A Formula for Meaningful Work Experience

With youth unemployment currently above 900,000 and British firms reporting that they can’t find the skills they need, work experience models could play a pivotal role in giving young people exposure to jobs that suit their strengths.

However, UK work experience schemes are notoriously inequitable, with socio-economic barriers and a lack of opportunity for young people in less populated areas. The provision that is available often lacks structure and clear learning objectives.

For small and medium-sized businesses and charities, the demand for places can be high, along with the administrative costs. The UK is in dire need of innovative work placement solutions that can resolve issues like these.

That call for innovation was answered two years ago by Carol Carpenter, Director of People and Operations at Thames Hospice and the wearer of many other hats, as is the nature of working for a small charity.

Work Experience Innovation at Thames Hospice

Thames Hospice has 366 employees and 900 volunteers who work in the Hospice’s retail shops, on bedroom units, and in fundraising. The organisation’s early talent population comprises a wide range of individuals, from teenagers still in school to post-degree nurses.

Thames Hospice offers work experience and preceptorship years for newly qualified nurses, student placements for paramedics and nurses, and sponsorships for nursing apprenticeships. They also train healthcare assistants and participate in the Duke of Edinburgh volunteering programme for 14-16-year-olds.

As Covid measures lifted and students began returning to ‘normal’ life offline, the organisation was inundated with online queries for work experience. Managing the administration and execution of multiple ad hoc work experience placements was beginning to overwhelm the small charity. Wanting to address the desire to support local communities while providing a meaningful work experience opportunity for young people, Carol devised an innovative solution.

What if the Hospice offered a work experience week, where secondary school students who were interested could all join as a cohort and get a true experience of what working at the Hospice was like? She wanted to offer students the chance to actually make an impact on the organisation’s mission.

“What motivated me was that it needed to be a real work experience. They had to walk away tired and not able to stop talking about it. I wanted to create a totally immersive experience, for the students and for the staff. Either we did this wholeheartedly, immersed ourselves in the experience or we didn't do it at all."

As a charity, Thames Hospice does have to keep a close eye on the budget, but luckily donors liked the idea, and the organisation was able to raise £4,000 in the first year from trusts and grants to fund the week.

Thames Hospice invited applications from Year 12 students in 52 secondary schools within its catchment area. With just 20 places to offer and 120 applications received, it was a tough job deciding who to choose.

Committed to offering learning opportunities from the outset, the organisation interviewed applicants as part of the process, giving everyone a chance to practise for real-life nursing/medical degree interviews. Ultimately, 22 students were offered a place for a full Monday to Friday work experience week.

Making an Impact

Not only was the impact on the students profound, but it also had hugely beneficial results for the organisation. The students had a completely immersive experience and were able to make an impact on the Hospice’s mission and the lives of its patients. They were invited to volunteer on patient units, where they witnessed the hospice work in action firsthand. The exposure was instrumental in helping them decide whether a career in clinical care was right for them. Those who wanted to take the next steps were offered guidance on getting onto their desired university course.

“It has shown me the variety of fields and healthcare jobs that I could be interested in but was also very interesting, so it has reassured me that I will enjoy studying and practising in medicine.”

And their connection to the hospice didn’t stop there. The students left the week passionate about the cause and became young ambassadors for the Hospice’s mission. Many have gone on to fundraise for the charity and volunteer in their retail shops.

Carol also saw great benefits for her staff. They were initially unsure about how the week would go, viewing it as an interruption to their vital work and a potential hassle. However, as the week progressed, attitudes shifted as team members interacted with the work experience cohort. The students taught Hospice staff just as much as they learned from them.

It’s a win-win-win situation: the organisation can leverage volunteers to deliver its mission, which also benefits Hospice patients and families, and the volunteers can enhance their CVs. They can use their experience as volunteers to support applications for universities and jobs.

Structure and Selection

Applicants are not selected based on who is the most polished and prepared. Instead, the organisation carefully considers who will benefit the most from what it can offer. As a result, the shortlist is more diverse. Work experience places are offered to students from a range of schools, genders, areas of interest, and support systems. There is an element of contracting involved: if students accept a work experience place, they are committing to participate on all five days. In return, the organisation commits to providing them with real-world, practical, hands-on experience and learning.

Given the sensitive nature of the work experience, the Hospice makes great efforts to prepare students for the things they might see and hear—not just before the work experience week but during it as well. Before and after every practical shift, the students debrief with the counselling team to process what they saw, things they didn’t understand, and discuss difficult topics that might have come up.

The week itself is structured so that no pupil misses out. The work experience cohort of approximately 20 students is split into four groups. Monday and Tuesday are predominantly classroom-based activities, with an induction session, a tour of the building, and sessions delivered by the Hospice’s Education team on personal care, death and dying, and health and safety—a must, as students are expected to get hands-on! They also receive some practical clinical training. At the end of the week, each participant delivers a presentation to their peers about their experience and learning.

Delivering Purposeful Work Experience

Thames Hospice’s innovative approach to work experience exemplifies how a structured and immersive program can provide meaningful opportunities for young people while benefiting organisations and their mission.

By addressing common barriers such as socio-economic disparities and lack of structure, the Hospice created a valuable, hands-on experience for students, allowing them to explore careers in healthcare, develop practical skills, and contribute to the community.

Our research into Early Talent has revealed a generation of people keen to make a difference who are often highly collaborative and motivated by purposeful work. The Thames Hospice model serves as a blueprint not just for small organisations aiming to offer meaningful work experience with limited resources but also for organisations of any size seeking inspiration to create impactful and structured programmes.

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