Skills & Equalities Minister Nick Boles MP, paid a visit yesterday (2^nd December) to the City of London Academy (Southwark). As well as meeting with pupils and teachers, he was given a tour of the Academy’s facilities by Principal Richard Bannister and members of the senior leadership team.

The Academy, located in the heart of Bermondsey, is sponsored by the City of London Corporation and has specialisms in business and enterprise, as well as sport. Established in 2003 and serving the local community, the Academy has enjoyed recent examination success, with students achieving the best ever A Level results in 2014.

The Minister (who is MP for Grantham and Stamford) recently spoke about the need for employers to offer more traineeships and high-quality work experience, so young people can develop valuable skills that benefit their future careers. The Academy regularly hosts speakers from the business community to share expertise with students as well as arranging work experience placements in City firms. The Minister also had the opportunity to meet with students and sit in on a psychology lesson.

Speaking of his visit, the Skills & Equalities Minister Nick Boles, said: “A key part of this Government’s plan for education is ensuring that schools are properly preparing all young people for the world of work, and the City of London Academy (Southwark) is a great example of a school which is doing precisely that. I was delighted to see so many motivated pupils being given such excellent support as they look towards the future.”

Richard Bannister, Principal of the City of London Academy (Southwark), said “We were delighted to welcome Nick Boles to the City of London Academy (Southwark) and for him to see education on the impact of equalities issues in practice. The students found the visit extremely useful and enjoyed sharing their views on equalities with Nick Boles.”

Also accompanying the Minister was Catherine McGuinness, Chair of the Education Board of the Academy’s sponsors, the City of London Corporation. She said: “As a sponsor of the academy, we are focused on providing pupils with opportunities that enrich their school experience. We connect the pupils with City businesses, whether it is through apprenticeships, work placements or mentoring. We know this exposure to employability and vocational skills is something that the Minster is a passionate about, so it was great to share with him some of the strong examples of this type of learning.”