With a government target of half of students entering higher education, how do we prepare young people to succeed in their profession, whatever path they choose?

The Educators: Building skills for life @SusanJamesRelly @UniofOxford, @BecomingXteam & @CapitaPlc 

“If I were to redesign the education system, I’d definitely bring in more vocational aspects to it, more play for young people and time for imaginations to run wild, try to develop a curriculum that was less assessment focused, more focused on being able to just be.”

In this episode we’re joined by Dr Susan James Relly, Director of the Skills, Knowledge and Organisational Performance research centre at the University of Oxford, who reveals the power of surrounding yourself with people who inspire and encourage you to ‘be better’.

With a government target of half of students entering higher education, how do we prepare young people to succeed in their profession, whatever path they choose?

With a clear focus on the importance of vocational skills, Susan discusses the value of practical learning and how role models can help young people reconsider what they are capable of. 

Dr Susan James Relly: Building skills for life 

Produced by BecomingX and Capita, the series presents their views on the urgent actions needed to create a UK education system that is fit for the future.

Through the interviews, four key priorities emerged to help ensure that a post lockdown education system can provide every young person with the opportunity to realise their potential.

At a time of unprecedented disruption to education, BecomingX and Capita interviewed eight of the UK’s top educators and commentators to explore how the education system can create a brighter future for the UK’s youth.

They collectively identified four key priorities to ensure every young person can realise their potential:

1. The need to ‘level up’ in education
2. The importance of personal development, skills and creativity
3. The need to invest in technology to drive efficiency and enhance quality
4. The necessity for greater mental health and wellbeing support

‘The Educators’ is produced by Capita and BecomingX, a learning and development organisation co-founded by adventurer and TV presenter Bear Grylls, as part of a new partnership between the two organisations to unlock potential through education and lifelong learning.

Those interviewed, included, for example Andria Zafirakou MBE, winner of the global teacher prize 2018, Lord Dr Michael Hastings CBE Chancellor of Regents University and John Murphy, CEO of Oasis Community Learning.

The three-year partnership will see Capita sponsor ‘BecomingX Education’, a new digital personal development solution, for 100 UK schools, helping students to raise their aspirations and build the skills and confidence to succeed.

BecomingX is a learning and development organisation that aims to create a world where everyone can realise their potential. We work with the world’s most inspiring and iconic people to understand the personal attributes that underpin high performance and to help demystify what it really takes to succeed. Combining our in-depth understanding of high performance and our expertise in personal development, we help education providers and companies to build the skills, knowledge, attitudes and relationships needed to succeed. BecomingX is a ‘B Corporation’, certified to meet the highest standards of social and environmental impact and is the highest scoring education company in the UK.

Capita is a consulting, transformation and digital services business and a leading supplier of strategic solutions to the education sector. Every day our 61,000 colleagues help millions of people, by delivering innovative solutions to transform and simplify the connections between businesses and customers, governments and citizens. We partner with clients and provide the insight and cutting-edge technologies that give time back, allowing them to focus on what they do best and making people’s lives easier and simpler. We operate in the UK, Europe, India and South Africa – and across six divisions: Customer Management; Government Services; People Solutions; Software; Specialist Services; and Technology Solutions.