Walsall schoolchildren have been given a glimpse of the working world of the NHS and shown a variety of potential careers.

Eighteen Year 7 pupils from Blue Coat Academy, in conjunction with the Prince’s Trust, were invited to Walsall Healthcare NHS Trust’s ‘World of Work’ event.

Hosted by the Trust’s Placement Team, the aim of the event was to highlight the different careers that make up the NHS – some they may not have been aware of – and to inspire the future NHS workforce.

The students took part in activities which involved clinical skills, visiting departments and learning about the different roles within the Trust.

Sessions included demonstrations and activities from the Infection, Prevention and Control Team, Radiology Department, Catering Department, Apprentice Team and Resourcing and Library Services.

Feedback from staff, supervisors and pupils was positive with many participants now considering a career in the NHS.

Feedback from the students included:

• “I really enjoyed looking and learning about different departments in the world of work.”
• “I thought the world of work day was fun and very educational.”
• “I enjoyed everything about the world of work visit; the best bit was the manikins.”

Future events are being planned for older pupils, to help their career choices, and plans are to offer this model to other surrounding schools.

Miss Katie Addison, Blue Coat Inclusion Lead said: “Thank you for all the support in the amazing world of work visit for our students.

“During the walk back to school, they were certainly buzzing and having lots of conversations about all the wonderful things they experienced and saw.

“All the staff were just incredible with the students and absolutely pitched this at the right level for all of them to get something out of each session.”

Heather Morris, Placement Lead at Walsall Healthcare, said: “We hope they had fun learning about the potential careers within the NHS. It is also a rewarding feeling knowing that events like this can help contribute towards our future workforce.”

Adam Turner, Improving Health and Wellbeing Lead at NHS England said: “Thank you to Heather and to all colleagues across the different teams for the huge amount of effort taken to put on what was an amazing day for our young people.

“I’m so delighted that the majority of them are now considering careers or apprenticeships in healthcare.”