25th November 2025
Dear parent or carer,
Year 10 Work Experience: Monday 13th – Friday 17th July 2026
Following last year’s successful ‘encounters with employers’ week during the summer term, we would also like to share with you an outline plan for students wishing to undertake a work experience placement during that same week this coming summer. We encourage students to seek a placement within a career area they are interested in, as this can help them make decisions about their P16 college or apprenticeship applications in Year 11. However, all work experience is valuable in gaining skills and knowledge of the world of work, as well as looking good on a CV.
The Academy does not have a list of prearranged placements to offer students as it is good for students to identify places they would like to work and then contact those companies themselves. The chosen organisation must have current employer liability insurance.
Whilst July seems a long way away at this time of the year, it is important that students wishing to participate in work experience adopt a proactive approach in terms of arranging placements as there are some business sectors such as engineering, healthcare, and animal care, which are very competitive. We encourage students to begin their search and apply for work experience placements as soon as possible.
We will run sessions during tutor times to advise students on how to search and apply for a placement, but it is important to note that the onus is on the student to secure the provisional placement themselves. There will also be after school drop-ins with Mrs Williams, (our Careers Advisor), on a Thursday in the library to offer support in obtaining a work experience placement. The coordination of work experience placements and the corresponding paperwork is a significant job and one that we must ensure is completed thoroughly before a placement can proceed. As a result, it is essential that any students wishing to participate keep to the deadlines that will enable all checks to be completed and placements to be authorised.
Once your child has secured a provisional work experience placement, please complete the Work Experience Agreement and Health Declaration Form. The link which has been emailed to you is Parental Work Experience Form – Fill in form. The company will need to complete the Employer form Employer Work Experience Form – Fill in form
The deadline for this is Friday 20th March 2026. We will not accept forms after this date.
Upon the completion and return of these forms, we can start the necessary safeguarding checks and risk assessments and confirm the placement has been approved. The Student Health Declaration will be shared with the company, and an online ‘health and safety questionnaire’ will be sent to the company for them to complete. We will be advising each company that they will need to submit the Health & Safety Questionnaire by Friday 15th May 2026. All placements are then risk assessed prior to being confirmed by the Academy sometime in June.
Please note that if deadlines are not met, or a placement has not been assessed as safe to proceed, it will result in the placement not being signed off and the student will not be able to attend. The Academy’s decision on this will be final.
Any students not undertaking an agreed work experience placement will be required to attend school during that week.
If you have any questions or queries, please feel welcome to contact me by email at: JCAInfo@clf.uk with the subject: FAO Steven Church.
Yours sincerely,
Mr Steven Church
Associate Assistant Principal
John Cabot Academy
