The Government will fund an additional 35,000 apprentices next year to strengthen the country's competitiveness and help beat the downturn it announced today
07 January 2009
It will invest £140 million to deliver new and additional apprentices nationally in both the public and private sectors.
The Government is already committed to increasing spending on apprentices in the next year to just under £1billion and the £140m is in addition to that and will expand the programme even further over the next twelve months. We expect well over a quarter of a million apprentices to begin their training in the next financial year.
This is seen as a key part of the wider Government initiatives to boost employment prospects in the downturn and will be announced by the Prime Minister, as part of his regional tour, at Rolls-Royce in Derby today.
For many people an apprenticeship will provide a high quality route into a skilled job and the additional funding will extend the opportunities so that even more people can benefit from on-the-job training in skilled professions.
Skills Secretary, John Denham said:
"Now more than ever it is important that we give people the real help they need to get and keep jobs. This is an important initiative and is a further signal of our determination to give people the chance to get the practical training they need to get on and to help ensure the country has the skilled workers it needs to benefit from the upturn." Children, Schools and Families Secretary, Ed Balls said:
"In the current economic climate it is vital we continue to provide young people with a clear path into skilled work. For many young people an apprenticeship will provide an ideal pathway to successful employment. We must make sure we can meet demand so that more people can benefit and earn while they learn.
"We've already committed to providing £1bn of investment for apprenticeships next year, but this further boost will ensure more people get the training they need to help them pursue a future career in the global marketplace.
"And we have legislated to raise the education and training age to 18 so that in future every young person will continue to learn - whether by staying on at school, going to college or doing an apprenticeship or other work-based learning."
The additional 35,000 apprentices will work in both the public and private sectors and will be delivered through a range of measures. This will include using the power of the public sector, as some of the nation's largest employers, to make available new apprenticeships opportunities within a broad range of public sector careers. In addition to this the Government will use the huge leverage available to it through public procurement to promote skills and apprenticeships, and commit to ensuring that all publicly let contracts contain relevant skills training and apprenticeship requirements.
The initiative will be announced today at Rolls-Royce in Derby. It has a large apprenticeship programme and with Government support and with the help of other partners it will take on at least 50 extra apprentices in addition to the 170 it has already committed to. The 50 apprentices will be trained to work in other local companies many of which form part of Rolls-Royce's supply chain.
Notes to editors
1. The new measures build on a successful programme already in place. Over the last decade the number of people taking apprentices since 1997 has more than trebled. Last year 224,000 people started an apprenticeship and the Government intends to further expand and strengthen the programme further to make them a mainstream option for young people and adults alike.
2. The Rolls-Royce apprentice programme has been established for more than fifty years and 98% of our apprentices complete their training, a statistic which is well above the national average. Over 50% go on to Higher Education and successfully complete HNC/Foundation degree or degree programmes. Of these 15% pursue a further academic qualification, most frequently a Masters degree or PhD, within 10 years of their initial qualification.
3. The measures are in addition to support already announced to help people get the training they need to keep and find jobs during the downturn. Details on this can be found at http://www.dius.gov.uk
