Career +
Career + consists of Career Ax!s and In Business – both of which were a huge success.
During Career Ax!s, 9 inspirational speakers came to talk about their personal careers and the challenges they’ve overcome, to get them to the positions they’re in today.
Our In business challenge saw children given a collective £75 of seed capital with which to start a profitable business. Their ideas showcase the business talent which we have within our school.
Nine inspirational speakers visited our school to share their personal career journeys with the children. They spoke openly about the challenges and setbacks they faced, explaining how determination, resilience, and self-belief helped them overcome difficulties along the way. Their stories inspired pupils to think positively about their own futures and understand that challenges can be important steps toward success.
Our speakers included:
- Norman Cook (AKA Fat Boy Slim) joined the children for an inspiring and highly personal conversation, taking them through his career.
- Cherise Currie – Professional makeup artist and BBC Glow up finalist (Series 7)
- Lyndsey Hermann- Head of Community Programmes at Brighton & Hove Albion Foundation
- Peter Deadman – Cofounder of Infinity Foods, renowned author and qigong teacher
- Will Bayley – Rio 2026 Paralympic gold medallist and Strictly Come Dancing contestant
- Juliet Sargeant – Award winning garden designer, author and regular contributor to variety of BBC and ITV gardening programmes
- Leading figure from the world of music
- Marc Author – Campaigner, co-founder of All Party Parliamentary Dog Welfare group and renowned vet
- JP Omari – Founder of Streetfunk, a multi award-winning street dance school. JP is a HipHop dancer, teacher, coach and choreographer
- Kiersten Simmons – Hospital Doctor and Medical Researcher NHS Sussex. Previously volunteer for MSF (Medecins Sans Frontieres) in Zimbabwe
Our Business Challenge for Years 5 and 6 encourages pupils to explore future career ideas while developing confidence, creativity, and resilience. Children were given £75 of start-up capital and challenged to create their own businesses with the aim of making a profit. Pupils worked in teams to plan ideas, manage budgets, make decisions, and market their products, gaining hands-on experience of how real businesses operate. The project developed creativity, teamwork, and financial awareness, while helping students understand the rewards and responsibilities of running a business.
Students learnt how businesses work, face real-world style challenges, and practise problem-solving when things don’t go to plan. The challenge helps children understand that setbacks are a normal part of success—and that perseverance, teamwork, and a positive mindset can help them overcome difficulties and achieve their goals.
The businesses they created were:
Sunny Sips – a fresh lemonade business.
Happy Jars – a way to bring happiness to everyday lives. Jars sold to local businesses containing positive phrases for customers to read.
Golden Pastries – a limited edition run of morning pastries.
Crumbs ‘n Cream – a yummy milkshake brand.
Happy Snaps – a photobooth experience. 1 polaroid camera + lots of props = very happy customers who take their photo away then and there.
