With National Careers Week and options choices coming up soon, we are sharing the FREE languages and careers activities available to schools in the North East and across the UK, designed to help pupils understand how languages can open up a world of opportunities.
Languages broaden the mind, foster intercultural awareness and improve communication and interpersonal skills. Whether pupils speak a different home language, or are learning languages, these activities show the power of language skills to open doors to exciting and rewarding lives and employment opportunities.
This year’s Express Yourself: North East Festival of Languages has its biggest ever languages and careers offer to secondary and primary schools in the North East and across the UK. We are encouraging schools to get involved in activities which will help support young people in understanding how languages can unlock opportunities for personal development, future education and careers.
All of our in-person careers events for North East schools are fully booked, but there is unlimited participation in all of the following activities:
- North East: NE Languages and Careers Videos with teaching resources available for use in schools with KS2-KS5 pupils from January onwards – find out more below and register with info@expressyourselfne.com
- UK-wide: Five FREE languages and careers webinars in March 2026 with unlimited participation – follow the links below to find out more and register
- UK-wide: ‘How Languages Changed my Life’ stories, accessible to all on our website, sharing people’s language, life and career journeys to inspire others- available online here
- UK-wide: explore our curated collection of languages and careers resources for teachers, careers advisers and parents – available online here
NORTH EAST LANGUAGES AND CAREERS VIDEOS WITH TEACHING RESOURCES
North East language and careers videos and classroom activities (KS2-5) are designed to inspire pupils to progress with languages and understand the wealth of opportunities available to people who speak more than one language.
Registered schools can access these videos, showcasing young professionals who live in the North East talking about their own language learning journey, the languages they speak, the skills that learning languages can bring and how they use languages in their work – as well as tips for children and young people about learning languages.
A teacher resource pack and pupil booklets (age appropriate) accompany the videos to enable teachers to run multiple flexible sessions in schools.
Register by emailing info@expressyourselfne.com with the name of your school, teacher contact and email and the number and age of pupils participating.
FREE LANGUAGES AND CAREERS WEBINARS
Modern Languages in the Working World with Sanako UK (KS3 Y8/9) 9.30-10.15am on 2nd March
NE & UK schools Y8-Y9: Join David Binns for an inspirational careers talk for students, stressing the importance of a second language skill in any chosen career and at initial interview stage and encouraging GCSE take-up.
Spanish language and careers webinar with Spanish Embassy Education Office (KS3-5) 9.30-10.15am on 3rd March
NE & UK secondary schools/6th forms: Inspire pupils to progress with Spanish and find out about the benefits of learning languages and the future opportunities learning Spanish brings
Languages at Work webinar: Careers session and live language challenge (KS3) 9.30-10.30am on 5th March
NE and UK schools (KS3 Y8-Y9): Motivational session with professional linguists. Sharing career insights and running live language challenges in French, German and Spanish.
Languages and careers in football webinar with Futbol Ling0 (KS2-5) 10.30-11.15am on 6th March
NE & UK schools (KS2-5): Join Futbol Lingo’s motivational webinar, using football to inspire a generation of future linguists and open perspectives on the range of careers in football.
Where can languages take me? Careers webinar (Y8/9) 9.00-9.45am on 26th March
NE & UK schools Year 8-9: Inspire pupils to choose languages at GCSE with professionals sharing their language learning journeys, skills and how they use languages in their work.
Pupils’ quotes from Futbol Lingo sessions in 2025:
We learned about how everyday things, such as languages, can bring a better future for yourself. Languages are important because they can build relationships wherever you go and you can talk to people and have connections with others.
Lina Gharib, Kenton School
I really enjoyed how it showed us how languages can be used in jobs, and how me learning a language skill can really help me in the future.
Tom Richardson, Royal Grammar School
The Festival is part-funded by North East Combined Authority
