Island Careers Partnership (ICP) is proud to support National Careers Week (NCW) 2026, taking place from 2–7 March 2026, bringing a strong focus to careers education on the Isle of Wight.
With this year’s theme, “Own Your Future,” National Careers Week highlights the importance of helping young people developing the knowledge, skills and confidence to make informed decisions about their next steps. For the Isle of Wight, this is particularly significant as we continue to strengthen links between education, local employers and future workforce opportunities.
Supporting Careers Education on the Isle of Wight
High-quality careers education on the Isle of Wight is essential to raising aspirations and supporting long-term economic growth. Young people across the Island benefit from opportunities in key sectors including:
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Health and social care
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Engineering and advanced manufacturing
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Marine and maritime industries
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Construction and the built environment
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Tourism and hospitality
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Green and sustainable industries
National Careers Week provides schools, employers and training providers with free, high-quality resources to enhance careers programmes and support achievement of the Gatsby Benchmarks.
The NCW 2026 Resource Booklet includes:
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Gatsby-aligned lesson plans and classroom activities
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Access to the National Virtual Careers Fair (no registration required)
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Sector spotlights in health, engineering, veterinary, STEM and green careers
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Dedicated guidance for parents and carers
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Downloadable posters, quizzes and student worksheets
These resources complement the ongoing work of Island Careers Partnership to strengthen careers guidance and employer engagement across Island schools.
Making Work Experience Meaningful
As part of National Careers Week 2026, Island Careers Partnership will attend the ‘Making Meaningful Work Experience’ event hosted by Solent Careers Hub on Friday 6 March.
The event focuses on developing high-quality, inclusive and impactful work experience placements that equip young people with essential employability skills. Strengthening work experience provision remains a key priority for the Isle of Wight, ensuring students gain real insight into the workplace while supporting local workforce development.
Island employers and partners are encouraged to attend and be part of shaping the future of work experience across the region.
Calling on Isle of Wight Businesses to Become Workplace Partners
As part of our commitment to strengthening employer engagement, Island Careers Partnership is calling on businesses across the Isle of Wight to show their support by becoming Workplace Partners via our website.
Becoming a Workplace Partner is simple. All we need is:
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A contact name
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Your organisation name
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A point of contact
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A brief outline of how your workplace could support careers education
This could include:
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Attending careers fairs
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Recruiting apprentices
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Offering work experience placements
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Hosting insight days
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Supporting schools with mock interview scenarios
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Providing workplace talks or industry insights
Whether you can offer one activity or several, all support is welcome. Every employer contribution helps broaden horizons, raise aspirations and strengthen the Island’s future workforce.