In 2019, the organisation held a successful ‘proof of concept’ pilot 4C UR Future LIVE event, which was attended by almost 1,200 Year 9 pupils and supported by over 120 volunteers from 30 cross-sectoral companies.
In 2022, 4C UR Future is holding 11 LIVE at-scale pilot events, one in each council area in Northern Ireland. These events will host approximately 7,500 Year 9 pupils, and be supported by over 200 volunteers from over 50 companies.
Each event will consist of a number of fast-paced work experience games and skills-based challenges reflective of the different industry sectors in NI from business to transport; social care to coding; and hospitality to engineering, to name but a few. The games are designed in collaboration with local employers to identify each young person’s strengths and attributes, which are aligned with in-demand skills for the future world of work.

Following each of the LIVE events, participants receive a Personal Feedback Profile, which can be used to assist educational and career-related decisions, and signpost young people to the range of resources and content available on the 4C UR Future CAREERS PORTAL.
Supported by funding from The James Kane Foundation, a first-generation CAREERS PORTAL will be developed and launched in 2022. All Year 9 students who are registered by their school will be given access to the careers portal developed under this programme in 2022. The content hosted on the portal is industry-led and up to date.
The portal content will be created with the help of paid Content Creation Interns (6-month placements), recruited via local further and higher education establishments, who will receive wrap-around training, upskilling, and support. Internship pathways include public relations; marketing and digital marketing; corporate communications; videography and photography; graphic design; and website design and development.
4C UR Future plans to scale the LIVE pilot to enable every Year 9 pupil in Northern Ireland to attend a 4C UR Future LIVE event and have access to the CAREERS PORTAL (circa 25,000 young people per year), including extending portal access to a wider range of year groups.
Under the organisation’s current plans, by 2028 over 200,000 pupils, aged between Year 9 and Year 12, will have access to personalised, relevant, and relatable content via the CAREERS PORTAL, significantly opening up pathways to employment for all young people in Northern Ireland.