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Pupil Futures

Table of Contents Results and Destinations Data Welcome from the Director of Futures Meet the Team Our Approach The Gatsby Benchmarks A Stable Careers Programme The Shell King’s Compass Middle School Curriculum Sixth Form Futures Learning from Labour Market Information Addressing the Needs of Each Pupil Linking Curriculum Learning to Careers Encounters with Employers and Employees Experiences of Workplaces Encounters with Further and Higher Education Personal Guidance Further Information

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Results & Destinations Each year, King’s pupils progress to an outstanding range of universities in the United Kingdom and around the world. Their destinations reflect not only exceptional academic attainment, but also the individuality and breadth of ambition fostered through a King’s education. The majority of pupils take up places at leading Russell Group universities, with a significant number progressing to Oxford or Cambridge. Others pursue specialist or international pathways at institutions of global distinction. Across disciplines as diverse as Engineering, Architecture, Medicine, Law, the Arts, and the Humanities, King’s leavers demonstrate both intellectual curiosity and a readiness to contribute to the wider world.

In 2026, 18 pupils pursued studies overseas at a range of institutions, including leading US destinations like Brown and NYU, alongside other globally elite institutions like Bocconi. 6

86% 95% of UK university places were Russell Group

of pupils placed at their choice by midday on A-Level Results Day

of pupils accepted offers from Oxbridge

Welcome from the Director of Futures

The character of the Futures department at King’s is a perfect fit for this unique and storied school. Above all, our Futures provision is truly child-centred, with a focus on coaching techniques and direct support from Futures experts for every single child. This is evident at every stage from the Shell Compass programme through to our Higher Education provision in the Sixth Form. In defining our approach to Futures, I highlight the following key principles: • We focus on building Future skills which are transferable and intrinsically human, making our young people invaluable in the workplaces of tomorrow.

• We support pupils to strive for ambitious Future pathways, including a hugely popular “Oxbridge+” programme, which prepares pupils to apply for the most competitive UK courses, and expert support with ambitious US applications. • We foster discussion around ethical Futures through initiatives such as Green Careers Week and the thought provoking speakers invited to the annual Futures Fair. On leaving King’s, pupils know who they are, understand the future pathways available to them, and have confidence that they are equipped to take their next steps. Ms Hannah Warwicker Director of Pupil Futures

• We urge our pupils to explore Futures off the beaten track by developing an inquisitive approach and seeking out opportunities which are a perfect fit for their unique skills and interests, including lesser-known subjects and a diverse range of global destinations. • We celebrate creative Futures with strong rates of progression to highly aspirational arts and humanities courses, conservatoires and performing arts.

Meet the Team

Director of Pupil Futures

Ms Hannah Warwicker

Dr David Perkins US Higher Education Advisor

Ms Stephanie Clive Deputy Director of Pupil Futures Events and Communication

Dr Tom Watts International Higher Education Coordinator

Mr James Green Pupil Futures Coordinator UK STEM applications

Our Approach

The working world our pupils will enter looks very different from the one their parents knew. The OECD and the World Economic Forum both describe a 21st Century labour market in which the most durable assets are not narrow technical qualifications but human capabilities: critical thinking, creativity, communication, collaboration, adaptability, and the judgement to navigate complexity. These are precisely the qualities a King’s education has always cultivated. Our task in Futures is to make them conscious, articulate, and portable. We also recognise that the path from school no longer runs in a straight line. For the great majority of our pupils, a leading university remains the natural and aspirational next step, and our results speak to how well we prepare them for it. But we would be doing our

young people a disservice if we presented university as the only worthwhile destination. Degree apprenticeships, conservatoires, art foundation courses, gap-year programmes, entrepreneurial ventures, and international study each offer genuine routes to a flourishing life, and each is taken seriously here. Our approach, therefore, is deliberately bespoke. Rather than moving pupils through a single funnel, we help each one understand their own strengths, interests, and ambitions, and then map the manifold pathways that might suit them. This begins in Shell with the King’s Compass, continues through the Middle School curriculum, and culminates in the individually tailored guidance of the Sixth Form. At every stage, the aim is the same: that pupils leave King’s knowing who they are, understanding the range of futures open to them, and equipped with the confidence and skills to pursue any of them.

The Gatsby Benchmarks

At King’s we use the nationally recognised and evidencebased Gatsby framework when designing and delivering our Futures provision.

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A Stable Careers Programme

Learning from Labour Market Information

Addressing the Needs of Each Young Person

Linking Curriculum Learning to Careers

Encounters with Employers and Employees

Experiences of Workplaces

Encounters with Further and Higher Education

Personal Guidance

More info here

1 A Stable Careers Programme The King’s School encourages every learner to explore future aspirations with confidence. Pupils are supported to have broad horizons, and to focus on the skills they need to realise their goals. Through the Shell King’s Compass programme, the Middle School Futures Curriculum, and the Higher Education programme for the Sixth Form, pupils are supported from their first entry to the school with an engaging careers programme which helps them to thrive within and beyond school.

The Shell King’s Compass The Shell King’s Compass is a structured introduction to personal development and future planning, designed specifically for pupils in their first year at King’s. It brings the school’s rich tradition of co-curricular and super-curricular life into a clear framework, helping pupils recognise that the skills they build across the school: communication, collaboration, resilience, selfawareness, are the very qualities that will shape their futures. Delivered in partnership with Infinity Coaching, the Compass adapts a proven, human-centred coaching model for the school setting. It gives pupils a practical way to navigate the years ahead: not a fixed map towards a single destination, but a set of tools for understanding themselves and finding their own direction with purpose and confidence.

The Shell King’s Compass Over the course of the year, pupils use the Compass to reflect on who they are and how they engage with the world. They consider their strengths and interests, how they communicate and work alongside others, how they respond to challenge and uncertainty, and what genuinely motivates them. Familiar experiences, a CCF exercise, a rehearsal with the Crypt Choir, a moment of teamwork on the sports field, become opportunities to name and understand the skills being developed, and to see how these connect to life beyond King’s.

The Intention The aim is to make personal development purposeful and conscious rather than incidental. Shell pupils arrive full of energy and curiosity about the world, and the Compass channels that enthusiasm: it helps them feel excited rather than anxious about the future and gives them a shared language for talking about growth, ambition, and possibility. Above all, it is designed to be engaging and enjoyable, a programme pupils look forward to, not one they endure.

Setting pupils up for Futures from Remove onwards The Shell King’s Compass lays the foundation for the school’s wider Futures programme in Remove and beyond. Having spent a year building self-knowledge and a vocabulary for their strengths, pupils move into the following years ready to make more informed choices about subjects, activities, university, and career pathways. The Compass ensures that when those decisions arrive, pupils approach them from a position of confidence and self-understanding, equipped not just with skills but with the mindset to keep growing at every stage of their King’s journey and well beyond it.

Middle School Curriculum Remove Curriculum In Remove and Fifth, pupils continue to hone their pathways and build on their skills. The Futures curriculum is delivered via mentoring and headline events. Autumn and Lent: Pupils continue to log into Unifrog (the industry leading information site for future skills and options) with their mentors, undertaking quizzes and searching the library. They also continue to use and develop the skills they encountered in Shell from the King’s Compass. February: Pupils learn about apprenticeship opportunities as part of National Apprenticeship Week. March: Pupils prepare for, undertake, and reflect on two Workplace Visits, giving them first-hand experience of the world of work. April: Pupils prepare for, undertake and reflect on their visit to the Futures Fair. This involves the chance to visit career-specific breakout sessions and interact with over 30 institutions, including top universities from home and abroad, gap year companies, and apprenticeship providers. June: Pupils undertake professional development sessions in mentor time, including those on labour market analysis and professional

Fifth Curriculum Autumn: Pupils begin to hone in on their A-Level choices, using Unifrog and advice from the Futures and 6th Form teams. November: Pupils undertake professional development sessions in mentor time on 18+ decisions, CV writing, and digital professionalism. April: Pupils prepare for, undertake and reflect on their visit to the Futures Fair. This involves the chance to interact with over 30 institutions including top universities from home and abroad, gap year companies, and apprenticeship providers. June: Pupils receive Futures briefings before the summer as part of their Sixth Form taster sessions.

‘The best thing about the Futures Fair was learning about universities that weren’t previously on my radar.’ Fifth Pupil feedback from the Futures Fair 2026

‘The breakout rooms with the specific subject areas were extremely valuable, talking one to one with people in professions helped motivate me.’ 6b Pupil feedback from the Futures Fair 2026

‘The most useful thing for me was having sessions where we discussed uni applications for our specific subjects.’ 6b Pupil

‘It was so helpful having a timeline to make sure students are on track.’ 6b Pupil

‘I found the Oxbridge talk very useful.’ 6b Pupil

Sixth Form Futures Collaboration between the Futures Department, Sixth Form Team, and well-trained Sixth Form mentors ensure our Sixth Formers are supported every step of the way. From shortlisting higher education options together on Unifrog, to examining the detail on gap years and degree apprenticeships, we provide expert guidance for pupils to hone their options. The Futures Fair, with a dedicated 6b programme, devotes a full day to thinking about this, with many experts and institutions on hand to answer questions. We also run regular briefings, UniPrep sessions delivered by subject experts, and weekly Oxbridge Plus meetings for those making competitive applications, in addition to our Oxbridge Information talk for pupils and parents. For subjects like Architecture and Law, we engage trusted external mentors to assist with strategyand preparation. Similarly, we work

with trusted partners in some specialist areas such as international applications. At our Application Day, 6b pupils are fully supported to begin applying to higher education, from the granular detail on visas to the shape of their personal statements. Applications are then reviewed continually by our team of experts as pupils move into their 6a year, while those going for the most competitive institutions receive help with submitted work, entrance tests, and interview preparation, including the opportunity to sign up for our Mock Interview afternoon. Our friendly drop-in sessions at the Futures department, King’s specific Futures Chatbot, and online UniChats programme with OKS all ensure pupils have as much information as possible at their disposal throughout the process from 6b all the way through to becoming an OKS. For more detailed information on Sixth Form support and timelines please scan the QR code at the end of this booklet.

2 Learning from Labour Market Information Our pupils are explicitly taught in mentor sessions what labour market information is and how to analyse it. They are invited to consider future skills and skills gaps from their very first sessions with us on the Shell King’s Compass. In addition to receiving personalised guidance and information from Unifrog on the world of work, they also have a number of opportunities to glean labour market information from real employers, such as at the Futures Fair, Remove Workplace Visits, and Economics Futures events.

‘I almost felt too well-prepared! The emphasis the Oxbridge Plus programme put on wider reading helped me so much when I arrived at university.’ OKS at Cambridge University

3 Addressing the Needs of Each Pupil From the outset of our King’s Compass programme, pupils are invited to begin exploring their individual needs, preferences, and aspirations. This is further developed and supported through our mentoring programme, which focuses on 1:1 coaching. Our Higher Education programme for the Sixth Form also provide a considerable amount of 1:1 time, including via the mentor, Uniprep teachers, and directly from advisors in the Futures department.

4 Linking Curriculum Learning to Careers At King’s, we understand that careers must be woven through the curriculum rather than considered an adjunct, which is why you will see Futures featured on all of our Schemes of Work. We focus in particular on the skills that each course can provide for our pupils’ futures, demonstrating links from the syllabus directly to the workplace.

‘Having succeeded and failed to get jobs following the interview stage, I’d be more than happy to provide tips and guidance on interview preparation.’ Freddie Clough Co-Founder and Director of Warrior Sq., and OKS Mentor

‘I enjoyed talking to people whose jobs I didn’t know existed!’ Remove Pupil

‘At the healthcare talk I went to, I realised that there are a lot of different paths I can follow.’ 6b Pupil

5 Encounters with Employers and Employees King’s pupils encounter a wide range of employers and employees via our annual Futures Fair, including those working and hiring in fields such as Engineering, Architecture, Law, Academia, Performing Arts, Design, and more. Pupils are also given opportunities to engage with our broad OKS network, both at panels and events and as part of the OKS mentoring programme which they can sign up to from 6a.

6 Experiences of Workplaces Remove Workplace Visits ensure that encounters can happen in the workplace context, giving pupils invaluable insight into the ways real businesses function. Pupils are supported when applying for work experience both in person and virtually, and receive advice on CVs and vocational interviews from our Director of HR during their journey through the school, to ensure that they find the best opportunities in the workplace.

‘The CV and job interview talk was really helpful as I have an upcoming interview.’ 6b Pupil

‘Through the Futures Fair, I first fully understood that there are more paths available than just university.’ Remove Pupil

‘At this year’s Futures Fair, I discovered a course I wanted to do at LSE, learned how to write a CV, and found out more about the requirements for Oxbridge.’ 6b Pupil

‘I found the chats with each individual university really helpful as it allowed you to ask niche questions.’ 6b Pupil

7 Encounters with Further & Higher Education Our annual Futures Fair is attended by all year groups, who have the opportunity to speak to over 30 higher education providers, gap year schemes, and other institutions from the UK and abroad to help inform their decisions. Encounters with these stallholders early can make a real difference to our pupils’ plans and strategy for the future. Pupils are given a chance to prepare in mentor time ahead of the event, ensuring they do their research and plan their approaches with questions in hand. They are then given time to reflect on their experiences and next steps with their mentors, supporting them to make the most of this opportunity.

8 Personal Guidance Through our 1:1 coaching both in the Futures department and with mentors, pupils develop goals specific to them, details of which are logged in their individual OneNote. This includes discussion on subject choices for GCSE and A-Level, higher education options, gap year considerations, and future career prospects. In the Sixth Form, we assist all pupils in creating suitable shortlists for higher education via Unifrog, talking through details and preferences with them. We aim to ensure that all pupils have aspirational yet realistic choices ahead of them.

‘My friends at university who have come from other schools are envious of how well-supported I was through this process.’ OKS

For more detailed information about Pupil Futures at King’s, please scan this link. 39