Employers
Making volunteering easy for employers and professional bodies
Inspiring the Future is a free, secure, online service to engage with schools. Personal details are always protected. It allows employers to participate in a nationally coordinated volunteering programme with schools and colleges around the country.
Young people really want to hear first hand from people at all levels who can answer their questions about the jobs they do and how they got them. A two hour commitment every year can make a big difference.
Find out more about Career insight talks and Enterprise talks.
Employees register, and we connect them to schools and colleges. Organisations can choose to ask their staff to volunteer near their work address or particular target areas, or nearer home to volunteer in their communities. Matching is done using Local Authorities/Boroughs.
Schools and colleges search for volunteers and make contact with them to invite them to take part in activities, rather than volunteers looking for opportunities.
Registration is open now for schools, colleges and employers. Inspiring the Future will be publically launched in July 2012, with schools in some areas having access to volunteers from May. This is being done in stages to allow a critical mass of volunteers to build before we begin making connections with schools and colleges.
How do employers get involved?
If you already have an employee volunteering scheme, this service can help you develop it, and if your organisation is new to volunteering in education this is an easy way to make a start.
If you are an employer and wish to sign up on behalf of a large number of staff, please use the 'Register as an employer' link on the homepage or above. Once approved, we are able to provide reports to employers with over 250 staff on how many volunteers have signed up, and their interactions with schools and colleges. We do this by sending you a dedicated registration link to promote to your employees.
If you wish to register as a volunteer in your own right or as part of a smaller organisation, please use the Register Now link on the Volunteers page.
If you would like to talk to someone about Inspiring the Future, please email us at enquiries@inspiringthefuture.org
Benefits for employers and employees
Schools and college value the involvement of employers, and young people place a great degree of importance on meeting people from the world of work. Equally, employers and employees benefit from:
Increasing awareness of specific jobs, professions and sectors
- Getting young people interested in your job, profession or sector can help develop the talent pool and ensure a skilled workforce in the future. It helps employers with recruitment shortages to find the right set of skills, attitudes and interests.
- Going into schools and colleges can help dispel myths about jobs and professions, and importantly, ensure that young people have a realistic view of the world of work and the routes into it.
- It is a means of supporting corporate social responsibility and offers a gateway to working with schools and colleges across the country.
Staff development opportunities
- It benefits employers because it offers excellent staff development opportunities, especially for younger staff looking to improve personal effectiveness and communication skills. Young people are a receptive, enthusiastic and inquisitive audience so speaking to them can help refine your presentation skills. They may well ask unexpected questions.
Who we are working with
Inspiring the Future is supported by all the main employer and workforce representative bodies including: the British Chambers of Commerce, Business in the Community, Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, Confederation of British Industry, Federation of Small Business, Institute of Directors and the Trades Union Congress.
STEMNET Ambassadors programme
STEMNET (the Science, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics Network) can help you to motivate your employees and inspire business professionals of the future.
Find out more about STEM Ambassadors
Volunteer as a school governor
School Governance is a unique volunteering opportunity, combining chances to help give children the best possible start in life with developing valuable interpersonal and technical skills.
Get in touch with the School Governors One-Stop-Shop
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