Our engaging programme starts in the Preparatory School but receives greater attention from Year 7 and builds year-on-year to help students make informed decisions during their school careers, such as their GCSE and future A-level choices, with a particular expertise in helping students assess their interest and potential in a future subject choice. This expertise contributes to the value added the school is recognised for.
Students also understand the link between their option choices and decisions for post-16 education and on how to choose subjects that suit them as an individual – their strengths, values and interests. We then seek to support students to develop the skills necessary to achieve their goals, such as application writing and interview techniques for post-16 education and beyond.
While academic support is considered a priority for all pupils, we firmly believe in supporting the whole of a student’s learning experience. This includes supporting them through their decision-making process when the time comes to think about sixth forms, colleges, apprenticeships, A-Level courses, vocational courses and combinations of options.
We have two primary aims for our careers support provision:
Today’s job market is complex and constantly evolving, and pupils are faced with a wide range of choices. While most of our pupils opt to attend sixth forms, our support extends to a much wider range of opportunities, including apprenticeships and vocational avenues.
You can view our Careers Policy here and our Provider Access Policy here.
Miss D’Auria is our Head of Careers and has been specialising in teaching and learning and co-production in selective independent schools and grammar settings for over 20 years. Most recently, her work on the Preparation for Life programme at London Parks Schools was featured in Tatler magazine. The last reference she wrote (November 2024) was for a student applying to Harvard. At LPS, as assistant director, she set up the sixth form with UCAS and Future Ready provision. Whilst at Kensington Park School, Miss D’Auria led on the Oxbridge and US applications and trained staff both in-house and overseas. As part of the team delivering teacher training at Southend High School for Girls (2009-2019), Miss D’Auria completed a post-graduate qualification in coaching and mentoring with Canterbury Christchurch University, so she is very well-positioned to support students and families as they explore future opportunities. Miss D’Auria has been an examiner for AQA since 2008 and has received private commissions from Arts Council and The British Psychological Society for advocacy work. Miss D’Auria is always keen to travel and has led student expeditions to Vietnam, Namibia, Iceland and Peru.
Miss D’Auria says “It always makes me happy when I do Future Guidance with students. In my experience, when they find their “why?” there is uplift across their entire school life and beyond”.
Careers and Future Guidance at Thorpe Hall School
At Thorpe Hall School, promoting a career development culture is essential to our Mission “to create collisions with opportunities for all learners so that they can dream with their eyes open, achieve their ambitions and positively impact the world”. We aim to support the aspirations of all our learners and to ensure that they gain the understanding, skills and experience they need to succeed in learning now and in the future. We believe that effective careers guidance not only contributes to the well-being of individuals but also to the wellbeing of their families, the communities to which they belong, wider society, businesses and the economy, as well as raising the aspirations and achievements of all concerned.
We aim to meet eight Gatsby benchmarks of Good Career Guidance and our vision is that careers guidance is ostentatious across the curriculum. We implement this through integration into subject teaching and learning as well as in specific and distinct Careers Education ‘moments’ throughout Year 7 to 11 such as Careers Advisor meetings and Work Experience.
Please contact Miss D’Auria, Head of Careers, if you have any questions about the following, or if you would like to collaborate with us on careers provision:
You can read our The Careers Education, Information and Guidance Programme Outline here.
Contact Miss D’Auria by email careers@thorpehallschool.co.uk
Further information for parents and carers designed to help them support their children in their post-16 choices can be found below.
Morrisby is our CEIAG platform that we use in school for all year groups. Students are given their logins and can access this platform at home as well.
https://app.morrisby.com/login
Thorpe Hall School LinkedIn:
https://uk.linkedin.com/company/thorpe-hall-school
National Careers Service
https://nationalcareers.service.gov.uk/
World Skills UK
https://www.worldskillsuk.org/
Amazing Apprenticeships
https://amazingapprenticeships.com/
Investment 2020
https://www.investment2020.org.uk/
Essex Opportunities Portal
https://www.essexopportunities.co.uk/
Dukes Education