Teaching life-skills and character has always been one of the forefront objectives of education, but often these skills are forgotten about amid the quantitative measures of academic performance.

Recently, however, life-skills have been pushed back into the limelight after it was ruled that PSHE will be made a compulsory part of the national curriculum.

Now more than ever, developing a thriving enrichment programme is an essential part of promoting employability, academic attainment and teaching young people the skills they need to make good choices. These skills have benefits well beyond the classroom. 

A tweet from Tim Peake, the British astronaut living and working on board the International Space Station for six months, summed up perfectly the need for both character skills and work experience. 

He wrote: “Character is important – a CV may get you the interview, but character will get you the job.”

A successful enrichment programme will promote the life-skills needed for everyday life, develop “soft skills” that employers and universities look for, while also giving pupils the opportunity to find out more about their interests and passions.

Enrichment programs can not only change the entire course of a pupil’s life, but they can attract more families to your school and build your reputation in the community.

Put simply, a generous enrichment program can improve all aspects of pupils and develop their abilities quite rapidly in specific subjects. It can open up new opportunities and broaden perspectives. The programs can also create lifelong friendships, spark new ideas, and develop confidence.