If parents have to pay for school work placements, their children will suffer | Libby Page

My work experience led to my first job, teaching me I had a value. Charging parents creates a class of haves and have nots

On Monday the Times reported that parents are being asked by schools to subsidise work experience placements by paying around £50 or more for the opportunity, with an additional fee for placements in London. Following the government's decision to drop compulsory work experience for 14- to 16-year-olds last year, parents are now picking up the bill for risk assessments and admin associated with placements.

Placing a financial burden on parents seems not only unfair, but also likely to enforce social imbalances in the classroom and the workplace. Asking parents to pay a higher fee for placements that are further afield imposes a barrier that many young people and their parents will not be able to overcome. While students from wealthy families might score their dream placement in a big company in London, others will get left behind, stuck with a limited choice of local businesses in which to work.

If organised properly, work placements can be great experiences for young people. When I was 15 I did work experience at a local jewellery shop as part of a school requirement. It was my first experience in a working environment, and I loved it. I came back to school with a newfound confidence and love of jewellery-making.

After the placement I went on to get a Saturday job there, which I kept for three years. Many of my peers had similar experiences in which work placements became a first job, and it was in this job that I learnt the meaning of work and earning my own money.

Although I did not expect to be paid on the actual placement (where I was just observing what went on), it gave me the important experience that then led me into employment. That first job taught me that I have a value: I still have a photocopy of my first pay cheque. By telling young people and their parents to pay for these experiences we are setting them up to undervalue what they have to offer.

Work experience placements can be incredibly beneficial, and doing them while at school and still living with parents is perhaps the perfect time to get a glimpse of the working world without the worry of how to pay your rent. But making them the financial responsibility of parents sends out the wrong messages – messages that are hard to undo later in life. It makes young people believe from an early age that they should be willing to pay for these kinds of experiences, and it tells parents that it is their duty to support their children while they do so. For struggling families these additional costs could come as a real burden, a burden that risks splitting a class into those who can, and those who can't.

Perhaps change is on its way. Labour is reportedly working on a proposal to reinstate compulsory work experience in schools, in a bid to better equip young people with the professional skills to get them into the workplace. I believe that quality work experience placements are a great thing, and that they should be part of our curriculum. When done fairly they give school pupils invaluable professional experience, confidence and can lead them into employment. But just don't make the parents catch the costs. Because in the end it is the children who pay.

Contributor

Libby Page

The GuardianTramp

Related Content

Article image
Children can fall behind as early as nine months

Study of 15,000 children finds significant correlation between performance at nine months and five years

Warwick Mansell

17, Feb, 2010 @12:06 AM

Article image
Michael Gove, don't steal children's summers | Jonathan Freedland
Jonathan Freedland: First thoughts: Gove's plan to let headteachers set their school's holidays would cause chaos and end one of the defining elements of childhood

Jonathan Freedland

02, Jul, 2013 @8:35 AM

Article image
Nursery schools: ‘What society gives children less chance than their parents?’
Few doubt the value of nursery schools, yet many could close as early as July thanks to government plans for free childcare

Sally Weale

31, Jan, 2017 @7:15 AM

Article image
Social class has more effect on children than good parenting, study finds
Parents with professional jobs had more influence on a child's school progress than techniques such as bedtime stories

Jessica Shepherd, education correspondent

07, Dec, 2010 @6:00 AM

Underperforming league tables must go | Jackie Schneider
Jackie Schneider: Parents aren't stupid – we can tell if a primary school is good or bad. It's time to stop wasting teachers' time on this charade

Jackie Schneider

01, Dec, 2009 @12:30 PM

Article image
Keeping children at school until 8pm is only good for pushy parents | Belinda Webb
Belinda Webb: Michael Gove has said free schools could stay open until 8pm – why not just pack Harry and Chloe off to boarding school?

Belinda Webb

23, Jun, 2011 @6:00 AM

Article image
David Cameron's reading to children speech: between the lines
Zoe Williams: The PM has revived this old chestnut to avoid addressing real questions, such as 'How can we redistribute wealth?'

Zoe Williams

19, Jan, 2012 @4:00 PM

Editorial: Good education begins at home, not school

Editorial: Teachers cannot shoulder the entire social burden that comes from irresponsible parenting

Editorial

04, Apr, 2009 @11:01 PM

Article image
Nick Clegg's pupil premium won't fix social mobility | Anna Vignoles
Anna Vignoles: The problems that lead to a lack of educational achievement lie in a child's background and environment, not in school funding

Anna Vignoles

14, May, 2012 @6:30 PM

Article image
The 'right school'? No, parents staying together is the best way to help children | Joanna Moorhead
Joanna Moorhead: Children with a stable home life do better at school. Focus less on catchment areas and more on relationship counselling

Joanna Moorhead

18, Dec, 2013 @2:59 PM