Alford Golf Club are valued partners of Alford Academy and our pupils are increasingly working with the club throughout our curriculum.
Our S3 Business pupils are bringing learning outcomes to life with students working on the clubs advertising and marketing to improve their social media presence and office handling.
Our Hospitality Foundation Apprenticeship students have been working in the kitchen and front of house to develop their hospitality/teamwork and communication skills which has been very successful.
ALFORD GOLF CLUB
The Golf Club would like to invite all non golfing members to an introduction to golf taster session on Saturday 13th May.
Come along to this free event to learn the basics of golf with our coaches. Then into the clubhouse for a refreshment afterwards.
Young junior (12 and under) 11.00 – 12.00
Adults 13.00 – 14.30
For more details or to reserve a place, please contact the club on 019755 62178 or email info@alford-golf-club.co.uk
Skills Development Scotland (SDS) is delivering a national webinar for senior phase pupils, parents and carers on How to apply for a Scottish Apprenticeship on the 9th of March.
The session will include a panel discussion with SDS Careers adviser, Apprentice employer and an Apprenticeship offering their experiences and advice.
Join Skills Development Scotland in our webinar for senior pupils, parents and careers on ‘How to apply for a Scottish Apprenticeships’ as part of #ScotAppWeek23.
Find out about apprenticeships and get tips on the application process.
Skills Development Scotland (SDS) is delivering a national webinar ‘How to have meaningful career conversations’ on Thursday 23 March at 6.30pm.
Parents and carers can join this webinar to hear about the value and benefits of having career conversations and get some practical hints and tips on how to approach these. There will also be the opportunity to ask questions.
For the latest local Jobs, Events and Resources opportunities Click Here to visit the Career Pathways section of the Alford Blog. This is updated weekly.
Career opportunities
The three websites below are regularly updated with apprenticeships, entry-level positions and other opportunities. Please bookmark all three and visit them frequently to view new opportunities as these go live.
S3 Chemistry pupils from Alford Academy are set to tackle an exciting project with Neptune Energy following a series of presentations from staff members during Scottish Careers Week (7-11 November 2022).
Pupils were visited by Neptune Energy’s geologist Calvin Roberts, metallurgist Bob Conder and communications advisor Jodie Kilminster. Each staff member outlined their career path and current job role, providing pupils with an insight into their backgrounds and day-to-day working life.
Calvin went on to talk about the geology of batteries, the use of lithium and associated environmental impacts. Bob’s presentation covered metals, alloys, corrosion and prevention, outlining why metals are useful for transport and how corrosion can be slowed or prevented. Jodie explained to the pupils how she helps Neptune Energy communicate with its internal and external audiences by managing the company’s website, social media channels and interactions with the media.
Having received some additional design and messaging tips from Jodie, pupils have been tasked with producing a poster to showcase the lessons learned from the presentations they heard during class. The finished results will be sent to Neptune Energy for feedback and review, with the best examples going on display at the company’s offices in Aberdeen.
“Having the opportunity to visit schools and share our knowledge is something we really value and we hope the students benefit from our support for their future careers.”JODIE KILMINSTER, COMMUNICATIONS ADVISOR · NEPTUNE ENERGY
Neptune Energy’s Communications Advisor, Jodie Kilminster, said: “We’re extremely passionate about supporting young people in our local community with mentorship, guidance, and advice. Having the opportunity to visit schools and share our knowledge is something we really value and we hope the students benefit from our support for their future careers.”
Stuart Cookson, Depute Head Teacher, Alford Academy was delighted to welcome the Neptune Energy team members to the school.
“We are so grateful to Neptune Energy for allowing Bob, Calvin and Jodie to come into Alford Academy to provide such fantastic lesson inputs to S3 chemistry pupils,” he said. “The sessions enabled pupils to understand how their learning at Alford Academy is transferable to future careers and the world of work.
“Feedback from the pupils has been really positive. They are looking forward to designing their posters to showcase what they learnt from Neptune Energy. Alford Academy is excited about furthering our relationship with Neptune Energy to continue to inspire and engage our pupils, who are the future workforce.”
Developing the Young Workforce director, Margo Milne, said: “This is an excellent example of contextualising classroom learning with the world of work – and exactly the sort of activity that we wish to celebrate during Scottish Careers Week.
“We are incredibly grateful to Neptune Energy for providing the pupils with such a meaningful experience. The follow-on activity is particularly important in terms of cementing the pupils’ understanding and I’m sure the poster challenge will produce some fantastic results.”
Scottish Careers Week runs from 7-11 November 2022. The initiative is led by Skills Development Scotland with the support of partners and employers, and focuses on all things skills, jobs and careers. Further information about Scottish Careers Week is available here.
Parents and Carers National Webinar: Understanding options available after school
Understanding options available after school(SDS) for parents and carers secondary pupils, Thursday 10th November 6.30pm
Skills Development Scotland careers advisers are hosting a webinar for parents and carers of secondary pupils on 10 Nov at 6:30pm to discuss the options available to young people when they leave secondary school, and resources and support available from Skills Development Scotland.
Parents and carers can register for our session here:
On Tuesday 1st March our senior pupils in S5 and S6 who will be leaving Alford Academy in summer 2022, were invited to take part in a practical session lead by our career advisor, to help write a CV in preparation for their future pathway.
The turn out was very good and pupils followed a step by step process to create their personal CV’s and covering letters.
The session was lead by Jemma Kinnaird, our Skills Development Scotland Career advisor and Aimee Maitland, our Developing the Young Workforce school coordinator.
After the session, pupils were equipped with an up to date CV ready for distributing to potential employers.
Pupils said:
“This was extremely helpful and informative and now I have a CV that I can use straight away and update regularly when I need to”.
“Very helpful and now I can write a CV. This helped me develop my personal CV and made me think of aspects to add to my CV that I wouldn’t have considered”.
Please see below if you are interested in apprenticeships within STEM subjects. (Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths).
Apprentice Panel
Suitable for: Secondary school learners
Tuesday 8 March, 11.00 – 12.00, Teams Live
Hosted by school learners who are part of the Young STEM Leader Programme, where you will have the opportunity to hear from four STEM Ambassadors currently undertaking apprenticeships. The Apprentices come from Dounreay, GE Caledonian, Graham Construction and Rolls Royce. This is a great chance to learn more about apprenticeships, what they involve and the opportunities that are available.
