Frequently asked questions

For whom are the placements intended?
Working where?
How many days at the work placement?
Staying where?
How do the students travel?
Who supervises the trip?
What about health and safety / insurance?
Deadline for applications
When is the remainder of the money due?
What then?
Which city will I go to if I go on a work experience trip?
How do you decide where I will be going?
Will I be in the same city as my friends ?
What sort of work will I be expected to do?
How many other students will be going?
Some useful links

For whom are the placements intended?

European Work Experience Places are open to 6th Formers (Year 12 & 13) studying a foreign language to A, AS or similar level. Individuals or groups of sixth form students can apply for a one week programme in the country of their choice.

Working where?

We recruit students from a wide range of sixth forms and colleges and place them in:

restaurants
shops
hotels
offices
public services: libraries, schools, etc...

in various areas of France, Germany, Spain and Italy.

Students will be asked to indicate preference from sixteen work categories. Students will be allocated a placement on the basis of their choices, availability and all the information provided to us.

Students will be allocated to a town/city on the basis of availability. Students from the same school or college who apply for the same course will normally be placed in the same city.

How many days at the work placement?

Students will normally spend 5 days* at their work placement.
*Please note that due to Bank Holidays, Monday closure or other constraints some students may work less than 5 days.

Staying where?

Students are offered two accommodation options for their stay:

OPTION 1: Hotel/ Youth Hostel style. Half Board
For the Hotel/ Youth Hostel options students are usually accommodated in hotels (2/3 star) in Spain and Italy, and Youth Hostel accommodation in France & Germany (or 2 star hotels). Where we use Youth Centre accommodation it is of a very high standard, normally with 2-4 students to a room.
OPTION 2: Host Family Half Board
The Host Family option is only available in France at the moment and involves students staying with French families, often with children of their own.

How do the students travel?

Coach Option:
Coach transportation to the various locations is normally provided via pick-ups at motorway services in England* along the M1/M6/M4 corridors. Where groups of more than 10 are involved we may be able to offer door-step pick-ups.
Air Option:
Normally flights will be from one of the London Airports* and students are responsible for making their own travel arrangements to the appropriate UK airports. Coach transfers to and from resort are included in the package.

*Except were Scottish departures are shown

Who supervises the trip?

Acorn send Adult Supervisors in the ratio of approximately 1-15 (usually language teachers or native speakers) to accompany the group and offer guidance & support where needed. The students' own teachers are not required to accompany the trip or take part in any way. Students apply directly to Acorn and are the responsibility of Acorn Staff.

In order to assist and support Group Leaders we ask all students and parents/guardians to sign a Code of Conduct form and send a refundable damage/ behaviour deposit of £50. The deposit is held at the office and will be returned within 1 month of the end of the trip providing the Code of Conduct has been adhered to (A specimen is available in the download centre).

What about health and safety / insurance?

All employers are visited by our staff and premises are inspected for Health & Safety and compliance with local insurance, fire and employment regulations. Fully comprehensive travel and medical insurance is included in the cost of the trip and covers participants for cancellation, property loss etc..., subject to the policy limitations (A full copy of the policy wording is sent to all successful applicants).

Deadline for applications

There is an Early-Bird Discount of £20 In order to qualify you must apply before the early bird deadline*.
The final deadline for booking is:

the end of November for Work placements in February and at Easter
the end of March for Work placements in July and October.
Some later applications may be possible if there are spaces available (ask us), but book early to avoid disappointment.

*Bookings received before the end of October for travel in the following calendar year qualify for a £20 Early Bird Discount.

When is the remainder of the money due?

For Coach option:
10-12 weeks before departure (the actual date will be advised upon receipt of the booking form and deposit).

For Flights option:
10-15 weeks before departure (the actual date will be advised upon receipt of the booking form and deposit).

What then?

Upon receipt of your Booking Form we will send you an acknowledgment and a Full Application Form to complete. This will give us & your future work experience employer details of your studies, interests, future employment aspirations & previous work experience (if any). Newsletters will then keep successful applicants up-to-date with the preparations they need to make & give other information relating to the trip.

Which city will I go to if I go on a work experience trip?

This does not get announced until between 6 and 10 weeks before the trip is due to depart. Destinations have included Burgos, Santander (Spain), Lido di Jesolo (Italy), Avignon, Strasbourg, Caen, Rouen (France by coach or air), Münster, Köln, Koblenz (Germany by coach or air).

How do you decide where I will be going?

A number of factors are taken into consideration when we pick which city you will visit. Firstly how many students have booked and if there is availability in an appropriate hotel and restaurant for the week of the trip. Secondly for coach trips we need to plan a coach route which would be suitable for as many students as possible (usually going down either the M1 or M6 corridor). For air trips, availability of seats is also an important factor.

Will I be in the same city as my friends?

Students from the same school who book at the same time to go on the same trip will normally by placed in the same city. If you wish to be in the same city as someone who does not go to your school, please write an explanatory note with your booking form.

What sort of work will I be expected to do?

When we receive your booking form, you are sent an application form which asks for a lot of information about yourself. On the back is a list of work areas, 16 different ones in total. We ask you to put your top 8 in order of preference from 1 (your top choice) to 8. You will always be given a placement from these choices (unless your application form is received too late for us to action them, in which case you will be allocated a placement according to availability). Usually you will be given something from your top 3. These choices are broad categories such as “Art/History” which could include a work placement in a museum or in an art gallery shop for example or “Tourism” which might be a placement in an airport or travel agency. You will also be asked to write a letter to your prospective employer in the language of the destination country. All of the information given on the application form and in the letter is taken into consideration when we choose your placement, as is the level of your language skills as outlined by your teacher on the booking form.

How many other students will be going?

This varies considerably from one trip to another; as few as 9 or 10 to as many as 45 could be in the same city as you! They come from all over the country so you can expect to make lots of interesting new friends as well as learn a lot about a different culture and improve your language skills.

Some useful links

Advice on travelling abroad: www.fco.gov.uk/knowbeforeyougo
Information on heatlh requirements / vaccinations: www.doh.gov.uk (for ~~E111~~ EHIC application click here)
Information on passports: www.ukpa.gov.uk (for group passports download click here)
General travel information: www.wtgonline.com
School travel information: www.schoolzone.co.uk