Introduction to the core transferable skills

Core transferable skills, sometimes referred to as soft skills, are increasingly in demand by employers. These skills can be applied in any industry and almost any job role. It’s important that young people develop and practise core transferable skills as they move through education in order to be well prepared for the workplace. The world of work is constantly changing but these skills are likely to continue to be utilised, even in future roles which may not exist yet.

The core transferable skills toolkit focuses on seven core transferable skills. These lessons can be delivered flexibly as a standalone session to focus on one skill, or as part of a series in any order. It’s part of the Barclays LifeSkills suite of career-related learning activities for primary school pupils (ages 7-11 in P4-7 or Years 3-6) to teach children about key skills for the workplace and  explore a range of careers and industries. The discussion prompts in each lesson align with the Skills Builder Universal Framework, showing young people how to build essential skills for life.

The core transferable skills outlined in this toolkit are:

• Listening and speaking (communication)
• Problem solving
• Creativity
• Staying positive (resilience)
• Aiming high (proactivity)
• Leadership
• Adaptability

Every lesson has supporting presentation slides and includes an overview of each particular skill, an engaging practical activity, a written case study and BBC Bitesize film case study which showcases the skill in action. We have outlined in the lesson plan how activities can be differentiated depending on your class’s age and ability levels.

By starting to develop core transferable skills now your pupils can build the foundations for being able to apply these skills in future careers, they could also help progression within education and other life areas. You can also download the core transferable skills tracker to provide pupils with a place to keep track of the skills they have developed in these sessions, and put a plan in place for how they can practise them further.