Tomorrow's Enterprise Foundation > World of Work Week
World of Work Week
A high-impact alternative to traditional work experience placements.
World of Work Week
World of Work Week is an inclusive approach to careers education - one that prepares young people for the realities of the workplace while strengthening connections between education, business, and communities.
Instead of a single, observation-based experience with a single employer, World of Work Week brings multiple business functions together to create a fully immersive experience for groups of students that reflects genuine business processes.
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World of Work Week enables young people to access a range of meaningful experiences and a greater understanding of various job roles. Our collaborative approach reduces the time, safeguarding, and administrative barriers associated with traditional work experiences for businesses and schools alike.
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Why have one work experience when you can have a world of them?
Key benefits for students
Gain exposure to a wide range of employers, industries, and job roles
Develop essential employability skills, including teamwork, communication, and problem solving
Build confidence and a clearer understanding of career pathways
Meaningful experience they can reference in CVs, UCAS statements, or apprenticeship applications
Key benefits for schools
A high quality, modern alternative to traditional work experience placements
A scalable model that can include whole cohorts, not just individual students
Clear alignment with Gatsby Benchmarks 4, 5, and 6
Reduced administrative and placement finding burden
Stronger, more diverse relationships with local and national employers
How the programme works
World of Work Week is designed to be delivered over the course of one full week - ideally your school's work experience week - but it can also be delivered over three or four days.
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Groups of up to 60 students work from the premises of one or more local employers and are tasked to create solutions to a real-world, local issue.
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All students receive a full day of professional skills coaching.
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Volunteers from local businesses deliver interactive half-day masterclasses linked to the task.
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Students apply what they've learned across the sessions to build a compelling and innovative business case.
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The programme culminates in student presentations and networking event, showcasing their ideas, learning, and skills.
This structure mirrors real workplace collaboration, consultation and problem solving, and provides students with a realistic insight into professional working environments.
Why this matters?
Young people today face increasing barriers to accessing meaningful work experience. Traditional one-to-one placements are becoming harder to secure and employers are increasingly struggling to build effective systems to engage with local students.
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49% of Year 10 pupils are completing any form of work experience. Participation is even lower among students with SEND, those from low-income families, and those from underrepresented communities.
47% of 18–24-year-olds feel ready for work when they leave education. At the same time, employers face significant challenges in offering placements, including safeguarding requirements, limited staff capacity, and the growth of hybrid working.
45% of employers report that they did not provide any work-experience opportunities in the past year due to time and resource constraints.
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World of Work Week is an ideal solution for increasing work experience engagement for students and provides measurable and manageable solutions for employers.
What schools need to know
World of Work Week is managed and delivered by the team at Tomorrow's Enterprise Foundation. All we need from your school is:
A group of between 20 and 60 students (depending on capacity)
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Up to one week in the timetable
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​​​​A staff member to be present (no prep or delivery needed)
We provide everything else: planning, materials, delivery, and DBS-checked facilitators.
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Need help identifying the right students? We’ll support you and can even deliver an assembly to help generate interest.
We aim to work with students who will benefit most from a high-impact and fully-guided work experience placement - particularly those who might face disproportionate barriers to employment in the future.
Join us!
By taking part in World of Work Week, you will be contributing to a forward thinking, inclusive approach to careers education - one that prepares young people for the realities of the workplace while strengthening connections between education, business, and communities.
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We welcome involvement from businesses, schools, funders, and strategic partners who share a commitment to improving employability outcomes for young people.
Get in touch to find out how you can be involved.
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