Hi
I am a teacher of year 12 and 13 students some of who are looking for some IT Work Experience. Can any restarters take on student volunteers or is there an alternative? Due to the recent pandemic many companies are not interested.
If you can help please get back to me with your responses or ideas.
Thank you.
Yetunde
Hi Yetunde,
Welcome 
What area of the country are your students located in?
As regards IT work experience, The Restart Project is more about hardware more than software, so I’m not sure how much, for example, mending a kettle, would add to their IT skills.
If they’re interested in technology more generally, then I’m sure that some groups would be happy to have them pair up with experienced Restarters at Restart Parties, but that’s not really the same as giving them work experience. Also, there may be safeguarding issues: not all Restarters have DBS checks, although some do.
If you’re in the London area and you’re looking for professional repair businesses to take them on then maybe the Repair Directory would be useful?
I hope some other people can chip in with other creative suggestions.
Good luck!
Dave.
Hi Yetunde,
Welcome to the community!
Sorry to hear that many companies aren’t interested in offering work experience placements. At Restart, we have occasionally worked with volunteers to support our office functions, but I don’t believe we’ve ever officially offered work experience. @frances might be able to confirm or correct that though.
It depends a little on the kind of work experience you’re hoping to find. We’re a small team and many of us work remotely, so it might be tricky to offer office-related IT experience.
As Dave said, Restart Parties and other repair events can be good places to get some hands-on experience, particularly with repairing hardware (though at most events, any students under 18 may need to be accompanied by a parent or guardian).
Did you have a particular kind of opportunity in mind?
All the best
James
Hi there,
To reiterate what James said, we’re not really set up to offer office based work experience with what tasks / projects we could offer a student to make it a worthwhile and enjoyable experience.
Sorry we’re not able to help on this occasion, and good luck with your hunt for opportunities.
best wishes, Frances