Plea for pupil help on jobs

SCHOOLS should be obliged to employ dedicated careers advisers to help pupils make the right decisions about their future, according to the Confederation of British Industry.

Neil Carberry, CBI director for people and skills, said that rather than regarding careers advice as an “add-on for geography teachers”, schools needed to hire specialists to help pupils identify the right subjects and education paths for them.

He added that regulator Ofsted should judge schools on the quality of their careers advice.

Businesses, schools and Government needed to work together to create a “comprehensive pathway” to help young people identify which subjects and careers would best suit them, and at an earlier age.

Mr Carberry added: “While many young people will choose to move to A-levels, university and beyond, there are many options, including high quality technical qualifications and apprenticeships. We must better inform pupils on all the pathways available.”

He called on Prime Minister Theresa May to deliver where her predecessors had failed and put the needs of business at the heart of the education system.

WE BACK calls by the CBI for dedicated career advisers in all schools, to help unleash the full potential of every child. For too long we have been asked to accept the mantra, endlessly repeated by Left-wing unions, that every child is the same.

In truth, every child is unique. The child who does poorly at maths could be tomorrow’s JK Rowling, while the pupil who fails history could be the next Tim BernersLee. And the child who fails at all subjects?

There’s always the Labour leadership to fall back on.