Gloucestershire’s largest ever educational outreach event comes to Cheltenham Racecourse

C2S Educational Outreach Live, which is part of Circle2Success, follows a recent report revealing that only 49% of GCSE aged young people had undertaken some form of work experience in the 2023/24 academic year. While this was slightly higher in the South West at 59.4%, it was also reported that only 2% of pupils nationally have been in work experience for two or more weeks. The Labour Party’s election manifesto pledged to guarantee two weeks’ worth of quality work experience for every young person and turbocharge careers advice in the UK. 

Supported by Gloucestershire County Council and local MP Max Wilkinson, C2S Educational Outreach Live, which took place at Cheltenham Racecourse, gave businesses in the region the opportunity to network with pupils on future career opportunities, T-Levels, apprenticeships and jobs. Pupils also benefited from a series of workshops to support continued learning, including financial wellbeing, CV writing, career support, mental health and wellbeing, speed networking and first aid training. 

Angela Edwards, Co-founder & Director of C2S, said: “Labour’s pledge to guarantee two weeks of work experience to every young person at secondary school is ambitious, but necessary. The UK business sector needs an influx of new talent, and if we don’t provide obvious pathways into professions for our young people, it will be difficult for the economy to advance over the next 10 to 15 years. This is why we have worked closely with businesses in the Gloucestershire regions, many of whom are members of C2S, to showcase to pupils what fantastic employers and future career opportunities are available on their doorstep, as well as give them the chance to win a work experience placement. These range from hands-on experiences with local manufacturer Renishaw supporting the STEM subjects, to learning about technology firm L3 Harris Technology, who will be delivering a ScratchVHDL digital logic design experience for 16 students at their school.” 

This year the educational outreach event also incorporated leading regional cyber cluster, CyNam’s EmPowerCyber24 event, designed to attract more pupils, mainly girls, into a career in cyber.  

Angela continued: “This event is one of several impactful initiatives led by C2S dedicated to helping businesses achieve sustainable growth. Through this program we aim to support and motivate the next generation of talent, increase talent retention, and attract students from outside into Gloucestershire. Business success depends on access to the right talent, and by investing in young people today, we’re creating an environment that attracts inward investment and drives long-term prosperity for the region.” 

Miss. Lucy Blick, Associate Assistant Headteacher at Gloucester Academy, said: “We were absolutely thrilled to be given the opportunity by C2S to attend the Education Outreach Live event. Our students are incredibly excited to have met a wide range of employers and learn about a diverse range of career opportunities and local companies. Opportunities like this are really rare and provide young people with the knowledge and confidence to make informed decisions about their next steps – therefore we are so grateful for this event!” 

Local MP, Max Wilkinson, said: “Helping young people gain the skills and confidence they need to explore the jobs market is so important – not just for their future as individuals, but for the wellbeing of our economy today. I’m so proud of the work local businesses do to achieve this aim, right across all the sectors that benefit our local economy. That’s why I am delighted to support the educational outreach event on the 27th of November at Cheltenham racecourse. I’d like to offer particular thanks to C2S The Growth Consultancy for their hard work in organising this fantastic initiative. This sort of event strengthens education and industry, while building a brighter future for our community and strengthening our economy.” 

Ian Menzies, General Manager at L3Harris Technologies said: “As the proud headline sponsor of C2S Educational Outreach Live, L3Harris Technologies fully supports the goals of the event, from helping students gain a better understanding of the workplace to increasing awareness of early careers opportunities within the region. The event offers hundreds of students from a diverse range of local schools the rare chance to network with different businesses from across the community. As a company with multiple apprenticeship and graduate opportunities, this provides us with a crucial touchpoint to effectively engage and connect with a broad array of young Gloucestershire talent. I look forward to working closely with C2S and our fellow event partners to inspire the next generation, support their transition into the workplace and foster future talent.” 

Sponsors for the event include L3 Harris Technology, CyNam and Caring for Communities and people. C2S will be hosting next Year’s Educational Outreach Live on 26th November 2025.