Request a speaker for your school

Our Bank Ambassadors can help your students learn about careers, the economy, and what the Bank of England does

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What we offer

A programme of free talks for state secondary schools and colleges in the UK. These talks are delivered by Bank Ambassadors who are volunteers that work at the Bank of England in a wide range of roles. 

Bank Ambassadors can talk to students about the work of the Bank, how their role supports the Bank’s mission, and share their career stories. Talks typically last one hour and can be delivered at a school/college or online via Teams or Zoom.

Helping students learn about careers 

Employer engagement with schools can be highly beneficial for young people in terms of providing information about careers, career pathways and the jobs of the future. A visit from one of our Bank Ambassadors can support your school’s careers programme and help you achieve the Gatsby benchmarks for good careers guidance, specifically:

  • linking the curriculum to careers (benchmark 4)
  • student encounters with employers and employees (benchmark 5).

Research by the charity Speakers for Schools shows that: 

  • 93% of teachers say guest speakers help broaden students’ job aspirations
  • 87% of teachers say guest speakers tackle stereotypes about jobs and careers. 

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Why we visit schools

We believe understanding how the economy works is important. It can help to establish good personal finance skills, spark an interest in the study of economics, and inform career choices. We are working with the Royal Economic Society on their Discover Economics campaign, which aims to encourage more students to consider economics as a subject and a career.

We recognise that not all schools teach economics (8,093 took GCSE economics in England, Wales and Northern Ireland compared with 135,090 that took business studies in 2024). But economic ideas and concepts can be found in subjects across the curriculum and, reflecting this, our talks support a range of subjects, including PSHE and Citizenship.

Economics reflects just one, albeit a very important, aspect of our work. Bank Ambassadors work in every area of the Bank from Technology and Legal to Communications and Research. Our school visits can help bring to life the diverse range of opportunities across the financial sector and within central banking.

Selecting a talk for your students

We offer four different talks that support a range of curriculum subjects:

  • What does the Bank of England do?
    We are the UK’s central bank and have an important role in the economy and responsibility to the British public. This talk covers what we do and how we’re different to high street banks (suitable for students aged 11 to 18 years old).
  • Economics in practice
    Based on the A level economics (or equivalent) syllabus, this talk looks at the work economists do at the Bank of England focussing on monetary and financial stability (suitable for students aged 16 to 18 years old)
  • Introduction to financial services
    This talk provides an introduction to the UK financial services sector, including careers and opportunities at the Bank of England (suitable for students aged 11 to 18 years old).
  • Payment technology at the Bank
    Bank of England systems process payments worth millions of pounds each day. This talk explores different payment methods, including cash and digital payments, and the technology that underpins them (suitable for students aged 11 to 16 years old).

Extending the impact of the talk

To support each visit, we provide a range of suggested activities that can be completed pre and post visit. The activities provide a brief introduction to the work of the Bank today and our history. These have been developed to extend the learning and impact of the visit by encouraging research or reflection on issues and ideas discussed. We also share details of early careers opportunities at the Bank of England with organising teachers.

Suggested activities

What you need to know

  • The school talks programme is free
  • State secondary schools, sixth-form colleges and further education colleges in England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland can request a talk
  • We give priority to schools who have not previously hosted a talk

How to organise a visit 

Decide which of the talks is most suitable for your class or year group. You may want to combine several classes or ask our Bank Ambassador to attend an assembly. 

Complete our online school visit request form

Please provide information about the group(s) our Bank Ambassador will be talking to and your preferred day(s)/time(s).  

We endeavour to fulfil as many requests as possible but please remember that our Bank Ambassadors are volunteers and waiting times may vary. We will do our best to accommodate your preferred times, but flexibility is appreciated.  

Other educational resources we offer

We are keen to improve understanding of the economy and what we do. The educational resources we offer include:

Post-16 resources

We have curated some of our resources to help students learn about macroeconomics and the role of the Bank of England. These resources link to the GCSE and A level economics syllabus.

Free lesson plans

Our classroom resource, EconoME, is intended for teachers of pupils aged 11-16 and is linked to the PSHE curriculum. The three lessons contain interactive activities, videos and case studies to help students understand how their decisions are affected by and influence the economy. 

Explainers

Our explainers offer bite-size guides to explain key economic concepts in a simple and jargon-free way.

Bank of England Museum 

Our free museum explains our history and what we do. You can book a free presentation for groups of between 15 and 50 students. Advance booking is essential.

Places we visited

This map shows where we have given talks in secondary schools and colleges.

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This page was last updated 25 September 2024