Service Level Agreement 2026-2027 – Post 16 Team

Key details

Overview

Careers guidance and access for education and training providers statutory guidance for governing bodies, school leaders and school staff was published in May 2025

This is statutory guidance from the Department for Education. This means that recipients must have regard to it when carrying out duties relating to independent careers guidance and provider access to schools. We use the term ‘must’ when the person in question is legally required to do something and ‘should’ when advice is being offered.

Careers guidance and access for education and training providers

The careers strategy sets out that that every school needs a Careers Leader who has the skills and commitment, and backing from their senior leadership team, to deliver the careers programme across all eight Gatsby Benchmarks. Every school is expected to name this Careers Leader and publish contact details on their website. More information about the role and responsibilities of the Careers Leader is set out in Understanding the role of the Careers Leader: A Guide for Secondary Schools | CEC Resource Directory

The Gatsby Benchmarks have been updated, retaining the core eight benchmarks but introducing practical refinements based on two years of research. The updated framework, published in late 2024 and adopted into government guidance in May 2025, emphasizes key areas like inclusion, leadership, data use, and parental engagement. It also places greater focus on meaningful and high-quality experiences for all students.

Key changes in the updated benchmarks

Core eight benchmarks remain: 

• A stable careers programme,
• Learning from career and labour market information,
• Addressing the needs of each student,
• Linking curriculum learning to careers,
• Encounters with employers and employees,
• Experiences of workplaces,
• Encounters with further and higher education,
• Personal guidance

Full description The Updated Gatsby Benchmarks | Gatsby Benchmarks

There is an emphasis on inclusion and impact:

• Ensuring inclusivity - high-quality guidance for every young person. 
• Strengthened leadership - Careers education integrated more deeply into the leadership and management of schools and colleges. 
• Increased use of data - The updated benchmarks stress the importance of using data and information effectively to inform careers guidance. 
• Enhanced parental and carer engagement - A focus on getting parents and carers more involved in their child's career planning. 
• Focus on meaningful encounters - a greater emphasis on ensuring the encounters and experiences students have are meaningful and of high quality. 
• Implementation - The updated benchmarks were adopted into statutory guidance in May 2025 and are being implemented by schools, colleges, and independent training providers from September 2025. 

Overview

The activities in this Partnership Agreement have been tailored to the exact requirements of your school.  The aim of the agreement is to set out in clear terms the way in which the Southampton City Council Careers team can add value according to agreed priorities and targets.

This Partnership Agreement describes the information, advice, guidance and support services provided to students.

The Partnership Agreement:

• Describes the mutually agreed Activities by term of areas of work to be delivered to young people.
• Describes the contribution of the school to information, advice, guidance and support.
• Defines policies that will be followed in order to address information sharing, confidentiality and safeguarding.
• Gives details of the key contacts responsible for delivering information, advice, guidance and support to students in the school.

Agreement

This agreement is made between Southampton City Council and the named school for the provision of Careers Information Advice and Guidance to students, staff and parents and carers.

Objective

To agree the services to be provided, and through discussion with the school agree the parameters by which the quality of the services will be measured

Southampton City Council obligations

Southampton City Council will ensure:

• All services will be delivered as set out in the agreed commission
• All services follow all safeguarding and child protection procedures in accordance with your schools policies
• All services are delivered within the required Health and Safety standards
  Each student and the school will receive an agreed signed action plan following each one to one careers guidance meeting
• All resources required for delivery will be provided unless agreed otherwise

School obligations

The school will ensure:

• All commissions and other such instructions are given in accordance with the arrangements mutually agreed between the two parties
• Each commission is placed with a clearly defined brief specifying the requirements of the school and providing details of the agreed rates, time and other constraints 
• A safe, confidential space for all one-to-one Careers Guidance Interviews will be provided
• All students are advised of their careers meeting time and venue.  In the event of students being absent on the day of their interview a reserve student will be allocated
• All group work sessions will be restricted to 20 students. Should more than 20 students attend a session additional support staff will be provided by the school

Activities delivered by SCC

• Deliver impartial information advice and guidance to young people on the school roll.
• One to one discussions, drop in sessions, group work, assemblies and presentations delivered in school or at other locations.
• From the pupil audit and in collaboration with the school identify students for targeted advice and support at key transition times, to include care experienced young people young people with special educational needs & disabilities and young people who are disengaged from school.
• Tracking all students in Years 11/12/13 to ensure they have an offer of learning and taking action, with the LA and other partners, for those students who do not have an offer  
• Identification of young people’s intended destinations in Year 11 and the compilation and presentation of the Year 11 activity survey. 
• To work intensively with those young people with no destination and to support that young person during and after year 11 transition to engage in further education, employment or training.
• Attendance at additional school events through mutual agreement
• Supporting parents and carers to understand the range of options available
• Providing consultancy and support to help schools develop and achieve their Gatsby Benchmarks.
• Ensure the school is kept up to date with policy and changes in the CEIAG sector.
• Training and development sessions for all staff supporting students with Careers Education and progression 
• Careers advice and guidance support for existing staff for their own continuous personal development

What does the school provide?

To contribute to an effective information, advice, guidance and support service, the school has specific responsibilities to:

• Appoint a Careers Lead with responsibility for Careers Information Advice and Guidance within the school, to act as the single point of contact.
• Meet with Careers Adviser regularly to discuss updates and planning.
• Provide appropriate accommodation for the Careers Adviser which is confidential and accessible to pupils. The room will need access to a telephone and the internet.
• Provide a programme of careers education that complies with the Careers Strategy and Meets the Gatsby Benchmarks.
• Make available information on students through SIMs or equivalent, to include academic performance, predicted grades and appropriate and relevant personal information. 
• Tracking all students in Year 11 to ensure they have an offer of learning and taking action with the LA and other partners, for those students who do not have an offer. 
• Share information on students regarding their destination after completing Year 11. 
• Make available information on new starters and leavers from the school.
• Provide information on those with significant non-attendance and also those who are out of school for extended periods due to other reasons.
• Identify young people who would benefit from additional support, including those young people with special educational needs.
• Actively involve the Careers Adviser in appropriate meetings, such as pastoral support, in-school review, year heads, governors’, tutors’ and relevant parents’ evenings. 
• Establish and maintain an appropriate Information Centre or Information Point that is accessible to students 

Provision: Careers adviser

Costs

• 18 days: £5,256
• 36 days: £10,512
• Daily rate: £292

Service Contacts

The contact is Beth Bray

Post 16 manager
Southampton City Council
Civic Centre
Southampton

Tel: 023 8091 7746

Email: beth.bray@southampton.gov.uk

Performance Review

We monitor the performance of the service by reviewing individual interventions, evaluation of any training delivered and seeking regular feedback from pupils, parents and school staff and other professionals. 

The service provision will be quality assured, and performance managed by the Post 16 manager.

Any queries, concerns, or complaints about the overall operation of the scheme should be addressed to Beth Bray – Post 16 manager, at the above address