The Gatsby Benchmarks are eight standards for good careers guidance in secondary schools, made statutory for all secondary schools and colleges in England from 2018. They set out what pupils should experience — from employer visits to individual guidance interviews — so every young person can access high-quality careers information, not only those whose families can provide it at home.
What are the eight Gatsby Benchmarks?
Each benchmark describes a specific type of careers activity or provision that schools should put in place.
| Benchmark | What it requires |
|---|---|
| 1. A stable careers programme | A written programme published on the school's website, reviewed regularly, with a named Careers Leader |
| 2. Learning from career and labour market information | Pupils understand how the labour market works locally and nationally, including which sectors are growing |
| 3. Addressing the needs of each pupil | Careers guidance is tailored to individual circumstances, including gender, background, and SEND needs |
| 4. Linking curriculum learning to careers | Teachers across all subjects actively connect their subject to careers and show where it leads |
| 5. Encounters with employers and employees | Every pupil has at least two meaningful encounters with employers each year from Year 7 to Year 13 |
| 6. Experiences of workplaces | Every pupil has at least one workplace visit before leaving secondary school |
| 7. Encounters with further and higher education | Every pupil encounters post-16 and post-18 education providers, including colleges, apprenticeship providers, and universities |
| 8. Personal guidance | Every pupil has at least one face-to-face or video careers guidance interview with a trained adviser by Year 11, and another by Year 13 if they stay in education |
Are schools legally required to follow the Gatsby Benchmarks?
Yes. Since 2018, the Careers Guidance and Access for Education and Training Providers statutory guidance (updated periodically by the DfE) requires all secondary schools and colleges in England to work towards and ultimately meet all eight Gatsby Benchmarks. Schools are required to:
- Appoint a named Careers Leader responsible for the programme
- Publish their careers programme on the school website
- Measure their progress against the benchmarks using the Compass+ self-evaluation tool (provided by the Careers and Enterprise Company)
Ofsted inspectors also review careers provision as part of the Personal Development judgement area during inspections, so failing to implement the benchmarks has real consequences for a school's inspection outcome.
What is the Baker Clause?
The Baker Clause (named after former Education Secretary Lord Baker) is a specific legal duty introduced in 2018 alongside the Gatsby Benchmarks. It requires all secondary schools to allow providers of further education, apprenticeships, and technical education to speak to Year 8 to Year 13 pupils at least once per school year. Schools cannot refuse this access.
The Baker Clause addresses a concern that many school sixth forms were reluctant to allow FE colleges or apprenticeship providers to speak to Year 11 pupils, potentially steering them towards sixth form when another route might have been more suitable. Schools must have a published policy on how they will facilitate this access.
How does careers guidance link to the school curriculum?
Benchmark 4 — linking curriculum learning to careers — is one of the most ambitious because it requires every subject teacher to demonstrate where their subject connects to real jobs and industries. This is sometimes called "careers through the curriculum."
In practice, this might look like:
- A Physics teacher showing where mechanics connects to engineering roles
- An English teacher linking analytical writing skills to careers in law, journalism, or marketing
- A Food Technology teacher bringing in a professional chef for a lesson
- A Mathematics teacher explaining the statistical skills used in data science
Schools vary significantly in how well they implement this benchmark. It requires sustained professional development for subject teachers, not just the Careers Leader.
What personal guidance should every pupil receive?
Benchmark 8 requires every pupil to have at least one careers guidance interview — typically a face-to-face conversation with a qualified careers adviser — by the end of Year 11. This is a structured, individual conversation about the pupil's interests, strengths, and post-16 options, not a group assembly or a leaflet.
For parents of Year 10 and 11 pupils: if your child has not been offered a careers guidance interview by the spring of Year 11, ask the school's Careers Leader directly. This is a statutory entitlement, not an optional extra, and pupils who most need individual guidance — those without family experience of the routes available — often receive it least reliably.
How can parents use the Gatsby Benchmarks to evaluate a school?
Before choosing a secondary school, or at any parents' evening, you can ask:
- "Does the school publish its careers programme on the website?"
- "How many employer encounters will my child have each year?"
- "When will my child have an individual careers guidance interview?"
- "How does the school facilitate visits from FE and apprenticeship providers?"
Schools that are meeting the benchmarks will be able to answer these questions specifically. Schools that cannot may be relying on ad-hoc careers provision rather than a structured programme.
Frequently asked questions
What is the Careers and Enterprise Company?
The Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC) is a government-backed organisation that supports schools and colleges in implementing the Gatsby Benchmarks. It provides the Compass+ self-evaluation tool, a network of enterprise co-ordinators who work with schools, and funding for employer engagement activities. Schools report their Gatsby benchmark progress to the CEC annually.
Does careers education affect GCSE and A-Level choices?
It should — Benchmark 3 specifically requires careers guidance to inform option choices. A pupil who understands what GCSE and A-Level subjects lead to in terms of careers and university courses is better placed to make option decisions in Year 9. Schools with strong benchmark provision often integrate a specific careers strand into the Year 9 options process, including employer talks relevant to different subject pathways.
Is careers guidance different for pupils with SEND?
Yes — Benchmark 3 explicitly requires provision to be personalised to individual needs, and for pupils with SEND this includes working with the SENCO to consider how SEND may affect career planning and what adaptations are needed. Pupils with an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) are entitled to careers guidance as part of their EHCP review process from Year 9.
My child's school seems to focus only on university — is that a Gatsby Benchmark failure?
It may be. Benchmarks 7 and the Baker Clause both require schools to provide balanced information about FE, apprenticeships, and technical education routes — not just universities. A school whose careers provision consists primarily of university open days and Russell Group talks is not meeting the benchmarks, because it is not addressing the full range of options available to its pupils.
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