GREAT STUFF: PASSPORT TO YOUR FUTURE!

I was at Meadowhead School last night for a celebration event at the end off their Erasmus+ Project ‘Passport to your Future’. The aim of the project is to boost the employability skills of European teenagers through a collaborative project with four partner schools from the UK, Finland, Spain and Slovenia.

The Erasmus+ Programme is an EU exchange student programme that provides foreign exchange options for students from within the European Union.

The 'Passport to your Future' programme has involved:

• Student exchange visit to Slovenia (May 2015)
• Student exchange visit to Finland (October 2015) 
• Student exchange visit to Spain (February 2016) 
• Student exchange visit to Meadowhead School (Spring 2016)

Mark Cocken and Jo Silverwood are two passionate, committed and hard-working colleagues who have led this brilliant project at Meadowhead School using the Cutlers' 'Made in Sheffield' skill set and, working with some talented colleagues from schools in Finland, Slovenia and Spain, have produced some great products while working with 120 young people from their schools. Last night the young people, at the end of their exchange visit to Sheffield, presented their materials to a packed audience at Meadowhead School. What Mark and Jo, and teachers from Finland, Slovenia and Spain, have done so well is take the Cutlers' skill set and develop yet another way to ensure that increasingly all young people develop the skills that matter in the world of work. They have developed a website, mobile app., lesson plans and a video guide with examples of the skills being used at their best and at their worst. These materials should all be available later this year.

The Cutlers' Company is proud to have been working with Meadowhead School on the Cutlers’ ‘Made in Sheffield’ programme, which is an employer-led approach that develops, in young people, the skills needed for employability and the world of work. The preparation of all young people for adult life and success in the school and the workplace needs to be seen as an important pillar of the education system. Through our work with Meadowhead School we are improving school to work transitions and providing employers with an easier way to work with young people.