FAQs
Quick answers
You can find quick answers to some of our more frequently asked questions below. Alternatively, please get in touch.
Quick answers just for you
Who are Futures For All and how can they help me?
We know it’s not easy to imagine what you could be in the future and harder still to get the chances you deserve. We believe every young person should have the opportunity to succeed and get on in your professional life based on your talents and abilities – not where you live, where you go to school, or the occupation of your parents, carers or guardians.
Futures For All exists to provide 11-19-year-olds from state schools and colleges like yours with fair and free access to our Work Experience and Speakers for Schools programmes. You’ll find amazing in-person and remote placements with 100s of prominent employers, as well as inspirational talks with high-achieving professionals and insightful book club sessions, from anywhere across the country… Setting you up to get an understanding of careers, gain skills, build self-belief, get work ready and bring your ambitions to life.
Register for a student account on our online portal to start applying for work experience* or browse our online library of inspirational talks to get on-demand content featuring tips, insights, and industry spotlights from hundreds of high-profile professionals. *Please note that your school or college will also need to be registered with Futures For All for you to complete the application process for any work experience placement.
My school isn't partnered with Futures For All, can I still register?
Yes, you can, but you will only have limited access to our programmes if your school or college does not register with us too. Setting up an educator account is very easy and there is no cost to your school, so in the case your school is not yet set up with an account on our portal, please contact your careers lead to request they register. Once your school is registered, you will be able to apply for work experience either via the opportunities page on our website or via the portal. No separate school registration process is required for you to view online content from our inspirational talks library.
What if I require SEND support?
We aim to make all our placements as accessible as possible, but we understand that some students require additional support to take part in work experience and/or get the most out of their experience. We run some dedicated SEND placements which are specially designed to accommodate a variety of additional needs.
How will registering for Futures For All activities benefit my future?
All our activities are designed to benefit you in some meaningful way! Work experience can provide you with useful insights and practical learning opportunities that will give you a deeper understanding of the world of work and what type of career will best suit you. It will also: Help you make more informed decisions around subject choices. Broaden your horizons and enable you to build your confidence and gain the essential skills that employers will value. Boost your CV or personal statement, providing tangible evidence of your interest in a particular career, discipline, employer, or industry. Increase your chances of securing a place at a chosen college or university, getting onto a training course or apprenticeship, or even landing your first job.
Plus, doing multiple work experience placements while in education has also been proven to increase your annual salary once in full-time work. Educators also tell us that our inspirational talks have helped their students access credible information about jobs and careers and have had a hugely positive effect on their students’ understanding of the workplace.
Where can I find information to share with my parents?
Your parents and carers can visit the About Us page on our website here, where they will find information about our social mobility mission, the fully funded programmes we offer and how we can support young people like you. We also run online introductory sessions for parents and carers throughout the year, where we invite parents and carers to join us to learn more about our programmes, their impact, and some of the employers we work with. Parents and carers can register their interest in attending one of these events by subscribing to our email updates.
What are my options after school?
There is no single pathway that is best, and it is important to review your options at each stage in your career journey. Some careers require a university degree while others are more flexible. Employers generally offer a range of pathways into ‘early careers’ for young people including entry-level roles (where you can join straight after leaving school), apprenticeships (where you can earn as you learn and there are various levels available) and graduate roles (where you require a university degree to apply). Learning more about different industries, employers and career options while still at school can help you to make more informed choices about what you go on to do next. Taking part in work experience offers a perfect opportunity to discover more about the range of options available with an employer and, during the sessions, employers will often signpost the different pathways available and offer some practical application guidance and tips.
What is careers education?
Careers education is the general term used to describe any advice, guidance, training, information, or learning opportunities you receive while still at school or college to help get career-ready and make informed decisions about your pathway into the world of work. We like to think of our website as a careers guidance platform for students aged 11 to 19, helping you consider a wider range of career suggestions, as well as accessing a wider range of opportunities to gather crucial careers advice and support to make those all-important career choices.
How do I decide which industry matches my skills and interests?
There is no one-size-fits-all all approach to careers and the truth is, whatever your strengths or interests, there are probably hundreds of jobs that you might find are a good fit for you. This is why we recommend keeping an open mind and being prepared to consider a range of different options. Our taster sessions and work placements give you the ideal way to explore inspiring career options by providing opportunities to take a closer look and compare multiple employment options in the same industry or look at one discipline across a few industries.
What safeguarding measures are in place?
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 Child Protection Policy here.
What schools are eligible to take part?
Futures For All works exclusively with UK state schools and colleges, and Independent Training Providers (ITPs). This includes grant-aided post-primary schools and FE colleges in Northern Ireland.
Where does our Work Experience program operate?
Our work experience team is geographically dispersed throughout the UK and includes Educational Relationship Managers who liaise with state schools and colleges, and Independent Training Providers to provide direct support with finding and accessing work experience for young people aged 14 to 19. Once you choose to start working with our charity, one of these Educational Relationship Managers will become your main point of contact for organising work experience for your students. They work alongside our delivery team that coordinates all the work experience placements we offer throughout UK, including Northern Ireland.
Please note that we offer work experience throughout the year, and certain types of work experience are subject to availability. When employers elect to offer work experience, they will choose what type of work experience to offer – in-person, remote, or hybrid – and determine when and where the placements will be held, and which students are eligible to apply based on geographical location and other important selection criteria. This means certain placements may accept applications from all over the UK, whilst others may only be available in certain locations or to certain schools and colleges. All opportunities that appear in the portal or are listed on the opportunities page of our website will clearly outline any geographical restrictions or preferences in their advert.
Who are Futures For All and how can they help our students?
As the UK’s leading social mobility charity, Futures For All is dedicated to levelling the playing field for all young people from state schools and colleges by providing fully funded access to our Work Experience and Speakers for Schools programmes.
Being the largest provider of in-person and remote placements means your students can get high-quality work experience with 100s of prominent employers – as well as inspirational talks with influential professionals and insightful book club sessions – from anywhere across the country to demystify careers, build self-belief and open doors to opportunities that were previously closed. Plus, our dedicated education team will support you with expert placement planning and safeguarding advice.
Through our partnerships, we have supported almost 2 million students. Right now, over half of state-educated students finish their education with no work experience. We believe that all young people from all social backgrounds deserve equality of opportunity and that when they get it, as is evident from our reported measurable benefits, we successfully nurture their career and shift socioeconomic outlooks.
Now we want to ensure even more young people, from state schools and colleges like yours, get the opportunities they deserve.
Can a speaker visit our school or college?
Yes, once you have submitted a request to book a speaker for an in-person talk, we will contact you at a time when a speaker becomes available to propose a date. If we contact you and you are unable to accept the proposed session, we would hugely appreciate your timely response to either accept or decline the invitation so that we can extend the same opportunity to another school, college, or ITP. If you decline an invitation, we will continue to keep your request open and get in touch again in the future to propose an alternative speaker engagement. Apply to book a speaker by clicking here. All our guest speakers kindly donate their time to support our charity, and we serve a large network of schools and colleges that are geographically dispersed across the UK.
How does my school manage their account?
When you register your school or college with Futures For All, you will be asked to create an educator account for our online portal. This portal acts as your gateway into our Work Experience programme – it is the place where you can view opportunity adverts for all our upcoming work experience placements that are open for applications and is where you will be able to review, manage, and approve your students’ applications before they are submitted to the employer for their consideration. Once your school or college has an account, you will have the option to invite colleagues from your school or college to join the account so that they can assist you as necessary.
Should you wish to register your school or college for our inspirational talks programme, there is a separate registration process, which you can complete by clicking here. Once you have registered your school or college by completing the form, you can request to host an in-person talk at their school/college, register your students to join any of the upcoming broadcasts, and/or access our industry spotlight talks.
How do I share this with my students?
Once your school or college has set up a portal account with us, you can invite young people from your school to create their student accounts and start applying for work experience either directly through the portal or via the opportunities page on our website.
How do you support schools that work with SEND or ASN students?
Futures For All endeavours to be as inclusive as possible when it comes to accommodating young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or additional support needs (ASN). Remote work experience removes some of the barriers to participation these young people typically face, but we recognise that sometimes a more tailored approach is needed. Where it is supported by the employer, we will offer hybrid work experience placements that are specially designed to cater for young people with SEND or ASN.
These placements tend to comprise shorter sessions delivered across a longer time-period and require a much higher level of supervision from the school/college. Generally, they will include classroom activities as well as an in-person element which will require students to visit an employer site. Educators representing SEND schools or colleges who would like to explore this type of opportunity for a group of students should contact us to discuss their requirements further.
How would my organisation manage their account?
When you partner with us, you will also be asked to register to create an account on our online portal. This easy-to-use portal will be where your organisation will list their work experience opportunities and then review and select candidates for upcoming placements. You will receive training on how to use the portal from one of our Account Management team, who will act as your ongoing point of contact – should you require any additional support.
Who are Futures For All and how can they help us?
As the UK’s leading social mobility charity, Futures For All is dedicated to levelling the playing field for all young people from state schools and colleges by providing fully funded access to our Work Experience and Speakers for Schools programmes.
As the largest provider of in-person and remote placements in the UK with a network of over 2,700 educational institutions, working with our charity as a Social Mobility Partner ensures that more students from less privileged backgrounds experience the valuable benefits – as proven by our impact data – and that your business accesses the broadest pool of young talent, maximises its social impact and plays a vital role in diversifying and future-proofing the workforce nationwide.
Through our partnerships we have supported almost 2 million students, helping to shift socioeconomic outlooks and move towards a fairer future with equality of opportunity. Now we want to ensure even more young people, from state schools and colleges, discover employment and training options at organisations like yours.
Can employers from any industry or sector participate?
We aim to represent the widest range of industries possible to give young people from your region and/or beyond the chance to learn more about any industry, career, or line of work that interests them and match you to the best talent available.
Which employers can offer work experience?
Whether you’re an SME or a multinational, we need UK employers like you to help us offer young people from disadvantaged backgrounds life-changing opportunities they would otherwise struggle to access. Our flexible work experience options can be scaled to suit your organisation and take a lot of the administrative burden out of offering work experience. With support available to guide you as you explore the benefits of remote work experience, in-person work experience, or a mix of both with hybrid work experience, whatever the size of your organisation, your participation is welcomed and can make a difference.
Is there any cost associated to partnering with Futures For All?
We aim to make offering talks, Insight Days and work experience with us accessible to every employer.
It costs our charity £1,400 to support one secondary school or college with work experience placements, however, we don’t charge schools or students, and more than 90% of our income comes from donations. We ask that employers consider making donations to support our charity so that we can help young people, grow our networks and reach more young talents in the years to come.
As part of our standard offer, we will provide practical support and guidance, and we will also promote your opportunities across our school and college network. If you are looking for a solution with even more flexibility and benefits, we would recommend you consider our costed Managed Service option which includes additional support with marketing to advertise your work experience, placement feedback, impact reporting as well as the option to cater to any other bespoke requirements you may have.
How will my organisation benefit from working with Futures For All?
Partnering with Futures For All will provide you with an easy way to improve your organisation’s youth engagement and strengthen your talent pipeline by making it more inclusive and sustainable. We work with over 2,700 state schools and colleges across the UK and can help you target under-represented groups in any postcode therefore increasing your chances of uncovering the best early talent in hard-to-reach places you might otherwise have overlooked – including traditional cold spots and under-served geographical areas. We understand the pressures facing employers in the current economic climate and all our educational programmes are designed to help you attract emerging talent and build much-needed essential skills to ease the school-to-employment transition and create a work-ready future workforce.
What is the Speakers for Schools programme?
Our Speakers for Schools programme is a network of the UK’s leading figures who are committed to helping level the playing field in state schools, starting with giving some of their time each year to share their experiences and insights. Our talks are uniquely about broadening horizons and raising the aspirations of young people through hearing from the leaders of today, and we keep this entirely free of charge for our schools, as our speakers generously donate their time and travel costs.
Who are Futures For All and how can I help them?
As the UK’s leading social mobility charity, Futures For All is dedicated to levelling the playing field for all young people from state schools and colleges by providing fully funded access to our Speakers for Schools programme – with inspirational talks from high-profile and influential professionals like you.
We offer both in-person and online talks, including inspirational and career talks, to share life lessons, advice, and insights into a speaker’s own career journey and their sector – which demystifies careers, builds self-belief, and helps students to imagine what they could be in the future and succeed.
Our talks act as a natural pathway to our high-quality Work Experience programme, with many of our speakers opening doors to placement opportunities that were previously closed. Our relentless focus on impact is evident by the measurable benefits reported from all our programmes, of which you would be a vital part.
What types of talks do Futures For All offer?
Through our Speakers for Schools programme, we offer inspirational talks with leading professionals in the form of live in-person talks, live virtual broadcasts, and recorded sessions that can be accessed online. Our speakers represent a wide range of industries and also include politicians and other high-profile individuals who wish to share their stories to inspire young people from state schools and colleges. Speakers may draw on personal experiences from their career as well as other aspects of their lived experience.
In terms of format, our talks are around 60 minutes long. They are structured either as ‘fireside chat’ or a talk followed by a moderated Q&A.
Not all talks are suitable for all year groups as they vary by topic and some deal with more sensitive topics than others. Where your school is hosting a talk, this will be discussed with you in advance. Where you are registering for a live broadcast or planning to play students a recorded session from our broadcast library, please make sure that you read the talk’s description in full to check its content is appropriate to your student audience.
How long do inspirational talks typically last?
Generally, our talks and broadcasts last around an hour. Where your school/college or Independent Training Provider is hosting an in-person talk or live broadcast, we will discuss the format of the talk with you in advance. All live events (this includes live in-person talks and live virtual broadcasts) include a Q&A element as part of the session.
How are speakers paired with schools?
We match speakers to schools/colleges and Independent Training Providers (ITPs) based on a range of criteria, including where they are based in relation to your school/college or ITP and their availability. Our main aim with an in-person talk is to introduce state-educated students to leading professionals they would otherwise not have access to. This means there will be a benefit to your school/college or ITP in hosting any speaker from our network. Once you have applied to host a speaker, we may contact you at any time to propose a speaker engagement. If we contact you and you are unable to accept the proposed session, we would hugely appreciate your timely response to either accept or decline the invitation so that we can extend the same opportunity to another school/college or ITP. If you decline an invitation, we will continue to keep your request open and get in touch again in the future with an alternative.
Please note that once you have registered and applied to host a talk, we may also contact you to invite your school/college or ITP to host a live broadcast with one of our speakers.
How do Futures For All ensure the quality of their speakers and talks?
All types of talks and broadcasts we offer meet Gatsby Benchmark 5 and use the Skills Builder Universal Framework. An experienced member of our team moderates every live broadcast to help guide the sessions as they happen and we regularly gather feedback from participating schools/colleges or Independent Training Providers and educators to help us evaluate and maintain the quality of our talks and broadcasts.
Please note that where a school or college is hosting an in-person talk with one of our speakers, they will need to appoint a teacher to moderate the Q&A element of the talk.
Topics for talks and broadcasts are discussed with speakers in advance and all our speakers are given guidance on how to make their talk as impactful as possible.
Quick answers by topic
What safeguarding measures are in place?
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.
Is work experience paid?
Young people will not be paid for attending any work experience placement organised through Futures For All. Where an in-person placement requires a young person to travel, the employer hosting the opportunity may offer to cover travel and subsistence expenses but this is always at the employer's discretion.
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 I find work experience for people with SEND/ASN?
Futures For All endeavour to be as inclusive as possible when it comes to accommodating young people with special educational needs and disabilities (SEND) or additional support needs (ASN). Remote work experience removes some of the barriers to participation these young people typically face, but we recognise that sometimes a more tailored approach is needed.
Where it is supported by the employer, we will offer hybrid placements that are specially designed to cater for young people with SEND or ASN. These placements tend to comprise shorter sessions delivered across a longer time period and require a much higher level of supervision from the school/college. Generally, they will include classroom activities as well as an in-person element, which will require students to visit an employer’s site.
Educators representing SEND schools or colleges who would like to explore this type of opportunity for a group of students should contact us to discuss their requirements further.
How do I sign up to host speakers?
If you represent a state school/college or an Independent Training Provider, you can apply to host an in-person talk or live online broadcast with one of our speakers by completing the online form here.
What safeguarding measures are in place?
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 virtual setting. Access our Safeguarding Policy Statement here.
Please be aware that educator supervision is required for all live broadcasts. In the case that you are hosting an in-person talk, it is assumed that a member of your staff will chaperone our speaker at all times during their visit. In this instance, your establishment’s safeguarding policies and procedures should be clearly communicated with the speaker ahead of their speaker engagement.
Are inspirational and career talks suitable for all ages?
Not all in-person talks, live broadcasts, and recorded broadcasts are suitable for all year groups, as they vary by topic and some deal with more sensitive topics than others. In the event that your school/college is hosting an in-person talk, we will discuss likely topics and the age of the audience in advance with you and the speaker. In the event that your school/college plans to attend a live broadcast, its topic and the key stage suitability will be highlighted before you register for it. To help you ensure that a replay of a live broadcast is suitable for you/your student audience, all the videos that feature in our online library are categorised by key stage.
How long do talks typically last?
Generally, our talks and broadcasts last around an hour. If your school/college or Independent Training Provider is hosting an in-person talk or live broadcast, we will discuss the format of the talk with you in advance. All live events include a Q&A element as part of the session.
Can teachers incorporate our talks into their lesson plans?
Replays of our recorded broadcasts and talks can be used as and when required, so teachers can choose to easily incorporate these resources into their lesson plans. Where your school is invited to host an in-person talk or a live broadcast naturally more logistical restrictions will apply. They are timed to fit with the speaker’s availability and require some flexibility from the school/college or Independent Training Provider (ITP) to coordinate larger cohorts of young people to attend.
Live broadcasts that are featured on our upcoming broadcast schedule are scheduled in advance and the date and timings are pre-determined to allow multiple schools/colleges and ITPs to join the online sessions simultaneously. If educators wish to plan lessons around these livestream events, please note that advance registration is required. Live career talks that are featured on our upcoming broadcast schedule are also scheduled in advance with pre-determined dates and timings. If educators wish to plan lessons around these live employer events, please note that advance registration is required.
How do Futures For All ensure the quality of their speakers and talks?
All types of talks and broadcasts offered through our Speakers for Schools programme meet Gatsby Benchmark 5 and use the Skills Builder Universal Framework.
An experienced member of our team moderates every live broadcast to help guide the sessions as they happen and we regularly gather feedback from participating schools/colleges or Independent Training Providers and educators to help us evaluate and maintain the quality of our talks and broadcasts.
Please note that where a school or college is hosting an in-person talk with one of our speakers, they will need to appoint a teacher to moderate the Q&A element of the talk. Topics for talks and broadcasts are discussed with speakers in advance and all our speakers are given guidance on how to make their talk as impactful as possible.
Do Futures For All help the school to organise an in-person talk?
Once the Speakers for Schools programme team has matched a school/college or Independent Training provider (ITP) with a speaker and the school/college or ITP has accepted the proposed speaker engagement, the onus is on the school/college or ITP to finalise arrangements. We strongly suggest the speaker and school/college or ITP arrange a planning call to agree on logistics (including confirming the date and timings of the talk) as well as to discuss the talk format and the key messages it will cover.
We recognise that hosting a talk also requires considerable organisation on the school side such as taking students off timetable and ensuring that the session will be properly supervised by school staff.
Once a school/college or ITP has applied to host a talk, we aim to make the experience as straightforward for educators as possible and we will always ask for confirmation that your senior leadership team is on board with hosting a speaker engagement.
How are speakers paired with schools?
We match speakers to schools/colleges and Independent Training Providers (ITPs) based on a range of criteria, including where they are based in relation to your school/college or ITP and their availability. Our main aim with an in-person talk is to introduce state-educated students to leading professionals they would otherwise not have access to. This means there will be a benefit to your school/college or ITP in hosting any speaker from our network. Once you have applied to host a speaker, we may contact you at any time to propose a speaker engagement. If we contact you and you are unable to accept the proposed session, we would hugely appreciate your timely response to either accept or decline the invitation so that we can extend the same opportunity to another school/college or ITP. If you decline an invitation, we will continue to keep your request open and get in touch again in the future with an alternative.
Please note that once you have registered and applied to host a talk, we may also contact you to invite your school/college or ITP to host a live broadcast with one of our speakers.
Do educators have to pay for speakers?
Our in-person talks and live broadcasts are exclusively available to educators and young people from state schools/colleges and Independent Training Providers (ITPs). There is no charge for these services but schools/colleges and ITPs must first register with our charity to use them. Our online broadcast library is publicly available on our website and there is no charge to access and view replays of previous broadcasts.All of the speakers and employers featured in this programme kindly donate their time to lead a talk, broadcast, or workshop on our behalf. This requires careful scheduling for all live events, especially in-person events that require speakers to travel.
How are educators notified about a speaker opportunity?
Once you have applied to host a speaker at your school/college or Independent Training Provider (ITP), we will email you once we have matched you to a speaker. We will notify you using the contact details you provide as part of the registration process, so please ensure that you provide accurate contact information when submitting your application.
Please note that once you have applied to host a speaker, we may contact you at any time to propose a speaker engagement. If we contact you and you are unable to accept the proposed session, we would hugely appreciate your timely response to either accept or decline the invitation so that we can extend the same opportunity to another school/college or ITP. If you decline an invitation, we will continue to keep your request open and get in touch again in the future with an alternative.
What types of talks do Futures For All offer?
Futures For All offers inspirational talks and career talks with leading professionals in the form of live in-person talks, live virtual broadcasts, and recorded sessions that can be accessed online. Our speakers represent a wide range of industries and also include politicians and other high-profile individuals who wish to share their stories to inspire young people from state schools and colleges. Speakers may draw on personal experiences from their careers as well as other aspects of their lived experience.
In terms of format, our talks are around 60 minutes long. They are structured either as ‘fireside chat’ or a talk followed by a moderated Q&A.
Not all talks are suitable for all year groups as they vary by topic and some deal with more sensitive topics than others. Where your school is hosting a talk, this will be discussed with you in advance. Where you are registering for a live broadcast or planning to play students a recorded session from our broadcast library, please make sure that you read the talk’s description in full to check its content is appropriate to your student audience.
Can Futures For All request a specific speaker to talk at my school?
We do not operate as a speaker bureau and unfortunately, we cannot process requests for specific speakers to give talks at your school/college or Independent Training Provider (ITP). All our guest speakers kindly donate their time to support our charity and we serve a large network of schools/colleges and ITPs that are geographically dispersed across the UK. Our main aim with an in-person talk is to introduce state-educated students to leading professionals they would otherwise not have access to. This means there will be a benefit to your school/college or ITP in hosting any speaker from our network. Our team will always do their best to ensure that we propose appropriate matches.
Can you source speakers for specific dates, events or award evenings?
We do not operate as a speaker bureau and unfortunately, we cannot process requests for speakers to give talks at your school/college or Independent Training Provider (ITP) for specific dates or events. All our guest speakers kindly donate their time to support our charity and we serve a large network of schools and colleges that are geographically dispersed across the UK.
Once you have submitted a request to host a speaker for an in-person talk, we may contact you at any time to propose a speaker engagement. If we contact you and you are unable to accept the proposed session, we would hugely appreciate your timely response to either accept or decline the invitation so that we can extend the same opportunity to another school/college or ITP. If you decline an invitation, we will continue to keep your request open and get in touch again in the future to propose an alternative speaker engagement.
Do Futures For All carry out DBS checks on speakers/employers?
Futures For All does not carry out DBS checks on our speakers or employers. Any visit to your school/college or Independent Training Provider (ITP) for an in-person talk should be treated as a chaperoned event and properly supervised by your staff in line with your establishment’s visitor policy.
In the case that your school/college or ITP participates in a live broadcast with one of our speakers or joins a discovery workshop with one of our employers, a member of the Futures For All team will moderate the online event. In the case of our live broadcasts, the chat function and audience cameras and mics will be disabled and all questions from students for the speaker/employer will be anonymised and asked on their behalf.
What is a broadcast?
A broadcast is the term we use to describe a livestream school talk event with one of our speakers. Live broadcasts are those that happen online in real time and require educators to register in advance and join using the links we provide to you via email. Educators can view the details of future live broadcasts and register their students for any of the events that appear further up this page by completing the registration form. We also offer educators and students free access to an impressive online library of hundreds of recorded broadcasts that can be watched as and when required. These sessions are catalogued by speaker, by topic and by keystage, so you can browse to find a suitable talk. This resource can be used to support Personal Development sessions and subject teachers can choose to easily incorporate these replays of past talks into their lesson plans.
What safeguarding measures are in place?
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 virtual setting. Access the full Safeguarding Policy Statement here. Live broadcasts are always moderated by a member of the Speakers for Schools programme team. All young people join the broadcast anonymously using the joining links we provide to the educator in advance, so no personalised log in is ever required. Once in the session, there is no chat function available to students attending the event and all audience mics and cameras will be disabled. Any student wishing to ask the speaker a question during a live broadcast must submit their question to the moderator who will ask the question on their behalf, if appropriate. Where we anticipate that the speaker will cover some sensitive content during the course of the session, trigger warnings will be issued at the start of the session.
Who is eligible to register for an upcoming broadcast?
Educators from state schools and colleges who are registered with Futures For All for our Speakers for Schools programme can then register their students to join any of the upcoming broadcasts and/or request to host an in-person talk at their school/college. In order to register your school/college on the Speakers for Schools programme, click here.
How do I register for an upcoming broadcast?
Our upcoming broadcast schedule on this page includes links to the registration form. Please ensure you complete the form in full before submitting your request.
Is there a cost to register and attend a live broadcast?
There is no cost to state schools and colleges to register and attend our live broadcast events.
Are the talks suitable for students of all ages?
Not all talks are suitable for all year groups as they vary by topic and some deal with more sensitive topics than others. Before registering for a live broadcast or playing students a recorded session from our broadcast library, we encourage educators to please make sure that you read the talk’s description in full to check its content is appropriate to your student audience.
Can I see subtitles during the broadcast?
If subtitles are required during the livestream, they can be turned on by using the panel on the right-hand side of the screen.
How can I ask questions during a livestream talk?
The question-and-answer element of any live broadcast is moderated by an experienced member of the Futures For All team. Students wishing to ask the speaker a question can submit their questions to our moderator for review during the live session. The moderator will then collate the approved questions and put them to the speaker on the students’ behalf. In this way, we can ensure students remain anonymous and we can ensure the best use of the speaker’s time.
What if I need the joining information further in advance?
Links to join the live sessions will be emailed out to educators the afternoon before the broadcast is due to take place. If you require the link more than a day in advance, please email broadcasts@futuresforall.org.
Are the talks subtitled or available in multiple languages for ESL students?
Yes, we have captions in English and other languages available.
How do I access live talks? Do I need a specific programme or browser?
Once you have completed the registration process, our team will email you the joining instructions on the afternoon of the day before the scheduled broadcast date. This email will include a link to join the live broadcast via your internet browser. Please note that Internet Explorer is not compatible with our live broadcasts, so you will need to ensure you have an alternative browser installed on your computer to join the live broadcast. Students should join the event anonymously – there is no need to create a log in.
Who are Futures For All and what do you do?
Back in 2010, ITV’s Political Editor Robert Peston started Speakers for Schools to inspire students from state schools and colleges to imagine what they could be. Today, as the UK’s leading social mobility charity, our fully funded Speakers for Schools and Work Experience programmes have supported almost 2 million young people from less privileged backgrounds to raise their career ambitions, shift socioeconomic outlooks and move towards a fairer future with equality of opportunity and a more diverse workforce.
Our work is underpinned by a relentless focus on impact, demonstrated by the measurable benefits reported from our programmes. Read our latest impact report here.
How do I access programmes and how much do they cost?
To access our programmes as an educator, employer or young person you can register and create an account here. Our easy-to-use online portal is designed to help you through the process, with the support of our teams at every step of the way. Our programmes are fully funded and entirely free thanks to the contributions of all our partners and supporters.
What safeguarding expertise and support do you offer?
Futures For All has a trained and dedicated safeguarding team who is responsible for making sure all policies and procedures are up to date and in line with legislation. They also support staff, programmes across the organisation, and our partners – which means that educators, employers, and speakers are supported for the safeguarding of students during work experience and inspirational talks. Visit our safeguarding page here.
Where does Futures For All operate?
We are a UK-wide charity, covering over 80% of local authorities each year. We can accept applications from any state-maintained secondary school, academy or college (11-19-year-olds). Availability of speakers and placements do vary and change year-on-year so be sure to sign up to both programmes to be notified when we are able to work with your school. For speakers and employers, please be sure to let us know if you can help us reach under-served geographic locations when speaking with our team!
Who runs Futures For All?
Futures For All is administered by our CEO, Nick Brook, and his team, and governed by a Board of Trustees. The charity is kindly funded by the Law Family Charitable Foundation.
Who are your speakers, and are they available for events?
Our speakers are influential individuals leading society or industry today, from technology to arts to business, who are often invited directly or by a major industry body that works with our charity (e.g. BAFTA, 30% Club, Creative Industries Federation and more). For more information about our speaker network and taking part, please see our Speaker Directory. If you are interested in giving school talks, please visit our dedicated Speaker page and get in touch.
No, unfortunately, we are unable to provide speakers for events outside of our core work, such as careers days, award ceremonies, teacher events, etc. We are also unable to offer speakers for non-school events such as at libraries, universities or community groups. We do, on occasion, form national partnerships with large national school networks and/or other charities to host special one-off events.
How does the charity work?
Our charity is made up of a network of leading employers and professionals committed to levelling the playing field for young people of all backgrounds from state schools and colleges. Our ‘schools network’ is made up of nearly 50% of all UK state secondary schools, academies and colleges, all who have applied directly to our charity for opportunities. We work across the year to organise events during term time, offering school talks with influential speakers and work experience placements with top companies. Our charity specialises in reaching key locations, and schools and students that are the most under-served and who will benefit most as our priority. This includes considering pupils on Free School Meals, high-deprivation areas and those which have poorer links to speakers and employers than their neighbouring schools.
How do we safeguard our virtual broadcasts?
Students are encouraged to submit their questions for our speakers anonymously or through providing their first name only. If a student raises a safeguarding concern during an online talk, our team at Speakers for Schools will follow our safeguarding procedure. Any safeguarding concerns raised will not be visible to other viewers. There will be no cameras/mics turned on for students either (webinar style). Speakers agree their content with SfS ahead of the event. Should we discuss sensitive content in the broadcast, this will be flagged on our upcoming broadcasts page, in the blurb and in the event via an announcement. Should you have any questions about the broadcasts, email: broadcasts@futuresforall.org. If you have any safeguarding questions, email: safeguarding@futuresforall.org.
How do we safeguard our in-person talks?
An in-person event should always have a teacher present in the room and are a managed visit to the school. You can see our safeguarding policy statement here. If you have any questions about the in-person talks, email: speakersforschools@futuresforall.org. If you have any safeguarding questions, email: safeguarding@futuresforall.org.
How do we safeguard remote work experience?
For information about safeguarding on our remote work experience, please click here.
How do we safeguard in-person work experience?
For information about safeguarding on our in-person work experience, please click here.
What safeguarding is in place for employers?
To see our safeguarding policy for employers, please click here.
How long do members serve on the Youth Council?
Youth Council members sign up initially to a term of 1 year, running from February through to January the following year. Members may serve for up to two consecutive years provided they remain within the age limits of the membership qualifications.
How often do the Youth Council meet and where?
Youth Council members are invited to attend monthly online events and there will also be opportunities to participate in both in-person and online events and meetings throughout the course of the year.
Are there any other events that members attend?
In addition to the regular monthly online meetings, there will also be opportunities to participate in both in-person and online events and meetings throughout the course of the year. These opportunities could include but are not limited to: Roundtable discussions with employers, educators, and/or MPs. Project work, working with one of the departments within Futures For All.
Who pays for travel and other expenses associated with membership?
Futures For All will reimburse any travel and subsistence costs incurred with performing duties associated with this voluntary role. This includes all travel and subsistence costs for the 2-day residential in February 2024 and any other in-person events that Youth Council members attend on behalf of Futures For All.
Do I need parental consent to be on the Youth Council?
As Youth Council members are aged 15-17, we will require consent from your Parent/Carer for you to take part. We will seek their consent as part of the application process and further consents may be sought for images of you to appear in the press, as well as in Futures For All collateral, and on its website and social media channels for promotional purposes.
Is being on the Youth Council a paid role?
Serving as a Youth Council member is a purely voluntary role and as such is unpaid. There will be opportunities for fully funded training as part of this role and Futures For All will reimburse any travel and subsistence costs incurred with performing duties associated with the role.
What would be expected of me as a Youth Council member?
As a group you will meet for monthly online meetings. The dates and times of these meetings will be agreed upon as a group. To get the most out of your role, we would advise you to try to attend every scheduled Youth Council meeting. However, if for whatever reason you are unable to attend an upcoming meeting, where possible please let us know in advance so that we can advise the other members. In addition to the regular monthly online meetings, there will also be opportunities to participate in both in-person and online events and meetings throughout the course of the year. These opportunities could include but are not limited to: Roundtable discussions with employers, educators, and/or MPs. Project work, working with one of the departments within Futures For All.
What safeguarding measures are in place for the Youth Council members?
Futures For All is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of all Youth Council members, whether that is at an in-person event or in a remote setting. Access the full Safeguarding Policy Statement here.
Can I send a donation in the post?
We are always grateful for donations that support our work. If you would like to support Futures For All, please email our fundraising team in the first instance so that we can advise you on the best way to make your donation and empower young people.
How is Futures For All funded?
Futures For All is funded by a combination of philanthropic donations, grants and awards from Trusts and Foundations, as well as income generated from commercial contracts and corporate partnerships with like-minded organisations.
How can I track the impact of my donation?
Our data reporting tools enable us to track impact in terms of participation rates in our programmes and projects, so we can provide anonymised impact data for restricted funds, as and when required.
How does Futures For All ensure that funds are used effectively?
Futures For All is registered with the Fundraising Regulator, the independent regulator of charitable fundraising in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. This means you can feel confident that, as a charity, we uphold the UK's charitable fundraising standards. As an organisation, we are also accountable to our Board of Trustees and to our Youth Council, an advisory panel made up of young people who liaise directly with our Research and Policy teams to ensure that our beneficiaries, young people themselves, also have a voice and are properly represented.
How does Futures For All contribute to educational policy?
Futures For All regularly participates and contributes to both formal and informal discussions relating to educational policy. Highlights from our recent work include giving evidence to the Education Select Committee and chairing panel discussions at the Festival of Education, as well as fringe events for the Conservative and Labour Party Conferences. We were delighted to see that recommendations from our latest national campaign Work Experience for All featured in the Education Select Committee’s latest CEAIG report. To find out more about how we contribute to educational policy, please visit the Policy and Opinion page on our website, where you’ll be able to read our latest blogs.
What is the focus of Futures For All policy and research work?
As a youth social mobility charity, Futures For All is committed to growing the evidence base around career-related educational interventions for young people that broaden their understanding of the labour market, support essential skills development, and can help them make more informed decisions and feel more confident and better prepared for the future. A key part of this undertaking includes helping to establish what constitutes ‘good’ practice when it comes to different aspects of a young person’s careers education and identifying why and how structural barriers act as multipliers for disadvantage, as well as exploring how they may be overcome.
Where can I find reports and the outcomes of your policy work?
We record our impact outcomes across each of our programmes every academic year, and this impact data is published annually in our Annual Impact Report. You can view or download a copy of our most recent report, as well as those from previous years, on the Impact page of our website.
How does Futures For All ensure its research is impactful?
By forging strong working relationships with our key stakeholders (young people, employers, educators, and policymakers) and also working closely with other organisations – including other charities and professional bodies – we can identify common themes as well as pain points and gaps in the existing evidence that relates to our charity’s mission. This, teamed with our expertise and use of rigorous quantitative and qualitative research methods, helps us to identify which topics merit further investigation and feel confident that our research outcomes will always be impactful – primarily for the young people we serve but also for all our stakeholders and the UK economy at large.
What policy and research campaigns have you previously run?
Futures For All has run numerous successful campaigns since its launch – some connected to careers and raising awareness of a particular employment growth area, such as IntoTech, Discover! Creative Careers and Green Skills, and others that have focused on driving change on a national scale, such as our current hard-hitting public Work Experience for All campaign, which makes the case for making work experience a universal right. If you would like to know more, please visit our Campaigns page on our website, where you can read about all of these campaigns in more detail.
How can I learn more about Futures For All research and insights?
We regularly publish research reports and papers that document our findings and provide evidence-based insights into specific aspects of our research and policy work. If you would like to learn more about our research, please visit the Research page on our website where you will find examples of the independent research we have previously commissioned or conducted ourselves, including past research papers and reports.
How have you contributed to Youth Education and Skills policy?
At Futures For All, we aim to challenge the status quo and level the playing field by ensuring that young people attending state schools and colleges can access the same quality, quantity and types of career-related interventions and opportunities typically available to those attending independent schools. There is already a growing body of compelling evidence that speaks to the powerful positive impact of work experience on young people’s outcomes.
In recent years, Futures For All has added to this evidence by carrying out our own independent research that proves doing work experience while in education increases a young person’s future salary and improves their employability. Yet this research also shows that access to work experience is neither universal nor fair since privately educated young people are twice as likely to complete multiple work experiences as their state-educated peers and have significantly better access to work experience in many high-status professions thanks to their familial connections. It is a similar picture when it comes to school talks. Young people from state schools and colleges have fewer opportunities to access to people in high-aspiration jobs than their fee-paying peers who benefit from studying in schools and colleges with more resources for careers education provision and who are also more likely to have people doing such jobs in their familial network to provide direct inspiration.
By focussing our efforts on removing structural barriers and providing high-quality interventions and opportunities to state-educated students that they would otherwise struggle to have, Futures For All aims to close the opportunity gap.
Why do you focus on work experience/talks for state schools?
At Futures For All, we aim to challenge the status quo and level the playing field by ensuring that young people attending state schools and colleges can access the same quality, quantity and types of career-related interventions and opportunities typically available to those attending independent schools. There is already a growing body of compelling evidence that speaks to the powerful positive impact of work experience on young people’s outcomes.
In recent years, Futures For All has added to this evidence by carrying out our own independent research that proves doing work experience while in education increases a young person’s future salary and improves their employability. Yet this research also shows that access to work experience is neither universal nor fair since privately educated young people are twice as likely to complete multiple work experiences as their state-educated peers and have significantly better access to work experience in many high-status professions thanks to their familial connections. It is a similar picture when it comes to school talks. Young people from state schools and colleges have fewer opportunities to access to people in high-aspiration jobs than their fee-paying peers who benefit from studying in schools and colleges with more resources for careers education provision and who are also more likely to have people doing such jobs in their familial network to provide direct inspiration.
By focussing our efforts on removing structural barriers and providing high-quality interventions and opportunities to state-educated students that they would otherwise struggle to have, Futures For All aims to close the opportunity gap.
Does Futures For All offer mentoring?
Futures For All does not offer mentoring. If you are an employer or speaker with FFA and wish to offer mentoring, you must first speak to the education establishment that the young person attends. Anyone under the age of 18 is legally a child in the UK, and safeguarding of any mentoring arrangement must be in place before it commences. The young person’s school/college will be able to provide processes to ensure your and the young person’s safety.
If you are a young person and an employer or speaker you have met on one of the FFA programmes has offered you a mentoring opportunity, please speak to staff at your school/college to make arrangements. They can get consent from your parent/guardian and make sure that mentoring is arranged in a way that is safe for you and your mentor.