.jpg)
Work Experience For All Campaign
In 2022/23, we ran our largest-ever public campaign: Work Experience for All, with the aim to:
-
Remove systemic barriers to make work experience a universal right for every young person in the country.
-
Raise awareness of the danger of ignoring the problem.
-
Raise support to convince the two main political parties to include fully funded access to work experience in their manifestos.
-
Increase the number of registrations and applications for work experience through our work experience programme.
We help all young people from state schools and colleges to access our fully funded Work Experience and Speakers for Schools programmes. Ready to join us in our mission?
Why work experience matters
It levels up
Privately educated students are 2x as likely to do multiple work experience placements, without a fair playing field.* Access to meaningful placements should not depend on who you know or where you study. High-quality work experience helps level the playing field, giving every young person the chance to build networks, gain insight into different industries and compete more fairly for future roles.
Lifts future salary
For each additional type of work experience undertaken, future annual earnings increase by £1,088.* Early exposure to the workplace helps young people make more informed career decisions, choose the right pathways and develop in-demand skills, all of which contribute to stronger long-term earning potential.
Ups employability
Attending work experience reduces a young person’s chance of becoming NEET from 11 to 7%. Yet, 50% of young people leave school without doing any work experience.* Employers repeatedly tell us that candidates with workplace experience stand out. They demonstrate reliability, communication skills and an understanding of professional expectations. These are qualities that cannot be learned in a classroom alone. This is exactly why work experience is important for improving employability and helping young people secure their first job with confidence.
*Based on the results of a YouGov survey of 2,098 18-30-year-olds
Why employer participation matters
Work experience only becomes possible when employers open their doors. For many young people, especially those without networks or connections, knowing where to find work experience can be a real barrier. Employer participation helps remove that uncertainty and turns opportunity into action.
By getting involved, organisations can:
-
Provide real-world insight that shows students and other businesses why work experience is important firsthand
-
Help young people build confidence, communication skills and workplace readiness
-
Create fairer access to opportunities for those without existing connections
-
Spot and nurture early talent before they enter the job market
-
Strengthen links with local communities and demonstrate social impact
Even a short placement or a single workshop can make a lasting difference, both for your organisation and for the young people you support.
Work Experience For All: The full story case study
As part of this hard-hitting, evidence-based campaign, our charity secured unprecedented pro bono support, generated extensive press coverage – including a 6-minute slot on BBC Breakfast – and made serious headway in moving the importance of work experience up the agenda for the two main political parties.
Ready to see how we set about making work experience a national talking point?
Discover our campaign
Work Experience For All: Campaign film
Which Dragon’s Den star did work experience as a bingo caller? Which comedian fell asleep in reception, and which money-saving expert saved B&Q thousands of pounds?
Check out ten celebs’ work experience stories.
Get involved
The campaign might be over but there’s still work to do, find out how you can get involved and help ALL our young people get access to the work experience opportunities they deserve.
Educators
Educators
Explore how we can help your young people find unique and exciting work experience opportunities with world-class companies. We guide students on where to go for work experience, ensuring every young person can access placements that suit their interests and career goals.
Access to our fully funded work experience programme comes at no cost to you, your school or college, or your students. By participating, your students gain the skills and insight that show why work experience is important for their future success.
Employers and Speakers
Employers and Speakers
Whatever the size of your organisation, your participation can help us provide life-changing opportunities for young people and demonstrate why work experience is important.
With dedicated support, our flexible work experience options can be scaled to suit your organisation and make it easy for young people to know where to find work experience opportunities that match their skills and interests. Discover how to find young talent.
Ready to support our Work Experience for All campaign?
Looking for more information or ready to support our Work Experience for All campaign? Whether you’re an educator, employer, or supporter, your involvement can make a real difference in giving young people the opportunities they deserve.
Get in touch today and be part of creating a fairer future for all: policy@futuresforall.org
Quick answers to FAQs
What companies offer work experience and in what industries?
We work with 100s of employers, including the BBC, National Trust, Spotify, Bentley Motors, Boots, the NHS and many other high-profile companies. We offer work experience from a wide range of career types which means we are able to offer placements in Creative & Media Arts, Tech, Science & Engineering, Environment & Infrastructure, Sports, Travel & Hospitality, Business, Finance & Retail, and Law, Care & Community, as well as many more specific industries.
When browsing the list of available opportunities on our website, you can filter your search by career cluster and industry. We update these opportunities every week throughout the year, so if you can't find a placement to match your exact requirements, keep checking to make sure you don't miss out on any new work experience placements!
Does work experience interfere with exams?
Exams are a crucial part of school life, and we understand that students in key exam years are already extremely busy with revision and exam timetables. We work closely with our employers to ensure that we offer a wide selection of placements for all key year groups throughout the year, so that students sitting final exams are still able to participate at other points throughout the academic year.
What are the benefits of remote work experience?
Remote Work Experience removes the geographical and cost barriers that may prevent young people from participating in work experience. It allows young people from anywhere in the UK to access a broad range of opportunities with employers from industries that may not be well-represented in their local area and it provides young people with the chance to take part in multiple opportunities to really explore their options.
All online work experience placements offered by Futures For All offer are employer-led and are hosted in a secure online setting so that young people can safely attend live presentations, participate in interactive and collaborative real-time tasks and activities, and ‘meet’ working professionals from the employer’s organisation. All multi-day remote work experience placements offered by Futures For All meet Gatsby Benchmarks 5 and 6, and our shorter sessions meet Gatsby Benchmark 5.
How do we safeguard our virtual broadcasts
Futures For All is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all users, whether that is in a classroom, workplace environment, or in a remote setting. Access the full Safeguarding Policy Statement here.
Why is work experience important?
Work experience provides a way for young people to build their skills, expand their networks, and explore the world of careers while still in education. Our research shows that doing work experience while in education increases a young person's future annual earnings and improves their employability.
Who is work experience for?
At Futures For All, we offer work experience placements for young people aged 14-19, not just school leavers or a particular year group. In order to give students and schools and colleges maximum flexibility, we also run placements throughout the year.
Year 10 and Year 12 are great times to consider doing work experience to help the young person make more informed decisions about what comes next in their life plan and to help build their confidence as they start to explore future careers. Work experience is a valuable addition to a young person's CV or personal statement and can be especially helpful as supporting evidence for a university application, a job application, or an apprenticeship application.
We are mindful that there is a lot of pressure on students in the build-up to their exams, however, we offer convenient options for work experience that can fit with even the busiest study schedules. Students can apply and take part in work experience at any point in the academic year provided that their school/college supports their participation.
We also support schools with introductory, bite-sized 3-5-hour Insight Days that take place in class time and include guided activities, and short, virtual 1-hour career talks.