First Secondary School Becomes LCS Accredtited

In a ‘world first’ Amersham Secondary School in Buckinghamshie, UK, has become LCS accredited

ABOVE: LCS Director Simon Elias, Headteacher Sharon Jarrett, pupils Cyrus Hassan & Orlando Doyle

The LCS is excited to announce the accreditation of Amersham Secondary School, which offers pupils the opportunity to acquire critical business related skills and helps equip them with relevant capabilities for future employment. For the LCS, it means its framework is being applied outside of a traditional work environment for the first time,  demonstrating the flexibility of the LCS qualifications model.

“What is particularly gratifying for me is to see the LCS syllabus, which is rooted in scientific thinking, being taught in a school environment”

Simon Elias, LCS Director

LCS News Announcement – Amersham School Oct 2022 >>> 

Applying the LCS

The School went through the standard process to become accredited, whereby it demonstrated its programme aligned to the LCS framework and delivered the appropriate knowledge and practice outcomes. The initiative is the brainchild of Teacher of Science, Mark Boswell, who describes the accreditation journey:

“We started with a small number of students to trial the delivery, refine the training content and, most importantly, to see if it could successfully be delivered in a school environment. Happily, the answer was yes!

The school now has plans to introduce it into the wider sixth form, starting with another small cohort (10) this year and hopefully, in future, to give all sixth form students a chance to achieve a qualification. We will be working on a number of projects to review and improve existing school processes, such as keeping in touch with our Alumni and the management and handling of petty cash. Completion of a project will enable students to gain a level 1b certification. This requires the knowledge they gain to be put in to practice in a real-world scenario.

Ultimately, we are here to enable our students to achieve at the highest level possible and be able to follow the dreams they have for their own futures. To have this qualification at such a young age should prove extremely beneficial when it comes to taking their next and future steps, such as UCAS applications and job interviews. It should really help our students differentiate themselves in an extremely competitive environment.“

Six former Cyrus Hassan is one of the first to go through the programme and says:

“It is a massive benefit to anyone to have the LCS certification, as it is a sought after credential by many businesses today. Companies such as HSBC, Lloyds Bank, Aviva, Barclays, BBC, PWC and the NHS actively look for people with an LCS qualification.

Not only does the qualification help boost your CV but it helps you to develop your own critical thinking and problem-solving skills. For me, to have this qualification at such a young age is also extremely beneficial when it comes to UCAS applications and job interviews. It helps me stand out from the crowd.”

Benefits

For the School, the benefits of accreditation include:

• Offering a unique additional capability to pupils
• Differentiation of its offering for six formers
• A route to build relationships and collaboration with industry and commerce
• Improving pupils’ employability

For the pupils, the benefits of certification include:

• Acquire skills and knowledge of direct relevance for today’s workfoce
• Helping to build self-confidence and employment readiness
• Better employability
• Developing key workforce related skills

Headteacher, Sharon Jarrett, comments on the School’s achievement:

“We pride ourselves on our ability to provide each and every one of our students with a first class and personalised education, which enables them to flourish and succeed, in all areas of school life. We strive to create a supportive and structured learning environment in which individuals are challenged to realise their full potential and encouraged to be ambitious for their futures. We believe it is of the utmost importance for students to become self-confident, positive and enquiring learners and this vision underpins everything we do.

Our students are encouraged to become well-rounded and broad-minded individuals and we support this through a diverse range of extra-curricular activities. As a Business and Enterprise specialist we focus on the development of skills which inspire and motivate our students to become successful and confident adults.

Achieving the LCS accreditation aligns perfectly with both our specialism and our aspirations for our students. We thank Simon, and all at LCS, for their vision and support in enabling us to provide such a valuable opportunity to our wonderful students”

Forthcoming Webinar

The LCS is planning a webinar in February 2023 that will discuss the Amersham LCS case and explore collaboration opportunities between the school and the business community. Check out the LCS webinar page for more information.

Gallery

Cyrus Hassan accepts his Certifcate of Lean Competency

The Headteacher accepts the School’s Accredited Certifier certificate

Orlando Doyle accepts his Certifcate of Lean Competency