Cuts will deprive pupils of careers advice, heads warn

Up to two million teenagers will miss vital careers advice, because of a government shake-up of the service, head teachers warned at the Association of School and College Leaders annual conference in Manchester yesterday.

Ministers are setting up a new, all-age careers service from 2012 – and giving schools the right to buy advice from private firms. But local authorities are axing services because of the squeeze on public spending. Brian Lightman, general secretary of the association, said: "To find your way into a career as a young person is a daunting task for which access to high-quality, impartial information advice and guidance is an absolute prerequisite."