FOR SCHOOLS & COLLEGES

Evidence that stands up.

Evidence Gatsby Benchmarks 5 and 6. Track student progress. Export for Ofsted.

FOR YOUR STUDENTS

Real work. Real output.
Real confidence.

Students on Trailstones complete actual projects set by businesses and charities — not mock tasks, not role-plays. They are given a brief, they do the work, and the organisation uses it.

That distinction matters. Students leave with evidence of something they genuinely built, contributed to, or solved. It changes how they talk about themselves in interviews, personal statements, and applications.

Live briefs from real organisations

Every piece of work comes from a business or charity with an actual need. Students are not practising — they are delivering.

A portfolio of completed work

Each completed project is logged with a timestamped evidence pack — something tangible students can point to in personal statements and interviews.

Skills that transfer

Communication, problem-solving, meeting a deadline set by someone outside school — the kind of experience employers and universities actively look for.

FOR SCHOOLS, COLLEGES & T-LEVEL COORDINATORS

Built for the frameworks that matter.

Whether you're evidencing Gatsby Benchmarks or sourcing T-Level industry placements, Trailstones gives you structured, documented, inspection-ready provision — not ad-hoc volunteering.

STATUTORY FROM SEPTEMBER 2025

Gatsby Benchmarks 5 & 6

The updated statutory guidance (September 2025) requires meaningful, evidenced encounters with employers and real experiences of workplaces. Every Trailstones project satisfies both — with a PDF evidence pack generated automatically for each student.

Young people with four or more meaningful employer encounters are 86% less likely to end up NEET.

Gatsby Benchmarks in detail

MANDATORY — ALL T-LEVEL STUDENTS

T-Level industry placements

Every T-Level student must complete 315 hours of industry placement to qualify. Trailstones gives FE colleges a verified network of local charity hosts — with briefs written, coordinators named, and safeguarding in place.

The DfE's own placement guidance uses a charity project as its worked example.

T-Level placements in detail

FUTURE CAREERS

A reference that means something.

When a student completes a project, the organisation they worked with provides a professional reference tied directly to that piece of work — not a generic letter, but a record of what the student did and how they did it.

For university applications, apprenticeship interviews, and first jobs, that specificity is what sets a candidate apart. It is the difference between "I did some work experience" and "here is what I built, and here is who can speak to it."

Tied to the actual work

References describe the specific project, the brief, and the student's contribution — not a template opinion of their attitude.

From real employers

Written by the business or charity the student worked with — an external voice that carries genuine weight with admissions teams and hiring managers.

Stored and exportable

Every reference is stored in the student's Trailstones profile alongside their evidence pack — ready to attach to any application, any time.

Supports UCAS and apprenticeship applications

Students can cite completed projects in personal statements with a verifiable evidence pack to back up every claim they make.

Areas we operate in

Launching soon across Yorkshire. Expanding to more regions beyond.

Summer 2026

North Yorkshire