Barnton Primary School kids glimpse 'careers of the future'

Barnton Primary School's career-based ‘Inspire Day’ on Monday, July 10, also saw a nurse, a midwife, an equestrian scientist, a hairdresser, a baker, an engineer, a zoo keeper, a news reporter, police and firefighters, professional footballers from Chester FC, and many more talk about what life is like in their chosen jobs to children as young as six.

The aim of the day was to open up the children's thinking to a wide range of careers, including some possibly ideal for them, but which they otherwise might never have heard of.

The whole-day event was organised by Barnton Primary assistant head teacher, Becky Coates, who tried to include professionals with many kinds of skills, reflecting a wide range of different personalities.

Firefighters from Cheshire Fire and Rescue Service wowed the kids with their fire engine (Image: Barnton Primary School)

Becky said: “The Inspire Day is all about opening our children’s eyes to the careers of the future.

“We also think it’s important for the children to realise what kinds of professions are out there, and to show them career paths they’ve perhaps never even heard of.

“They know they could go into the police or the fire service, which is great. But do they know what it would take to be a videogames developer or an equestrian scientist?

“The more careers they’re aware of, the better their chances of learning how they can transfer their interests and skills to do a job they will love.

“For example, if a child loves horses, they might want to become a horse-riding instructor, but they don’t have to be. There are so many other related professions he or she could go into. That’s something we hope we’ve been able to demonstrate today.

Jet2 pilot, Jacob Lowe, showed kids the sky's the limit when it comes to thinking about careers (Image: Barnton Primary School)

“We’ve also tried to break down some of the common gender stereotypes. For example, the builder who came into school is a woman, and the hairdresser is a man.

“We’ve also welcomed an engineer, an accountant, and a firefighter - all women too.”

Becky said most of the children, if asked about what they wanted to do when they grow up, would probably say something which is their hobby.

The children learning what it takes to deliver a baby, thanks to midwife Abby Thomson (Image: Barnton Primary School)

She hopes the Inspire Day will make them reflect on other sides of their personalities, such as whether they enjoy making someone feel happy.

“If that were the case, perhaps that child would be best suited to one of the caring professions”, she added.

“Or if they love seeing new places, perhaps they would most enjoy being a pilot.

“We're immensely grateful to the 22 different professions represented. 

"The vast majority of the these people gave up there own time to be here. We can't thank them enough.”