Celebrating Opportunity and Inclusion with The Castle School’s World of Work Event

I was absolutely delighted to visit The Castle School in Newbury for their annual World of Work (WOW) celebration. This fantastic event brings together local employers and our wider community to support young people with additional needs.

The Castle School, on Monks Lane, does incredible work providing specialist education for children with complex additional needs. Through their World of Work programme, they team up with local businesses to offer students meaningful work experience. It’s about so much more than just placements, it’s about helping these young people build skills, confidence, and an understanding of life beyond the classroom.

I was inspired by the dedication of everyone involved. This kind of programme doesn’t happen by accident, it takes care, commitment, and a huge amount of work behind the scenes. I want to say a heartfelt thank you to all of the employers who have offered their time, energy, and opportunities to the students. Your support is invaluable and makes such a difference.

This year, local businesses and organisations taking part included Promotrade, The Wasing Estate, Greenham Control Tower, The Furniture Project, The Podium Café, Falkland Vets, St Joseph’s Primary School, The Ugly Duckling, Welford Park, Newbury Racecourse, Donnington Valley, Sainsbury’s, Little Quavers Music, Hobbycraft, and Swings and Smiles.

I was especially pleased to see awards given to those who’ve gone above and beyond. Congratulations to The National Trust (for Sandham Memorial Chapel), West Berks Food Bank, The Wasing Estate, Bellrock at West Berkshire Community Hospital (who offered the first ever hospital environment placement), and Dingley’s Promise (for their work with early years SEND). A particularly moving moment was seeing Chris Cable from Waitrose recognised for supporting a young man into employment, a role that started with work experience and has lasted for 11 years. That’s what this programme is all about.

Thank you to the staff and team at the Castle School for everything you do to make this programme a success.