Careers Wales launches new resource for primary schools

Careers Wales has launched a new resource to support primary school learners with careers learning. 

Careers City is an interactive map designed to support learners in years 5 and 6 to explore different careers and the world of work.  

Coming with supporting classroom materials and teacher notes, the resource will help teachers to include careers and work-related experiences (CWRE) in their curriculum.  

Through clicking on buildings and features on the map that represent different sectors, learners will be taken to an animation featuring an ‘unusual’ job within that particular sector, such as a teddy bear repair technician, a glaciologist, a police drone pilot or an art therapist. 

Each animation will provide learners with age-appropriate information about the job, including what it involves, as well as the interests, skills or qualities that will be useful to be able to do the job, and subjects they might want to study to follow that career.  

The resource aims to raise awareness of the wide range of careers available.

Mark Owen, head of services to stakeholders at Careers Wales, said: “We’re thrilled to be launching this fun and interactive resource.

“Careers City has been designed to spark interest and discussion with learners at primary school level and encourage them to think about jobs that might interest them. 

“As a mandatory cross-cutting theme within Curriculum for Wales, it’s really important that teachers are supported with embedding this theme into their lesson plans and wider curriculum.

“We’re encouraging primary school teachers across Wales to look at how they can use this map within their own classrooms and help broaden the horizons and raise the aspirations of learners.”

The sectors featured include those regarded as ‘priority sectors’ by Regional Skills Partnerships in Wales. 

The full list of sectors and jobs include:

• Agriculture – pet psychologist
• Construction – rope access worker
• Creative arts, media and culture – teddy bear repair technician
• Digital technology – AI whisperer
• Education – art therapist
• Energy, water and waste – glaciologist
• Finance, insurance and legal – financial crime inspector
• Health – genetic technologist
• Manufacturing – protein expression scientist 
• Public services – police drone pilot
• Tourism, hospitality, sport and leisure – bungee jump instructor
• Transport and storage – yacht broker

More information about Careers City can be found on the Careers Wales website.