Following a successful trial, we are excited to announce the launch of our new skills workshop for primary school children as part of our Education Programme.
These ‘World of Work’ workshops are designed to engage children in understanding the concept of skills and their application in the workplace. The sessions also introduce students to various roles within a bank that they might not have known about, broadening their horizons about future career possibilities.
Cathy Prior, Social Impact Manager at Vanquis, commented: “Through our work with secondary schools, we discovered that many 16-year-olds struggle to identify and articulate their skills, which hampers their applications for further education and employment. Our goal with these workshops is to address this gap early on by educating children about the importance of skills before they reach secondary school.”
Recent workshops have focused on essential skills such as interview techniques, time management, communication, organisation, and problem-solving. Additionally, students were given a glimpse into various roles within the bank, including IT, Brand, Communications, Finance, and Social Impact, and learned how professionals in these fields use transferable skills.
A participating student shared their excitement: "I never knew there could be different roles in a bank and it's not all about money. My favourite part was time management and how focusing on one thing at a time makes it easier. Thank you for the opportunity."
Another student added: “Thank you so much for inviting us! I had a great experience! I loved it when we interviewed Tracy and Julia, it was ace! I also liked doing brand designs - it was so creative."
Teachers also noted the program's positive impact. One teacher said: "This has been a fantastic opportunity for the children today. They’ve been so engaged with the volunteers, even the children who find participation difficult have got stuck in.”
To date, over 100 children have participated in these workshops. Vanquis is committed to continuing this partnership with schools in the area, further developing the programme to include more business areas and support children’s learning journey.
So far, over 100 children have participated in these workshops. The team at Vanquis will continue working with schools to further develop the program and include more business areas to support the children’s learning.