Unlock Talent and Boost Business Impact with Employer Standards

What if the next generation of skilled employees was already within your reach and all it took was a better way to connect with them?

The Employer Standards for careers education, developed by The Careers & Enterprise Company, gives businesses practical tools to build meaningful connections with schools, colleges and young people. Instead of guessing what works, this evidence-based framework helps organisations plan, measure and improve their engagement, turning early outreach into real business advantage.

What are the Employer Standards?

The Employer Standards are a free, online framework and self-assessment tool that help organisations understand and improve how they engage with schools, colleges and young people.

They allow employers to:

• Review and benchmark their current activity
• Identify clear areas for improvement
• Align engagement with wider business objectives

You can also see how your organisation compares with peers nationally, regionally and by sector, offering insight that’s both practical and strategic.

Proven impact, growing participation

More than 1,390 employers have already completed the self-assessment, joining hundreds of organisations across the country supporting the 96% of schools and colleges connected to Careers Hubs.

Employers taking part report real benefits, including:

• Stronger talent pipelines
• More diverse candidates
• A clearer, more credible employer brand

In fact, 81% of employers say working with schools and colleges is helping them build future talent, with even greater impact for those who engage consistently.

The Employer Standards help turn good intentions into measurable outcomes that benefit your business as well as your community. By embedding structured employer-education engagement into your strategy, you improve young people’s career readiness, enhance your employer brand, accelerate recruitment, and contribute tangibly to the local workforce.

Getting involved is simple. Complete a 25-minute self-assessment, receive tailored feedback and recommendations, and access practical resources and case studies to guide improvement.

Find out more about Employer Standards here and read the full report: Employer Standards 2024/25 – The business case for engaging in careers education here.