Career Guidance (Hansard, 21 January 2004)

§ Charles Hendry
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills if he will make a statement on the place of career guidance within the provision by the Connexions Service. [149511]

§ Margaret Hodge
[holding answer 20 January 2004]: Career guidance is a key part of the work of Connexions. All 13–19 year olds in England have access to support on making learning and career choices from Connexions. The level of support each individual 1314W receives is differentiated according to need. Support is provided in a range of ways, including through: one to one and group sessions with a Connexions Personal Adviser; Connexions Direct—a telephone helpline, e-mail and web-chat facility, open from 8am to 2am, 365 days a year; and the careers information materials available in Connexions Resource centres in schools, colleges and Connexions one-stop shops.

§ Charles Hendry
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills whether it is his policy to ensure that(a) access to and (b) provision of careers guidance and advice is equal between young people (i) in education and (ii) not in employment and training. [149514]

§ Margaret Hodge
All young people can access Connexions services on an equal basis through their schools and colleges, one-stop shops and Connexions Direct. Provision of careers advice and guidance—as with all the services provided by Connexions—is differentiated according to need. This applies to all young people, irrespective of whether or not they are currently in education, employment or training.

§ Charles Hendry
To ask the Secretary of State for Education and Skills what qualifications are required of Connexions personal advisers who are expected to provide careers guidance and advice. [149515]

§ Margaret Hodge
[holding answer 20 January 2004]: The Secretary of State recognises three specific qualifications for Connexions Personal Advisers who give in depth career guidance to young people in the statutory client group; these are the Qualification in Careers Guidance (QCG), NVQ Level 4 in Advice and Guidance (including specified units) and the Diploma in Careers Guidance (DCG). DfES provides funding to support the initial training of careers guidance professionals to help encourage people from a wide range of backgrounds to move into the role of specialist career guidance practitioner.