Careers, Connections and Conversations

Banners were up and business cards were on display for our biennial Careers Convention as part of National Careers Week 2023. We were delighted to welcome nearly forty businesses from a huge range of industries to meet and talk jobs, apprenticeships and career paths with our pupils and Sixth Form students.

This fantastic event welcomed pupils, students and parents from Truro School’s 3^rd Year to Sixth Form, along with visitors from other Cornish schools, allowing them to meet employers and recruiters, helping them learn more about different careers and organisations in fields that interest them.

A dedicated area showcased some major growth industries, such as STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths) and those outlined in the Government’s Industrial Plan, which links closely to Cornwall’s Strategic Economic Plan. These areas offer fantastic employment opportunities for graduates and school leavers.

Thank you to our Head of Careers, Nancy Kenward, and the Truro School Connected team, who play a vital role in bringing this event together. We were particularly pleased to welcome back many past pupils, who are now leading lights in local industries, forging enviable careers for themselves and others in Cornwall.

Both Amelia and Emily are Truro School Alumni and work for Riviera Produce, one of the UK’s leading growers and suppliers of vegetables to UK supermarkets. Emily is now an agronomist with the farming side of the business, and Amelia heads up the HR department. They explained that Riviera Produce is a large family-run business that employs around 500 people, companies like this have technical, logistical and operational departments highlighting great professional opportunities for young people in Cornish agriculture.

Networking is an excellent skill for our Sixth Form leavers to start developing. These events provide valuable opportunities to meet with industry professionals, ensuring students leave Truro School well-prepared for today’s challenging and dynamic job market.

We caught up with a group of Sixth Form geology students who said they enjoyed meeting Cornish Lithium, GSL, and many other local businesses in the comfort of the school hall. They said they were surprised by how many exciting career options might be available to them.

“Today has been a fantastic opportunity to explore career options we’ve not yet considered. There is a really good range of people here, and it has really got us thinking,” Theresa, Mum of Erin.

Thank you to all our exhibitors for coming to meet pupils and parents and for inspiring a new generation of employees, change-makers and potential future leaders. It was wonderful to witness our pupils engaging with so many businesses and great to see a huge breadth of careers represented—a big thank you to everyone involved in organising this fantastic event.