... get involved in Corporate Parenting and Mentoring
It's our responsibility to create and sustain good working relationships with employers large and small. Companies may not always be successful in their first attempts to employ some more demanding young people but it is our job to ensure they retain their enthusiasm and are willing to try again. We find that many of them have found themselves and their employees enriched by this new experience.
If this involves a looked-after child who is about to leave or just left school, it will normally involve a 12-week trial period unpaid, followed by a 12-month fully-paid full-time contract. Older care leavers would normally go straight into the fixed-term contract. During this time on corporate parenting the young person and the company would receive job support whilst new, regular mentoring visits and an anytime call-out service if there were problems.
We strongly advise all our employers or trainers to choose a mentor for the young person. It is his or her job to advise, listen to and support the new worker. We normally hand out the attached Guide to Mentoring in Corporate Parenting to assist.
