School
Engagement

Asda Heroes is an inspiring, staff-led programme designed to empower young people to become confident changemakers within their communities. 

Engaging half-termly on our virtual platform, pupils will use both practical resources and virtual content to explore real-world challenges such as food waste, plastic pollution, and fast fashion. They’ll be guided throughout by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, and the principles of People, Planet and Prosperity. This initiative supports schools to lead meaningful, hands-on projects like growing food, upcycling items, reducing waste, and supporting local citizens.

Schools can align with the spirit of Gatsby as this programme strongly supports early careers-related learning. It builds awareness of the world of work, developing key skills like teamwork, problem-solving, and communication, encouraging aspiration and broadening horizons.

Mainly directed at years 3, 4 & 5 nationally, but also ideal for SEND provisions, alternative provisions and pupil referral units due to the project-based learning approach.

“Our learners and staff thoroughly enjoy participating and engaging in the Asda Heroes programme. Throughout the programme, our learners engage in practical activities which support them to understand the SDGs, and the world of work.

It encourages our learners to engage in meaningful projects that make a real difference and positively impacts the people of our local community, and the planet. This supports our learners to get a deeper understanding of how to be a global citizen by helping others and the world around them; and prepares them for life beyond school”.

The Asda Leaders programme is a high-impact, real-world programme that brings GCSE and A-Level Business to life while inspiring future talent.

Students work on genuine challenges from Asda’s ESG strategy, applying their learning to build critical thinking, problem-solving and data analysis skills. They also gain valuable insight into retail careers and develop key employability skills.

Each team is supported by an Asda colleague who mentors them throughout, ensuring ideas are grounded in real business thinking and providing direct industry exposure.

The programme concludes with a final showcase in June, where teams present their solutions, a winner is selected, and students are given the opportunity to explore opportunities within Asda.

Asda Leaders doesn’t just support academic success it develops confident, commercially aware and enterprising young people, ready to thrive in their future careers.

The Asda Leaders programme strongly aligns with the Gatsby Benchmarks, making it a powerful careers and curriculum-linked experience for schools and colleges.

This programme is aimed towards Year 10 and 12 pupils who have an interest in business and potentially an interest in working within the retail sector as this will become a stepping stone onto early career opportunities.

“As teacher of A level Business is it always useful to allow students to engage with real practical applications of the world of work.

The Asda leaders programme has allowed our Year 12 students to investigate some of the external and internal challenges Asda face each year in their ESG report. They have been able to go beyond the A level Business specification, to solve real business problems for Asda. They have developed softer skills such as teamwork and communication. Also working alongside Asda mentors, has allowed them to develop industry standards of communication in emails and over Teams calls.”