ‘starting secondary’ questionnaire soon after starting at Wrotham School and this information is used to identify any gaps in their knowledge. This is used to plan activities and careers sessions.
- Year 9 complete the ‘transition from KS3’ questionnaire, which allows us to measure the impact of their career learning over Year 7 and 8, and to plan any activities and speakers for the remainder of Year 9.
- Year 10 and 11 complete the ‘GCSE years’ questionnaire, checking their understanding of what employers are looking for as well as their post-16 options.
- Sixth form students complete the ‘Post-16’ questionnaire, which focuses on post-18 options as well as careers knowledge and skills.
Career-readiness (latest update – Term 1 and 2 2025-26)
| Question/Idea | Year 7 | Year 9 | Year 10 | Year 12 | Year 13 |
| Do you feel supported to make your career decisions and choices? | N/A | N/A | 83% | 82% | 89% |
| Do you know what skills employers need? | 68% | 64% | 83% | 83% | 89% |
| Areas of high confidence/understanding | Having ideas about what they want to do in the future; hearing different people talk about their jobs; do you know how to make a good impression to be chosen for a role of responsibility; have you thought about how jobs will change in the future | hearing different people talk about their jobs; thinking about how jobs may change in the future; knowing what subjects they’d like to study at GCSE; how to make a good impression when applying for a course or job | awareness of some of the types of businesses in their area of the country; experiences of workplaces shaping ideas of career goals; having a plan for after Year 11 | understanding of employment, apprenticeships and higher education routes; hearing different people talk about their jobs; ideas of what careers and jobs fit their interests | hearing different people talk about their jobs; university and degree apprenticeships; how to make a good impression; experiences of workplaces shaping ideas of career goals; awareness of local employers. |
| Areas to be addressed | understanding T levels; understanding vocational routes like BTECs; knowledge of trustworthy websites; understanding apprenticeships; understanding university | understanding BTECs; understanding T levels; knowing trustworthy websites; confidence in asking for feedback | relevance of work experience to career aims; understanding T levels; contact with people who have jobs that interest them. | Relating experiences of work place to career goals; understanding of HTQs; more knowledge of different types of recruitment processes | confidence in next steps; knowledge of different interview/recruitment techniques; confidence in interviews; confidence in sharing ideas with employers |
feedback about support for students and parents/carers from our careers advisor
STUDENTS
| Question | How students felt
before the meeting |
How students felt
after the meeting |
Percentage change |
| Did you understand the purpose of the meeting? | 5/5 | ||
| Did you enjoy the meeting? | 4.9/5 | ||
| Did we talk about things that are relevant to you? | 5/5 | ||
| I am aware of different career and learning pathways that interest me | 6.1/10 | 8.9/10 | +28% |
| I feel prepared to make decisions about my own career or learning pathways | 5.3/10 | 8.1/10 | +28% |
| I know what knowledge and/or skills are needed for a career or learning pathway I’m interested in | 5.7/10 | 8.8/10 | +31% |
| I understand how my skills or experience relate to my future career | 6.1/10 | 8.9/10 | +28% |
| I understand how my subjects and learning relate to my future career | 7/10 | 8.9/10 | +19% |
| I’m actively thinking about what I want to do after school | 6.8/10 | 9/10 | +22% |
Evaluations from other stakeholders (Updated Term 1-2 2025-26)
Careers Fair March 2023 – Exhibitor Evaluation (employers, colleges, training providers and universities).
Key findings from our destinations data
This part will be updated in the new year.
Destinations data for Wrotham School students over time (again, using DfE figures).
