Advance Award Booklet

Warlingham

Sixth Form College

OVERVIEW The Advance Award is unique to Warlingham Sixth Form College and has been developed to provide a framework of community experiences and learning that you can engage with and adapt to meet your own needs. The award encourages you to foster links with the wider community which gives you opportunities to make a difference to people’s lives and wellbeing.

As a result of participating in the programme, you will become a more ‘rounded’ individual and one fully prepared for your university, apprenticeship or job. By the time you have completed the Advance Award, you will be able to add to your CV the knowledge, skills and experiences that will set you apart from your peer group.

The award comprises four elements: Academic Success, Community Engagement, Employability Skills and Work-related Learning.

You can gain credits for gaining qualifications, developing various skills and/or undertaking various qualifying activities.

The College awards three different levels of Advance - Bronze, Silver and Gold - according to the number of credits accumulated.

100+ Credits

150+ Credits

200+ Credits

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CREDITS SYSTEM The Academic Success element is obtained by achieving two or more Level 3 qualifications, e.g. A Level, BTEC and/or CTEC. You can earn 15 credits per qualification.

The Community Engagement element is made up of inschool and/or community-based volunteering activities (service to others) and self-improvement.

In-school and local community service will earn you 1-2 credits per hour and you can engage in personal development activities, which will earn you 5 or 10 credits each.

To achieve the Employability Skills element, you must show evidence of progression and competence in at least five of the nationally-recognised seven skills identified on pages 6-9.

You can earn 6 credits for each skill you develop.

Work Related Learning should be completed in the Summer Term of Year 12. You should arrange one week of work experience for which you will earn 30 credits. You may be able to earn additional credits for relevant part-time work.

You can also gain 5 credits for attending a careers/skills fair and 2 credits for attending a talk on the World of Work.

In addition to the above, your CV and covering letter will include a reflection on the skills developed and achieved and will be used as evidence towards achieving the Advance Award.

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ALLOCATION OF CREDITS

Credits A Level / BTEC / CTEC

15

GCSE / EPQ / Other recognised qualifications achieved whilst in College

10

Credits

Credits Volunteering in school (per hour)

1

Volunteering outside school (per hour)

2

Taking a course/achieving a qualification e.g. CSLA/DofE/ First aid/life saving

10

Regular (weekly) community commitment to sport/music/ drama/driving lessons

10

5

10

Perseverance, resilience and motivation

6

Regular (weekly) in school commitment to sport/music/ drama/debating

Communication

6

Taking an enrichment course

Negotiation and Persuasion

6

Organisation

6

Teamwork/working with others

6

Problem-solving

6

Leadership

6

Credits Completing one week of relevant work experience

30

Attending a world of work talk

2

Attending a careers/skills fair or event

5

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BRONZE, SILVER AND GOLD AWARDS Bronze Advance Award (100+ credits) 1. Academic qualification – 2 + level 3 qualifications 2. Volunteer in school and/or the local community 3. Complete a Personal Development activity or course (e.g. enrichment) 4. Complete a work experience placement and/or a WOW talk 5. Complete a CV and covering letter reflection 6. Achieve 5 or more employability skills

Silver Advance Award (150+ credits)

6.

7.

8.

As 1-5 for Bronze Award, PLUS: Achieve 6 or more employability skills Attend a University or careers fair/work-related event Take part in a charity event

Gold Advance Award : (200+ credits)

6.

7.

8.

9.

10.

As 1-5 for Bronze and Silver Awards, PLUS: Achieve 7 or more employability skills Attend a University or careers fair/work-related event Take part in one extra-curricular activity or event Organise/lead a charity event Evidence a positive social media profile (e.g. LinkedIn)

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ACADEMIC SUCCESS Academic success is a crucial outcome for every student at the culmination of their journey through Warlingham Sixth Form College.

Employers and university admissions teams will be looking for evidence of the commitment, drive and academic skills that are required for success in Level 3 qualifications. As such, it is essential that all students leave with a good range of recognised academic qualifications, and these are at the heart of the Warlingham Advance Award programme.

You can achieve the Academic Success element by gaining two or more Level 3 qualifications, e.g. A Level, BTEC and/or CTEC. Each qualification of this type is worth 15 credits.

GCSE, EPQ and other recognised academic qualifications achieved whilst in the College will be worth 10 credits each.

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COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Below are some examples of activities which can earn you Community Engagement credits.

Volunteering in School

Personal Development

(1 hour = 1 credit)

• • • • • • • • • • •

Anti-Bullying work with lower school Assisting in the organisation or taking part in an event run to benefit a charity Assisting with school tours / open evenings Being part of a College committee Buddying / Mentoring LRC support Paired reading / maths Providing administrative assistance to a department or member of staff SEND support Study/homework support to younger students Subject captain

(Worth 5 credits each)

• • • • • • • • • • • • •

Volunteering outside School

Personal Development

(1 hour = 2 credits)

• • • • • • • •

Helping in a youth group Venture Scouts Volunteering in Trust primary school or nursery Working in a soup kitchen Working in a care home Working for a charity Any other voluntary community work YMCA

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Car Maintenance Course Cooking for College Core Sport Debating Enterprise Extended Project Qualification Food Hygiene Certificate Head Boy/Girl, Deputy Head Boy/ Girl Leading a college committee Leading a school club or society Prefects Regular commitment to a sporting club outside of college Taking part in drama / music / dance productions whether directly or lending technical/design support

(Worth 10 credits each)

• • • • • • • •

CSLA Driving Licence Duke of Edinburgh’s Award First Aid qualification Gaining a recognised leadership award Life Saving award Sports Coaching / Officiating Award Student Governor

EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS Employability skills are a set of skills, understandings and personal attributes which benefit you, the workforce, the community and the economy. As well as giving you a better chance of accessing your chosen next steps, these skills and attributes will help you to be successful throughout your working life.

1. Perseverance, Resilience and Motivation

Employers want people to have a bit of get-up-and-go. Working life presents many challenges and you need to show employers that you’re the kind of person who will find a way through, even when the going gets tough, and that you will stay cheerful.

Credits a. Explain your biggest failure to date and how you dealt with it.

2

b. Give some practical examples of how you have motivated yourself and others in Year 11 and Year 12.

2

c. Show an example of how you have responded when you have received negative feedback from an adult.

2

2. Communication

This covers verbal and written communication, and listening. It’s about being clear, concise and focused; being able to tailor your message for the audience and listening to the views of others.

Credits a. Make a presentation about a complex subject using at least one image to illustrate complex points.

2

b. Speak clearly; adapt style to suit purpose, subject, audience, situation.

2

c. Structure presentation so that the sequence of information and ideas is easily followed.

2

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EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS 3. Negotiation and Persuasion

This is about being able to set out what you want to achieve and how, but also being able to understand where the other person is coming from so that you can both get what you want or need and feel positive about it.

Credits a.

Demonstrate or explain how you have used your interpersonal skills to achieve your objectives.

2

b.

Demonstrate or explain an example of when you have managed to reach a compromise.

2

c.

Show that you understand “Active Listening” and give an example of when you have used this skill.

2

4. Organisation

This is about showing that you can prioritise, work efficiently and productively, and manage your time well. It’s also good to be able to show employers how you decide what is important to focus on and get done, and how you go about meeting deadlines.

Credits a. Agree targets and plan how these were met over a period of time.

2

b. Take responsibility for learning by seeking feedback and support from relevant sources to help meet those targets.

2

c. Review progress on at least two occasions to establish how learning was improved.

2

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EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS 5. Teamwork / Working with Others

You’ll need to prove that you’re a team player but also have the ability to manage and delegate to others and take on responsibility. It’s about building positive working relationships that help everyone to achieve goals and business objectives.

Credits a. Plan work with other people, agreeing objectives, responsibilities and working arrangements.

2

b. Establish and maintain cooperative working relationships.

2

c. Review the effectiveness of the work that was done.

2

6. Problem-solving

You need to display an ability to take a logical and analytical approach to solving problems and resolving issues. It’s also good to show that you can approach problems from different angles.

Credits a. Explore a complex problem and come up with three options for solving it, justifying the one chosen.

2

b. Plan and implement an option to solve the problem

2

c. Evaluate the success of the chosen option outlining any future improvements

2

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EMPLOYABILITY SKILLS 7. Leadership

You may not be a leader straight away, but employees need to show potential to motivate teams and other colleagues that may work for them.

It’s about assigning and delegating tasks well, setting deadlines and leading by good example.

Credits a.

Plan, organise and lead a group of students within an activity.

2

b.

Lead a debate or a discussion

2

c.

Take on a leadership role in an enrichment, tutor group or extra-curricular activity

2

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WORK-RELATED LEARNING From the start of year 12 you will be expected to start focusing on your next steps after college, be that university, apprenticeship or the world of work. As well as developing your employability skills we will expect you to develop a much deeper understanding of the world of work and the higher education opportunities available to you. All employers and universities are now looking for students to evidence work experience on their CV; the Advance Award accredits all of your activities that lead to a furthering of your knowledge and understanding about your next steps.

To achieve the work related element of the Advance Award we would expect you to achieve the following three criteria, all of which are accredited: •

Work Experience (30 credits per week completed)

•

Part-time work (credits where applicable)

•

Attending a careers/skills fair (5 credits)

•

Other employer engagement event/visit (5 credits)

•

Attending a world of work talk (2 credits)

A short evaluation of each activity completed should be performed, focusing on the tasks and activities undertaken and the skills and knowledge developed. This will then help to form part of the final CV and covering letter which you will complete that reflects on and celebrates the achievement of the Advance Award.

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YOUR NOTES

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Warlingham

Sixth Form College Tithepit Shaw Lane, Warlingham, CR6 9YB 01883 624067

/warlinghamsixthform

info@warlinghamsixthform.co.uk

@warlinghamsixthformcollege

www.warlinghamsixthform.co.uk

@warlinghamsixth

Warlingham School & Sixth Form College is part of the Tandridge Learning Trust.