Employability Workshop for Super 1s participants with Berkeley Group

The employability workshop was divided into three stages, beginning with a welcome presentation about understanding Berkeley, followed by an activity based around planning and development then finishing with CV writing and how to apply for jobs.

Liza Smith, Employment and Skills Manager at Berkeley St Edward describes the day as being absolutely amazing.

“The students were phenomenal, they really grasped it and really, really got involved. We saw amazing teamwork, innovation, creativity and it was absolutely amazing how well they worked together. In terms of the number crunching, the planning, the concept, it was really, really good to see how many different skills came together.

I think it's incredibly important to be inclusive. I think it's really important on these kind of workshops, with all different types of students, whether that be adult students looking at changing careers, people who are leaving school or those people who need a little bit more support with job opportunities, that we do this as part of our corporate social responsibility programme.”

One of the Super 1s participants, Harry, explained the benefits of the programme and how the workshop has helped him develop.

“Super 1s itself has helped me in so many ways, from teamwork to independent skills, learning what I could do to improve on myself both mentally and physically so that I could be better prepared for the future. I feel really glad because Berkeley really showed confidence in everyone. They don't look at us and say this is what you can't do. They say 'alright, show us what you can do'. Some of the people might have it harder, like me, for example, I'm dyslexic. That just shows that the world can get better in these kind of jobs and industries.”

Our Disability Programme Manager, Mark Bond, sums up the day and our partnership with Berkeley.

“I think the big message from our Super 1s programme really is that all of the young people we work with can achieve amazing things. They might look different, but those amazing things are also just as valid. It's great to have a partnership with Berkeley where we're able to give them that opportunity to explore that in a work environment and to realise that just because they might struggle in one area, doesn't mean they can't excel somewhere else.”