North East Secondary Schools and FE Colleges invited to join award-winning careers programme

A free-of-charge structured careers programme – Building My Skills – is returning for the 2026-27 academic year, and there are 100 places up for grabs for schools and further education establishments across the North East and Tees Valley.

Brought to you by the North East Chamber of Commerce, BUSINESSiQ and Esh Group, the award-winning employability initiative connects businesses and schools as part of the timetable.

Through structured workshops, business role models help students understand the world of work, build employability skills, explore local opportunities, and make informed career choices. Businesses lift the lid on their sector, raise aspirations, and introduce students to lesser-known career paths that are available to them locally.

The programme – first launched in 2009 by Esh Group, Arup and Ryder Architecture – has engaged with more than 60,000 students over the years and Esh’s Corporate Affairs and Social Value Director, Darush Dodds, has been at the helm since the beginning.

He said: “A lack of awareness of careers and sectors remains a key barrier to success. Young people can’t be what they can’t see so, working together Esh, BUSINESSiQ and the Chamber hope that careers sessions directly with students will mean employers can bring their sector to life with passion and heart, helping to inspire young people while building a stronger, more sustainable future workforce.”

Delivered to students in Years 9-12 as part of the timetable, the programme helps schools to easily plan their careers education for the academic year. It is aligned to the Gatsby benchmarks and supports OFSTED expectations.

“The recently unveiled Milburn Interim Report (Young People and Work) positions quality school-business engagement as ‘a critical missing part of the system’,” Darush added. “Growing Building My Skills couldn’t have come at a more pivotal time.”

All participating schools will receive four workshops – each delivered by a different company – in an assembly format to a whole year group. Students will then complete a ‘checkpoint’ after each workshop and those who complete all checkpoints are invited to a regional mock interview day.

John McCabe, Chief Executive of the North East Chamber of Commerce, said: “The North East has enormous potential, but we will only fulfil it if young people can see the opportunities available to them and understand the range of careers they can build here.

“That is why Building My Skills matters. By bringing employers directly into schools, the programme helps young people make the link between what they are learning now and the jobs, sectors and businesses shaping our region’s future.”

BUSINESSiQ Editor Mike Hughes sees this as a chance to make a real difference in the region. He said: “This is an opportunity we have been looking for for some time. As part of The Northern Echo, we don’t believe in just reporting what others are doing to build a bright future for the North East – we want to be a driver of that success as well.”