Jumping into June with the Education Team

By Zaina Ali and Hayley Turner-Mcintyre, Education team Project Managers

Summer may just be getting started, but for ELBA’s Education team the season has already kicked off at full speed. We have worked hard to collaborate with our corporate partners to deliver a packed schedule of career events for students across east London. From interactive skills workshops to inspiring career insight days, we have been creating meaningful opportunities that help young people explore their futures. Here is a look at what we have achieved so far.

Confidence and Communication Workshop at Royal Docks Academy 

Towards the end of May, the team delivered a confidence and communication skills workshop to the year 7 and 8 cohort at RDA with the support of corporate volunteers from various companies. This session aimed to help prepare for life beyond school, focussing on three main objectives:

• Build self-esteem by encouraging students to come out of their comfort zone
• Enhance verbal and non-verbal communication such as posture, body language and effective speaking and listening
• Preparation for the workplace through developing essential soft skills such as collaborative working and logical speaking in presentations

As part of the workshop, students were tasked to debate against their peers in relation to topics about the education system. They did a fantastic job delivering coherent points and really made an effort to be as confident as can be! 

Sustainability Workshop with Sarah Bonnell School

The students spent the morning networking with volunteers from various departments whilst also hearing from employees about their experiences coming into JLL from different entry routes, which included (but not limited to) graduate and apprenticeship roles. Following on from this, the students were very lucky to have a tour of the office and see what a ‘day in the life’ looked like for a JLL employee.

After lunch, they were then set the task of designing their own sustainable office, taking into consideration the United Nations’ 17 Sustainable Development Goals and also taking inspiration from the sustainable components of the Water Street Building. We were so impressed by the different designs the students produced and their reasonings behind it. They not only considered the physical impact of their buildings on the environment but also how sustainable it would be for the business and the people that worked there.

London Metropolitan University and SMBC Mentoring

Students from London Metropolitan University and mentors from SMBC came together recently to celebrate the end of the Mentoring Programme. Through five dedicated mentoring sessions over a course of five months, 25 SMBC volunteers provided invaluable support and guidance to London Metropolitan University students, aiding their professional development and preparing them for the world of work.

The celebration took place at the SMBC office, where students began with a tour of the building. This was followed by a panel discussion featuring this year’s mentors and a current placement student at SMBC. They shared insights into their career journeys, explored the diverse aspects of banking, dispelled common myths within the industry, and offered practical advice for students looking to take their next steps into graduate employment. The event concluded with a professional networking session between students and mentors.

Congratulations to the London Metropolitan University students for completing the mentoring programme, and a huge thank you to the SMBC mentors for their unwavering support!

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