Assessing Impact

Herne Bay High School will assess the impact of its careers programme on students through the following activities:

  • Conduct a Compass+ evaluation of the school’s progress towards the 8 Gatsby Benchmarks. This will be completed three times a year and include input from the Careers Lead, our Enterprise Co-ordinator (from the Careers and Enterprise Company) and our careers link governor.
  • analysing destinations data in line with activities that students have taken part in while at school. 
  • DFE school’s performance figures are published in Term 2  16 to 18 - Herne Bay High School - Find school and college performance data in England - GOV.UK (find-school-performance-data.service.gov.uk)
  • In Term 2 students will complete an annual student survey (the Future Skills Questionnaire) to help us to identify and plan around gaps in their knowledge and confidence around careers education and the options available to them.
  • Student evaluations and feedback will be sought after key events.
  • Staff feedback will be conducted annually in term 4 to identify requirements and opportunities for Continuing Professional Development.
  • The views of parents will be surveyed after key events e.g. The Careers Fair, Careers information evenings, Work Shadowing Day, Year 12 Work Experience and so forth.
  • Employer and staff feedback will be surveyed after key employer encounters where appropriate.

Key findings from the Future Skills Questionnaire

The Future Skills Questionnaire (FSQ) is a tool to measure learners’ career- readiness. 

The questions are mapped against the Gatsby Benchmarks and there are a variety of questions: 

  • Starting Secondary (Year7) 
  • Transition from Key Stage 3 (Years 8 and 9) 
  • GCSE Years (Years 10 and 11) 
  • Post 16 Study (Years 12 and 13) 

 The FSQ was completed towards the end of Term one (2024_25) by all students in school and the outcome is as follows: 

Question/Idea 

Year 7 

Year 8 

Year 9 

Year 10 

Year 11 

Year 12 

Year 13 

% of Year group who completed the survey 

66% 

65% 

77% 

82% 

85% 

31% 

35% 

Careers Knowledge and Skills 

Positive responses were: 

45% 

46% 

47% 

58% 

67% 

65% 

74% 

Careers Knowledge and Skills 

Areas of high confidence/understanding 

I know what I want to do in the future

Knowing what skills an employer is looking for. 

Knowing how to make a good impression

Knowing what support is available in school to help make a decision. 

Hearing from different people about jobs and employment. 

Understanding what options are available after school. 

Understanding what options are available after Post 18. 

Careers Knowledge and Skills 

Areas to be addressed 

Knowing what other options other than A Levels are available after Year 11. 

Knowing what trusted website can help with career choices. 

Knowing what other options other than A Levels are available after Year 11. 

Knowing what other options other than A Levels are available after Year 11. 

Contact with people in industry that I may wish to work in. 

Knowing more about recruitment

Contact with people in industry that I may wish to work in. 

Essential Skills for Work and Life 

Positive Responses were: 

71% 

54% 

57% 

58% 

66% 

69% 

78% 

Essential Skills for Work and Life 

Areas of high confidence/understanding 

Working well with others. 

 

Keep trying when things go wrong

Taking part in group activities. 

 

Understanding body language.  

Taking part in a group decision. 

 

Engaging with tone in your voice. 

Identifying positives and negatives in an opportunity. 

Being creative and coming up with ideas. 

Listening critically and be aware of bias points. 

Supporting others to stay positive. 

Essential Skills for Work and Life 

Areas to be addressed 

Using ideas to work on things outside of school. 

Planning complex tasks by considering all the options. 

Planning complex tasks by considering all the options. 

Being aware of how a speaker can influence others. 

 Testing different ideas to solve complex tasks. 

Knowing how to describe the type of leader you are. 

 Creating detailed plans to solve a problem. 

Future Skills Questionnaire Case Study

Key findings from our destinations data for our 2024 school leavers

Please note – this data is published by the Department for Education with a two-year lag so that these are sustained destinations. That means that these are placements that students stayed in successfully for at least 6 months after starting.

Careers Impact 1

Careers Impact 2