Providing Work Experience

[Steve N]

I have been asked if I would provide Work Experience for a 15 year old school boy, the father rang and asked, I have met them yesterday, I told them I would think about it and let them know,

Just wondering if any of you have done this and what your experience was or if you have any thoughts on the subject.

Thanks

by the way they are not customers of mine

[DCS]

We have had three work experience kids in our studio

The first one was very pleasant but a little shy. She seemed quite interested in photography and was keen to help.

The second one was an absoloute star who was at the shop before we were on a morning and to be honest I would have employed her.
She was not only keen she had a reasonable knowledge of photoshop and operating a camera, so much so that we let her photograph 30 items of makeup that we do on a regular basis
for a client and she made a perfect job.

The third one was just a waste of space, always checking her Blackberry and seemed to have no interest in what was going on apart from a request on her first day that could we print a big picture for her Mum! She turned up late every day and wanted to leave at three to catch her bus home (where she lives buses are every 20 minutes)

In essence I think it's a good idea for kids to get work experience and all seem keen at the initial interview stage but until they are actually with you there's no way of knowing what they are like.

[Jonny2morsos]

You will probably find you need to be registered with the education authuority who will need to visit and make checks regarding health and safety etc. etc. plus you might need to get a CRB check done which could well be at your own expense.

[Vince442]

Hi, in addition to the CRB check, now called DBS (Disclosure and Barring Service), you may need to check your liability insurance.

Know what you mean about the blackberry! Seems everything comes second to a text!

[Tudor Rose]

We had someone in for work experience 2 years ago - this was one organised through the school. It is now part of the national curriculum that all school children have to do at least 1 week of work experience (so we were told when our own son went through it anyway) so there might be more requests for this. We had to fill in various forms the school sent through and then had a visit from Devon County Council to check out the premises and make sure that we had an accident book, fire extinguishers, the correct insurance in place etc etc and they also confirmed which jobs would be allowed and which wouldn't (the morso was the only thing they advised us to avoid, but after seeing the pictures on the forum yesterday I be tempted to put the underpinner on that list too ). Once you have been checked by County then they do less paperwork in future years apparently.

We had to have hours arranged and agreed and we were also told that they mustn't be paid, but we could offer towards travel expenses if we wanted to.

We found that as long as we had a clear list of jobs for them to do, then each day went pretty well. We made sure that their phone was either switched off or left in their bag (they would have to do this in school anyway) so there wasn't that distraction. We know from having our nephew and our two boys in doing work that their phones are the biggest distraction they can have. It does take up a reasonable amount of your own time to supervise and teach, but we found it worked out fairly well and wouldn't mind doing it again. But the most important thing is that they have chosen to do their work experience with you because they want to, rather than the teachers or parents shoving them into doing it because they can't think of anything else to do.

(Needless to say our own son chose NOT to do his week with us - he had a week with the Royal Marines instead!)

[Steve N]

Thanks for the replies, I don't think I will be offering this at the moment, seems a lot of work, (could be making frames)

Thanks

[kev@frames]

Used to take work experience.
Until last year.
Felt finally insulted one too many time by not only the leaflets but the visit of a jobsworth supposedly to check the insurance and health and safety, but was more interested in pointing out all the things that are now inappropriate/inadvisable:
being in the same room alone with a minor and basically 99 other things which would lead to you being put on some sort of a "list".
Also, quite sensibly really, they are not allowed to use cutting equipment of any sort that requires training, under supervision or otherwise. eg. can't touch the glass, the CMC or the morso, or handle glass. So they can't get much hands on experience. only hang around watching, getting on everyone's nerves and being in the way. And then they get bored and need entertaining.

Well we took the trainee, because he works for one of my staff, so his mum was in the workplace at the same time. But that is it. never no more, never.

Some parts of the system have convinced themselves that everybody is a nonce waiting to interfere with the nation's youth unless proven otherwise, and even make it too difficult for a small business to provide this service out of the kindness of their hearts, or a feeling of scocial responsibility to help out these kids and the education system.

Years ago we took YTS trainess, and out of the first four, three of them ended up working for us, one of those went to the states to manage a mat cutting company, another left to manage a gallery, and still works in the framing business. And they all got level 2 NVQs while they were at it.

That is what is not happening anywhere any more due to elf n safety, and the imaginary-nonce industry, and whichever way you look at it if you extrapolate it country-wide it is a greater loss to the country, the economy, and thousands of kids than the virtually negligible risks involved.

Compare this to the kids who used to do work experience and get a reference, and decent proper work experience it makes you wonder what is going on in some people's' heads.

I suspect that if you did a freedom of information request asking how many kids on work experience got injured, or abused by their employer, it would be as close to zero as made no difference.

I'd take an over 18 (adult) on work experience. But kids are too much hassle now.

Plus they haven't got a clue these days. they think that ten minutes late is perpectly OK every day, and cutting out five minutes early is an entitlement, and 48 minutes counts as a half hour lunch break, and that is if they turrn up at all. Most of these kids have no discipline, and even worse, a sense of entitlement that the world owes them a living and they are doing you a favour by turning up. And that is the fault of the schools. And half of them can't spell, don't seem to know how to wash, and talk complete crap all day, or seem unable to do anything but grunt, and they have no social skills whatsoever. And that is also the fault of the schools (and the XBox).

I'll put my soap box away now.

[stcstc]

i am on the committee for my sons swimming club

the other night had to do a mandatory child protection course. man it is sooooo disheartening out how society generated such a nanny state

some of the things that were discussed, that i just though man whats the big deal, means some of the activities just get so messed up, cos everyone is afraid of what or how things could be construed

one that was discussed was that the coach is not allowed to go into the dressing room for a team talk, without other adult and after x y and z have been done, for a football club!!!

[kev@frames]

I used to help out with an organisation called Cyclewise (it was a modern version of the cycling proficiency scheme for primary schools).
I was one of the volunteers who went out on the road at different places to make sure the kids were OK.
It was actually very rewarding and, most of the time almost fun. And as my kids were also at the school, it was a nice way of giving something back, as they say.

A by-product was that the kids were interracting with adults from outside of the school or family, and it was good for them. They didn't regard all adults with suspicion, because we were there to look after them and teach them the rules of the road and how not to fall off a bike, in our own time.
I doubt anyone is interested in doing it these days, because of all the rules regulations and pieces of paper.

Lots of organisations like that have sufferd, and with them the people they were there to help out in the first place.

I can imagine the forms and questions people would ask now, and why do you want to come in contact with kids in the first place attitude.

And this is why over the years the number of male primary school teachers has declined, and why children have been brainwashed into thinking all adults are a "risk" to them unless they have a piece of paper from the nonce police. Want to help out with a school play or a trip these days? Forget it.

Actually I do have a piece of paper saying I'm not a nonce, because we jumped through all the social services hoops for adoption including police CRB checks and the full nine yards.

But imho this paranoia about paedophiles has damaged a generation in far reaching ways, and created an industry of its own.

[stcstc]

i am presently filling in a irish police vetting form

i have to list every address i have lived at from birth!!!!

dont understand how checking me when i was say 12 living with my parents etc gains anything