You can leave school on the last Friday in June if you'll be 16 by the end of the summer holidays. You must then choose whether to:
- stay in full-time education - for example at school, sixth form college, further education college or University Technical College (UTC)
- start an apprenticeship or traineeship
- spend 20 hours or more a week working or volunteering while also doing part-time education or training
Blackpool Local Authority has a duty to make sure you are offered a suitable place by the end of September. This is known as the September Guarantee. Contact your local authority for information on who can help find you a suitable offer.
You may be eligible for the 16 to 19 Bursary Fund (https://www.gov.uk/1619-bursary-fund), which can help with things like books, travel or equipment if you will struggle with education or training costs.
If you have an Education Health and Care (EHC) plan, you can get support to choose your next steps and extra help when you are in education, training or work.
Stay in full-time education
You could take a range of subjects that lead to qualifications that keep your options open, like GCSE or A levels. Courses like T Levels or BTEC allow you to focus on a chosen career area like construction, healthcare science or digital careers. Some careers may ask for specific qualifications, so always do some research into where the course you are interested in might lead.
Combine work and study
Gain practical skills, get work experience and a qualification that employers need.
Your Career Journey: Click Here
Understanding your Career Pathways: 1: Click Here and 2: Click Here
Identify careers you are interested in:
Explore videos linked to specific careers: https://icould.com/
Take a career quiz: http://makeitquiz.
https://www.ucas.com/careers-
Understanding careers linked to the subjects your study:
https://www.careerpilot.org.
Understanding the skills connected to specific career pathways:
https://www.skillsforcareers.
Understanding the Local Labour Market: https://lancashire.
College Websites:
Blackpool and the Fylde College: https://www.blackpool.ac.uk/
Blackpool Sixth Form: https://www.
Myerscough College: https://www.
AKS Lytham: https://www.akslytham.
Rossall Sixth Form College: https://rossall.org.
Apprenticeships:
https://www.
https://www.gov.uk/apply-
https://www.training2000.co.
Competing an application
Whether you are applying to college or sixth form (or both) you will be asked to complete an application form. This may be the first time you have been faced with this task so below you will find some help and advice on completing some of the more difficult sections.
Do make sure you follow any instructions that you might find at the top of the application form or at the beginning of each section that you have to complete.
Do a rough copy first in a word document or similar first. You can then usually copy and paste it into the actual application form when you have corrected all your mistakes, used spellchecker etc.
Personal statement
Whether you complete an online or paper application form you will usually be faced with a section where you have to write something about yourself - usually called a personal statement.
It can be a bit daunting to have to 'sell' yourself but basically the college/sixth form include this section to give you the opportunity to tell them a bit about yourself including why you would make a good student at their college/sixth form.
It's useful to structure your personal statement to include the following:-
- Your reasons for why you want to attend that particular college/sixth form (is it because of their facilities, their courses, their reputation for certain subjects, or something else?)
- Your career plans if you have any. You may want to say how the course or courses you are applying for will help you with your future plans. If you don't have any clear career ideas you could describe what it is that interests you about the course(s) you are applying for.
- Anything you do outside of normal school lessons such as playing for a sports team, learning a musical instrument or being part of a drama club. If you can link your hobby to a skill that you have developed this is a good thing to mention to any potential sixth form or college. Playing a sport can help you work well in a team; drama is great for building confidence and learning a musical instrument shows a dedication to developing new skills.
Work experience
If you have had a part-time job, completed school work experience or been involved in any volunteering, this section is a really good place to display what skills you have gained. List the key skills you learnt from the work place, such as working in a team, communication and customer service skills. Try and give as much information as possible about the activities you carried out such as “I was responsible for taking all telephone bookings and updating the database, to ensure the salon was organised.”
Spelling, grammar & punctuation
It’s easy to think that you don’t have to be formal when completing an application form, however sixth forms and colleges will be looking at your spelling, grammar and punctuation. Your application may be the first impression they have of you, so taking the time to check your application before you send it is really important. Get someone else to read it through to make sure it all makes sense and that there are no spelling or grammar mistakes. If you complete your application online on Help You Choose you can check to see what it will look like before you send it.
Your Successful Self
| Organisation | Description | Link / Website |
| Amazing Apprenticeships | Information on apprenticeships | https://amazingapprenticeships.com/teachers/ |
| Apprenticeships | Information on apprenticeships | https://www.gov.uk/topic/further-education-skills/apprenticeships |
| Army | Applying to join the Army | https://apply.army.mod.uk/ |
| BBC Bitesize | Careers section of educational website | www.bbc.co.uk/bitesize/careers |
| British Psychological Society | Exploring your options in Psychology | www.bps.org.uk |
| Careers Box | Videos about various careers | www.careersbox.co.uk |
| Career map | Information for parents about careers | https://careermap.co.uk/careermag-parents-carers-guardians/ |
| Careers in Sport | Information about sport related careers | https://careers-in-sport.co.uk/ |
| CITB | Exploring your options in Construction | https://www.citb.co.uk/ |
| Creative & Cultural Skills | Exploring your options in Creative sector | https://www.ccskills.org.uk/knowledge-centre |
| Fast Tomato | Interactive careers guidance and education for teenagers | https://www.fasttomato.com/ |
| Future Learn | University and Your Future: Career Planning and Making the Most of Your Degree | https://www.futurelearn.com/courses/career-planning-and-your-degree |
| Future Morph | Exploring your options in STEM sector | http://www.futuremorph.org/ |
| How to become | UK’s leading career specialist | https://www.how2become.com/ |
| I Could | Informative careers website with advice | https://icould.com/ |
| Jobted | Vacancies, job descriptions and salary trends | https://uk.jobted.com/ |
| Lancashire Young People service | https://www.lancashire.gov.uk/youthzone/ | |
| Law Careers | Exploring your options in Law | https://www.lawcareers.net/ |
| National Apprenticeship Service | Applying for apprenticeships | https://www.gov.uk/apply-apprenticeship |
| National Careers Service | Main government website | https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/ |
| Neuvoo/Talent.com | UK search platform for job seekers | https://uk.talent.com/ |
| NHS | Information on Health Careers | https://www.healthcareers.nhs.uk/ |
| Plotr | Career Quiz | www.plotr.co.uk |
| Police | Applying to the Police | https://recruit.college.police.uk/ |
| Prospects | Advice & Guidance on all thing’s careers | www.prospects.ac.uk |
| Royal Navy | Applying to join the Royal Navy | https://www.royalnavy.mod.uk/careers |
| RAF | Applying to join the Royal Air Force | https://www.raf.mod.uk/recruitment/ |
| Start | Careers that suit your skills & attributes | https://careersjourney.startinblackpool.com/ |
| Speakers for School | Talks from various inspirational speakers | https://www.speakersforschools.org/inspiration/vtalks/upcoming-vtalks/ |
| Sorted Apprenticeship Booklet | Information on Apprenticeship Providers | https://www.lancsforum.co.uk/sorted/ |
| SEMTA | Exploring your options in Engineering | https://enginuity.org/ |
| Tasty Careers | Information about careers in Food Industry | https://tastycareers.org.uk/ |
| Talking Futures | Support for parents & carers talking to young people about their futures | https://www.talkingfutures.org.uk/earn-your-badge/ |
| Tech Futures Careers | Information about careers in Technology | https://www.tpdegrees.com/careers/ |
| UCAS | Degree course information | www.ucas.com |
| UR Potential | Volunteering in Blackpool, Fylde & Wyre | https://urpotential.co.uk/ |
| WOW Show | Career shows | https://www.thewowshow.org/careers-guides/ |
| Blackpool and the Fylde College | FE / Apprenticeship Provider | www.blackpool.ac.uk |
| Blackpool Sixth Form College | FE Provider | www.blackpoolsixth.ac.uk |
| Cardinal Newman 6th Form | FE Provider | www.cardinalnewman.ac.uk |
| Carr Hill Sixth Form | FE Provider | www.carrhillschool.com |
| Myerscough College | FE / Apprenticeship Provider | www.myerscough.ac.uk |
| Lancaster & Morecambe College | FE Provider | www.lmc.ac.uk |
| Preston College | FE / Apprenticeship Provider | www.preston.ac.uk |
| Runshaw College | FE Provider | www.runshaw.ac.uk |
| St Mary’s Sixth Form | FE Provider | www.st-mary.blackpool.sch.uk |
| BAE Systems | Local employer | www.baesystems.com/careers |
| Westinghouse Springfield | Local employer | www.westinghousenuclear.com/springfields/Career |
| GP Strategies Training | Apprenticeship provider | www.gpsta.co.uk |
| JTL (Electrical / Engineering) | Apprenticeship provider | www.jtltraining.com |
| North Lancs Training Group | Apprenticeship provider | www.nltg.co.uk |
| Training 2000 Ltd | Apprenticeship provider | www.training2000.co.uk |
| AFC Fylde Community Trust | FE Provider | http://afcfyldefoundation.co.uk/ |
| Blackpool FC Community Trust | FE Provider | http://www.bfcct.co.uk/ |
| Fleetwood FC Community Trust | FE Provider | https://fleetwoodtownfcct.com/ |