Careers Education – Snowflake School

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Careers at Snowflake

At Snowflake School, careers education and Preparation for Adulthood are embedded throughout the curriculum and wider school community. We are committed to providing meaningful, personalised and aspirational opportunities that enable pupils to develop confidence, independence, communication and employability skills through real-life learning experiences.

Our careers pathway supports pupils to explore their strengths, interests and aspirations whilst developing the skills needed for adult life. Preparation for Adulthood underpins this approach, focusing on the four key outcomes of employment, independent living, community inclusion, and health and wellbeing. These themes are woven throughout the curriculum and provide meaningful opportunities for pupils to apply their learning in real-world contexts.

The development of independence and functional life skills is further supported through Essentials for Living, which helps pupils build practical skills such as communication, personal organisation, travel training, money management, safety awareness and self-advocacy. Pupils also work towards accredited outcomes through ASDAN programmes, enabling them to develop employability, personal and social skills whilst gaining recognition for their achievements.

A key feature of our provision is the Snowflake Café enterprise programme, which offers authentic workplace experiences within a supportive environment. Through roles involving customer service, food preparation, stock management, budgeting, sales and teamwork, pupils develop valuable workplace skills and an understanding of employment expectations.

As pupils progress, these experiences are extended through carefully planned external work experience placements with local employers, charities and community organisations. These opportunities allow pupils to apply their skills in real workplace settings, develop professional behaviours and build confidence, resilience and independence.

Together, Preparation for Adulthood, Essentials for Living, ASDAN accreditation, the Snowflake Café enterprise programme and external work experience provide a coherent pathway that prepares pupils for successful transitions into further education, supported internships, employment and adult life. Through high aspirations, personalised support and meaningful experiences, we empower every pupil to achieve their potential and contribute positively to their community.

Our Careers Vision

At Snowflake School, we believe every pupil deserves opportunities to:

develop confidence and independence,
build communication and social interaction skills,
engage meaningfully within their community,
develop employability and workplace understanding,
and prepare for adulthood and future pathways.

Careers education is embedded throughout the curriculum and supports pupils to generalise skills across a range of practical and real-life contexts.

Our programme supports pupils through:

Preparation for Adulthood pathways,
Skills Builder,
ASDAN accreditation,
Essentials for Living outcomes,
ABA-informed approaches,
enterprise learning,
and supported work experience opportunities.

Visit our updated policy here.

Snowflake Cafe

The café acts as an internal supported work experience model where pupils can safely practise workplace expectations and Preparation for Adulthood skills.

The Snowflake Café is a key part of our enterprise and employability curriculum, providing pupils with meaningful, real-life learning experiences that develop confidence, independence and workplace readiness.

Through roles in food preparation, customer service, teamwork, communication, IT, money handling, stock management and profit and loss accounting, pupils gain practical experience of running a small business. Products are currently sold to students and staff, providing regular opportunities to engage with customers, manage transactions and develop professional behaviours.

The café operates as an internal supported work experience model, allowing pupils to safely develop employability and Preparation for Adulthood skills before progressing to community-based work experience. It also provides opportunities to apply learning from ASDAN and Essentials for Living programmes in authentic contexts.

Designed to be scalable, the café will continue to expand, with future plans to market and sell products to parents and the wider school community. This will further strengthen pupils’ enterprise, communication and employability skills whilst creating increasingly authentic workplace experiences

External Work Experience

External work experience is a key part of the Snowflake careers and Preparation for Adulthood programme. Pupils access meaningful placements within the local community, including Scope Charity Shop, Aunty Bonnies Food Truck, Aunty Bonnies Store, local farm placements and Acton Café, with additional partnerships continuing to be developed.

These real-life experiences provide opportunities for pupils to engage with a range of employment sectors including retail, hospitality, catering, agriculture and customer service. Through these placements, pupils develop communication, confidence, independence, teamwork, problem-solving and employability skills whilst increasing their understanding of workplace expectations and the wider world of work.

All placements are carefully planned, personalised and supported to ensure pupils can successfully apply learning from ASDAN, Essentials for Living and Preparation for Adulthood programmes within authentic workplace environments. By experiencing a variety of work settings, pupils are better prepared for future education, training, supported internships, employment and adult life.

Assessment Framework

At Snowflake School, the careers curriculum is supported through four interconnected assessment approaches that promote meaningful Preparation for Adulthood outcomes and real-life skill development alongside formal accrediation and qualifications.

Preparation for Adulthood sits at the centre of the curriculum and supports pupils to develop skills linked to employment, independent living, community inclusion, and health and wellbeing. Learning opportunities are personalised and designed to help pupils apply and generalise skills across school, community and workplace environments.

The Skills Builder framework is embedded throughout the curriculum and work experience programme, supporting pupils to develop the eight essential skills of listening, speaking, problem solving, creativity, staying positive, planning, leadership and teamwork. These skills are practised daily through classroom learning, enterprise opportunities, community participation and workplace experiences.

Essential for Living and ABA-informed approaches underpin the careers curriculum by supporting pupils to develop functional communication, independence, routines, confidence and problem-solving skills through structured and meaningful learning experiences. These skills are applied through the Snowflake Café, community participation and supported work experience opportunities within real-life contexts.

ASDAN accreditation pathways support pupils to develop independence, personal development and employability skills through practical and meaningful learning experiences. Current pathways include Transition Challenge, Introduction & Progression, New Horizons and Workright, with evidence collected through thematic learning, workplace experiences and community participation.

Gatsby Benchmarks

The Snowflake careers programme aligns closely with the Gatsby Benchmarks and supports pupils through:

a stable careers programme,
personalised careers pathways,
employer encounters,
workplace experiences,
curriculum-linked careers learning,
further education exploration,
and personal guidance.

Careers education is carefully adapted to meet the individual strengths and needs of all pupils.

Our current destination data demonstrates continued positive outcomes and progression for pupils transitioning from Snowflake School into further education and future pathways.

Our Commitment

At Snowflake School, we are committed to ensuring every pupil receives meaningful opportunities that prepare them for adulthood and future pathways.

Through our integrated careers curriculum, enterprise provision and work experience programme, pupils are supported to develop confidence, independence, communication and employability skills within real-life environments.

Every experience matters.

Every opportunity builds confidence.

Every pupil deserves a meaningful future.

Careers at Snowflake ​