Wiseup launches London Careers Challenge to expand access to meaningful work experience

Calling all London businesses! Want to make a difference, open doors to young people and help shape the next generation of talent? Our latest initiative allows you to do just that.

Wiseup is thrilled to announce that the London Careers Challenge is now live – an exciting new opportunity for businesses to engage with and inspire the next generation of talent through a range of career engagement activities.

Delivered in partnership with the Harris Federation, the London Careers Challenge gives businesses access to a straightforward range of resources and guidance to help them provide meaningful experiences for young people, from careers talks for schools and skills workshops to office visits, project challenges and full work experience placements.

Making meaningful work experience more accessible

Talent is everywhere, yet opportunity is not.

For many young people, access to the workplace and opportunities to meet professionals can still depend heavily on their school, location, personal networks or the industries they happen to encounter.

At the same time, we know that many businesses want to support young people but aren't always sure how to offer work experience, what type of activity would be most valuable, or how much time and resources are required.

The London Careers Challenge is designed to help bridge that gap.

Rather than asking every business to commit to a lengthy placement, we are making it easier for organisations to get involved at different levels. Whether you have an hour to deliver a career talk, a few hours to run a skills workshop, a day to host an office visit or the capacity to provide a full work experience placement, there is an opportunity to get involved.

Supporting businesses to engage with young people

We know that businesses are often willing to support schools but may not know how businesses can offer work experience or where to begin.

The London Careers Challenge has therefore been designed to make employer engagement as straightforward as possible.

Businesses can explore a menu of activities, identify an opportunity that works for their organisation and access guidance and resources from Wiseup before delivering the activity with a participating Harris Academy.

Our aim is simple: remove the barriers that can prevent businesses from stepping forward, creating more opportunities for young people to meet employers, experience professional environments, understand different career paths and develop the confidence and skills they need for their futures.

The initiative also contributes to the wider employer engagement London landscape, helping businesses play a more active role in supporting young people across the capital.

Aligned with the changing approach to work experience

The London Careers Challenge has been developed in line with the direction of travel across careers education and work experience, including the Careers & Enterprise Company's Equalex framework and the Government's move towards Meaningful Work Experience (MWEX).

This means focusing on experiences that are purposeful, accessible and connected to young people's understanding of the workplace – rather than work experience being limited to passive observation or simply shadowing an employee.

Our activity menu gives businesses different ways to provide meaningful engagement, helping students build their understanding of industries and roles while developing transferable skills, confidence and workplace awareness.

The ambition is to create multiple touchpoints between young people and employers, starting earlier and giving students the chance to explore a wider range of industries and careers before making decisions about their futures.

Our partnership with the Harris Federation

The London Careers Challenge is delivered in partnership with the Harris Federation, building on Wiseup's continued relationship with the organisation over the past five academic years.

Through this partnership, Wiseup has seen first-hand the value that direct employer engagement can bring to students.

This year, we are taking that work one step further by creating a more accessible route for businesses across London to connect with Harris students and provide valuable career experiences.

With more than 40,000 students across 30 secondary schools and sixth forms, the Harris Federation provides an extensive network through which businesses can make a meaningful contribution to careers education.

How the London Careers Challenge works

1. Express interest

Complete our Expression of Interest form and tell us about your organisation and the types of opportunities you may be interested in providing.

2. Explore & choose

Speak with Wiseup Networks, review the Activity Menu and identify the opportunity that best fits your organisation, your team's interests and the time you have available.

3. Prepare

We'll provide the relevant school contact, guidance and resources so your team understands what is expected and can confidently prepare for the activity.

4. Deliver

Engage directly with young people through your chosen activity and work alongside the Harris Academy contact provided.

5. Reflect

Provide feedback and help us understand the impact of the experience, so we can continue improving opportunities for both students and businesses.

What activities are on offer?

The London Careers Challenge provides businesses with a range of ways to engage with young people suited to all needs.

Industry talks

Give young people an insight into your industry, career journey and the world of work.

Best for: organisations wanting to share knowledge, experience and career insight through school career talks.

Skills workshops

Help young people develop a practical or professional skill through an interactive session.

Best for: organisations that want employees to teach, facilitate or demonstrate a specific skill.

Office visits

Give young people the opportunity to experience a professional workplace first-hand, meet employees and see what working in your organisation is really like.

Best for: organisations able to host young people and introduce them to their workplace and people.

Project challenges

Set young people a realistic business challenge and support them as they develop a solution.

Best for: organisations wanting students to apply teamwork, problem-solving and commercial thinking to a real-world task.

Full work experience placements

Provide a deeper, immersive experience of your workplace over multiple days.

Best for: organisations able to provide structured exposure to workplace activity, people and routines.

Together, these activities provide different ways for businesses to contribute – helping make employer engagement more accessible regardless of an organisation's size, sector or available capacity.

Why meaningful employer engagement matters

Around 1 in 8 young people – more than 1 million people – are currently not in education, employment or training. Providing young people with meaningful opportunities to engage with employers is therefore more important than ever.

Early exposure to different industries and workplaces can help young people understand the range of careers available to them, build confidence and develop a clearer sense of what they might want from their future.

As Dill Astey, Vice Principal at Harris Federation, explains:

“Access to meaningful employer experiences makes a real difference to how our students understand the world of work and the opportunities available to them. It is important that students are able to explore careers they are genuinely interested in, rather than being limited by the industries, organisations or connections available through their own personal networks. The more employers that come forward to offer student engagement activities, the more opportunities young people have to build their confidence, broaden their horizons and make informed decisions about their future.”

What's in it for businesses?

Taking part gives employees the opportunity to develop their own communication, leadership, presentation and mentoring skills, while gaining experience of engaging with a younger generation.

It can also help businesses build stronger links with local schools and communities, raise awareness of their industry and introduce young people to career paths they may not otherwise encounter.

For organisations thinking about how to offer work experience, the London Careers Challenge also provides a straightforward starting point – with Wiseup helping to facilitate the connection and provide the resources and guidance needed to deliver the activity.

Ultimately, it's about making it easier for businesses to do something meaningful without creating an unrealistic burden on their teams.