CII to offer thousands of children Virtual Work Experience
New initiative will raise awareness of careers in insurance and financial planning professions
Publication date:
02 August 2023
Last updated:
15 December 2023
The CII has launched a new, free initiative to help grow talent for the insurance and financial planning professions. The programme will see 1000s of young people aged 13+ from schools, colleges and universities across the UK given the opportunity to experience working in the sectors, building an understanding of the skills and characteristics needed to be successful and helping them to make informed decisions about their potential future career paths.
The CII has partnered with Springpod to create the first wave of experiences, which will be focused on the insurance sector this autumn, with a personal finance programme to follow in early 2024. Hundreds of students have already signed-up, with an ambition to reach 3000 students over the next four years.
Claire Bishop, Career Partner Manager at the CII said: “This is an exciting new initiative that will bring the insurance and personal finance professions to life for 1000s of young people. Virtual work experience takes away the barriers traditionally experienced by many young people when they are considering a profession or work experience. Giving many more young people, from diverse backgrounds, access to this programme for free will empower the next generation to take their future into their own hands, and to widen the talent pool for our professions.”
Participants in the scheme will gain a foundational knowledge of the insurance sector and discover what roles are available and which skills they will need to succeed. The programme runs 'live', and includes virtual modules, quizzes, activities, webinars, discussions and roundtables.
The new initiative adds to an already rich set of activities undertaken by the CII and Personal Finance Society to develop talent for the insurance and financial planning professions, including through My Personal Finance Skills, which reached 25,000 children last year, as well as involvement in apprenticeships, T-levels, and the delivery of our flagship Next Gen scheme.
Welcoming the announcement, CII President, Russell Higginbotham, said: “I am delighted that the CII has launched this exciting new initiative, which builds on the great success of other programmes and activities that our membership bodies already run to encourage young people to join the insurance and personal finance professions. I hope as many schools and colleges as possible take the opportunity to give their students this terrific experience, which could help some young people discover a rewarding career path that they might not have previously considered.”
The application deadline for the first cohort is 18 October 2023. More information can be found at Springpod.