APPRENTICES


THE MIDLANDS SUMMIT Location: The Roundhouse, Derby


Host and key speaker: Simon Collins, HR Director, Caterpillar UK Key speaker: Karen Woodward, Divisional Apprenticeship Director, East Midlands, West Midlands, Wales, NAS


Quality through collaboration: Apprentices, employers, training providers and awarding organisations need to work together to ensure apprenticeships are of suffi cient quality to benefi t all parties involved.


Inadequate careers advice: Schools’ careers advice needs to be balanced between vocational and academic routes. Ofsted could encourage this by monitoring the number of students that start an apprenticeship.


More support needed: Apprentices need to feel comfortable and receive more support. Some – particularly if they’re younger – have personal issues that can affect their work, and fi nancial issues can also be a problem.


Raising awareness and support for employers: We need to celebrate employers that have successful, inspirational apprenticeship schemes to encourage others to follow in their footsteps.


THE NORTH SUMMIT Location: Sheffi eld City College Host: Rachael


Campey, Chief Executive, FEdS Key speakers: Sue Price, Divisional Apprenticeship Director, North, NAS; Alison Bettac, Group HR/HSE, Firth Rixson, UK/Europe


Raising the profi le of apprenticeships: Work is needed to publicise non-traditional areas, simplify language and communicate apprenticeships as an alternative (or addition) to traditional education.


Incentivise employers: Incentives such as tax breaks could overcome barriers to hiring apprentices, especially for SMEs. These would be particularly useful in the fi rst three to six months of an apprenticeship.


Collaborative partnerships: Improving understanding among employers of the benefi ts of hiring an apprentice to help them identify what would be of most value to their business. This should result in more willingness to take on an apprentice.


Clear progression and careers advice: Schools need to recognise the value of apprenticeships and encourage vocational routes on a par with academic options. This should include making learners aware that apprenticeships can lead to higher education.


THE WEST SUMMIT Location: Cardiff City Hall Hosts:


Richard Hickin, Territory Business Manager, City & Guilds; Helen Bready, Territory Manager, Customer Support and Stakeholder Manager, City & Guilds Key speaker: Jeff Cuthbert, Deputy Minister for Skills, Wales


Flexibility is paramount: Apprenticeships should be tailored to learners’ and employers’ requirements. This extends to the need for Functional Skills, Key Skills or Essential Skills.


SMEs require extra support: Smaller companies are being hit with a plethora of messages to take on board and digest – someone needs to provide clarity. There is too much pressure put on employers to sort everything out, resulting in a lot of bureaucracy.


Apprenticeship packages and pathways: Wales currently operates successful schemes such as the Young Recruits Programme to prepare people for work and the ‘Pathway to Apprenticeships’ scheme. However, some apprenticeship schemes have a questionable reputation – there needs to be more drive from awarding organisations to develop high-level apprenticeships.


• Procter & Gamble • Redcar & Cleveland Borough Council • Rolls-Royce • Royal Air Force • Royal Navy • Sarai Hair & Beauty • SEC Recruitment • Sedgefi eld Borough Homes • Severn Trent Water • Sheffi eld Forgemasters International • Sheffi eld Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust • Skandia • Slack & Parr • South Tyneside Homes • SSE • Staffordshire County Council • Story Group • Taylor Made Joinery Interiors • The Chartwell Practice • The Stuart Holmes Hair & Beauty Spa • The Style Guru • Tower Tool Co. • Trewicks Accident Repair Centre • Tube Lines • Virtual Human Resources • Vital Technology Group • Wakefi eld & District Housing • Walesby Forest Outdoor Adventure Activity Centre • Walsall Council • Weston College • Wishtrac House • WM Housing Group • Wm Morrison Supermarkets


www.cityandguilds.com/broadsheet BROADSHEET 178 | WINTER | 29


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