Parents are encouraged to help their son/daughter in their choice of work experience. It is highly recommended that not too much pressure is given to undertake a placement of your choice, but the balance is to ensure that all placements are given due consideration - even if it isnt your choice. In our experience, a student who undertakes a placement of their choice, will either make the decision it really isnt for them, (and that is positive) or that it what they really do want to do.
HOW CAN YOU HELP?
There may be an opportunity within the company you work, and this is encouraged, as long as students will be working in another area. It may be you are able to offer a placement or two to your childs school for that week, and this is welcomed. We would ask you to contact the Work Experience Co-ordinator in school, or contact us direct. (please see Contact Us above).
WHAT IS THE TAMAR EBP's INVOLVEMENT?
Before we can consider endorsing an employers suitability for hosting a student, the first question we need to ask is: Does the Employer hold Employers and Public Liability? This is one of the key requirements of the Local Authority. Some smaller companies may not hold the Employer Liability, but may be willing to purchase this for the work experience period. An employer may wish to contact their insurer to discuss the implications of this, in further detail. All employers must be visited prior to endorsement. The visit is not an Official health and safety check, but simply to ensure that an employer meets certain criteria and understands their responsibilities of the health safety and welfare of a student whilst on placement with them.
OUT OF COUNTY PLACEMENTS
Students are permitted to go out of area on a placement. We have a reciprical arrangement with most offices, but some have started to charge due in the main to increasing requests for employer visits to be made from out of area offices like ourselves! These costs are referred to school and visits will not be undertaken until we have the go ahead to incur the additional charge on behalf of the school.
Finally, there are many processes to the work experience programme of which the work experience co-ordinator in school will be your first port of call. There are deadlines to meet, paperwork to complete but in general the programme commences in each school at the beginning of September. By January of each year, placement availability is shared by us with schools. All students will be offered a pool of placements which will be hosted on a website, which each student will have their individual password to access and select from. If there is nothing to suit then students are encouraged to find their own. Or indeed, if a student is unable to find any placement, there will be the pool of placements to choose from via school.