INTRODUCTION

PwC

In July 2020, PwC and Entrepreneurs in Action ran a challenge for a group of Year 12 students. The students were tasked with developing ideas around what could be done to support young people (16 – 24 years old) in terms of education, employment or training in the wake of COVID-19.

The programme was run entirely virtually, with this being one of the first online innovation programmes run in the UK in response to COVID-19 school closures.

The students’ insights and solutions were presented to a PwC Panel from their local public services and cities and sustainability teams, who work with local authorities across the country.

HIGHLIGHTS

PwC Opportunities

Maximising local assets

The ability to utilise existing local assets left underutilised by COVID-19 to facilitate employment workshops, training opportunities and support for job applications.

Gen Z Diversity Project | Investment Management Industry

Identifying the root cause

The need to provide solutions targeted at the root cause of disengagement with employment or training opportunities, for example tailored support for teenage parents who are not in employment, education or training.

PwC Support

Targeted approach

The need to prioritise mental health support and to de-stigmatise seeking out support.

REFLECTIONS

Claire Monkhouse, Manager, Sustainability & Climate Change, PwC

I was really impressed with the high quality of the presentations – the materials and how they were presented. The team worked really well together to share the different elements of presenting and were really slick in their handovers. It was also really impressive that they ran a survey in this short time to bring in more views from young people, and that they integrated the hot-off-the-press Chancellor announcement into their thinking.

 

 

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Andy Theedom, Director, PwC

This was an exhilarating experience that really impressed me. We can sometimes be guilty of not fully exploring the views of young people in the work we do – so this was a timely reminder of that. It would be really useful to think about how we could more regularly engage with young people on the topics we are working on.

 

Al Kennedy, Headteacher, Trinity School

The Classroom to Boardroom programme has been an excellent experience for our Lower Sixth students at Trinity School for several years. They get a real challenge to address, often with a socio-economic focus, and they have to work hard as a team to provide well-crafted solutions for a professional audience. This year PwC provided rare insight into the workings of a large, leading company, which motivated our students further. The skills and the confidence they developed were obvious in the final presentations to a wide range of PwC employees. This is a winner for increasing employability and motivation.

 

PARTICIPANTS

It was good to develop my thinking and have to understand why things occur, not just learning facts.

It was very different working on a task like this as it was nothing like school. I enjoyed learning how to work on a business task in a team and it gave me a greater insight into what work life could be like.

The best parts were working as part of a team online, coming up with viable solutions to the problems posed and being able to present to PwC at the end of the week.