Work Experience and Progression Mentor

Derby-College; East Midlands; On-site; GBP 28,000 - 29,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

34 days holiday

LGPS pension with 19.9% employer cont.

Nursery discount

TOTUM / Tastecard discounts

Rail discounts

Microsoft Office + 1TB OneDrive

SENSI salon discount

Legal/Conveyancing discounts

Eye tests with Specsavers

Employee Assistance Programme

Cycle to Work Scheme

Job summary

Derby College Group (DCG) is seeking a motivated Work Experience and Progression Mentor to support students at the Joseph Wright Centre campus. You will help learners gain valuable work experience, develop employability skills, and progress into employment, apprenticeships or further study.

You will build strong partnerships with employers, curriculum teams and student support services to create meaningful workplace opportunities and positive outcomes for learners' futures.

Qualifications

• Experience with work experience programmes and post-16 education.
• Knowledge of labour market trends and careers development.
• Ability to build partnerships with employers and curriculum teams.

Responsibilities

• Develop industry partnerships with employers and sponsors.
• Create meaningful work placements and progression opportunities.
• Support students at every stage of their journey and build confidence.
• Collaborate with curriculum teams to align opportunities with courses.
• Promote inclusive practice and positive destinations for learners.

Skills

Industry partnerships

Employability skills

Communication

Organisational skills

Stakeholder management

Job description

Optimistic – Equity – Kindness – Innovation – Collaboration

Derby College Group (DCG) is seeking a motivated and enthusiastic Work Experience and Progression Mentor to join our team. Based at our Joseph Wright Centre campus, you’ll play a key role in helping students gain valuable work experience, develop employability skills, and progress into positive destinations. This is a rewarding opportunity to work closely with students, employers, and curriculum teams to create meaningful industry experiences that prepare students for successful futures.

The Opportunity

This is an exciting opportunity to make a real difference to students' futures by helping them gain valuable work experience and prepare for successful progression into employment, apprenticeships, or further study. Working closely with curriculum teams, employers, and student support services, you will develop strong industry partnerships and create meaningful workplace opportunities. This varied and rewarding role allows you to support students at every stage of their journey, helping them build confidence, develop employability skills, and achieve positive outcomes for their future careers.

About You

You’ll be a highly organised and proactive individual with excellent communication and interpersonal skills, capable of building positive relationships with students, employers, and colleagues. With knowledge of work experience programmes, post-16 education, labour market trends, and careers development, you’ll be passionate about supporting young people to achieve their goals. You’ll be confident managing multiple priorities, meeting deadlines, and delivering positive outcomes. Experience of working with employers or supporting student engagement would be advantageous, alongside a flexible and collaborative approach to work.

The Benefits

• Salary of £27,765 per annum
• 34 days holiday (inclusive of 8 bank holidays and 6 closure days where these occur)
• Membership of the Local Government Pension Scheme with a 19.9% employer contribution
• Discount at our Ofsted rated ‘Outstanding’ onsite Little Explorers Nursery
• TOTUM discount card (aka NUS/Student Discount Card) / discounted Tastecard
• Discounts on East Midlands Railway Annual Season Tickets
• Microsoft Office for FREE with 1TB of OneDrive cloud storage
• Discount on treatments at SENSI our onsite salon at the Roundhouse
• Flint Bishop Solicitors – free will writing, 1-hour free consultation with family department, 10% discount on Conveyancing services
• Continuousdevelopment and progression opportunities
• Free eye tests with Specsavers
• Our new and enhanced Employee Assistance Programme provides 24/7 confidential support for wellbeing, mental health, and life matters.
• Cycle to Work Scheme

Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

We are committed to creating an inclusive workplace which promotes and values diversity. We welcome all talent irrespective of age, disability, neuro-divergence, sex, gender identity and gender expression, race, ethnicity, religion, belief, sexual orientation or other personal circumstances. We ensure that our policies and procedures treat all applicants consistently and fairly during our recruitment process.

If you have any questions about the recruitment process, reasonable adjustments, or about the role, please contact us at [e-mail].

Safeguarding statement

DCG is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children, young people and vulnerable adults. This post is exempt from the Rehabilitation of Offenders Act 1974 and all successful candidates will be subject to an enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check. An online search of the preferred candidate is also completed to help to identify any incidents or issues that have happened, and are publicly available online, which the college may need to explore with the candidate further. Please be advised that it is an offence to apply for this position if you are barred from engaging in regulated activity relevant to children.

Please note that unfortunately,this role is not eligible for sponsorship under the UK Visas & Immigration points-based immigration system.Applications are welcome from candidates who do not currently have the right to work in the UK but would be eligible to obtain a valid visa via another route.Please consult theHome Office website for further information.