Apprentices not just for the giants

At Semta, we want to double the number of advanced and higher level apprenticeship registrations in England from 8,000 to 16,000 by 2016 through our new Apprenticeship Ambition. SMEs make up the vast majority of businesses in science, engineering and manufacturing, so we must help them understand the value of apprenticeships. In doing so, we can upskill the supply chain, where the quality of UK plc output is defined. The demand for higher level technical skills is growing because of retirements, new technologies, and the drive towards lean and green. We need new recruits and skilling up existing employees through apprenticeships. If smaller companies don't take on apprentices and buy in skilled folk, they run the risk of these people becoming too expensive to hire. Semta research shows that only 7% of companies in science, engineering and manufacturing offer apprenticeships. Smaller companies fear the cost, as well as losing these highly skilled workers, once qualified, to larger competitors. But actually 90% of apprentices remain loyal to the employer who trained them and research shows it takes only three years to get payback from the investment. Semta has piloted ways around such barriers, for example, getting larger companies to train extra apprentices or having groups of SMEs share apprentices. Through the Apprenticeship Ambition, Semta will investigate other innovative approaches such as The Welsh Pathway to Apprenticeship approach where, after an initial period of off-the-job training, apprentices join an employer when they are more productive. Apprenticeship funding is available through Semta and depends on the sector and age of the candidate. If the apprentice is 16-18 years old, funding is 100% of the investment in the training. So all college fees, NVQ and functional skills costs are covered. Employers are expected to contribute 50% of the training investment for apprentices aged 19-24 and 25 and over. Semta's Apprenticeship Ambition is backed by business secretary Vince Cable and, with our impressive employer support, Semta will be pressing for sufficient funding for the numbers of apprenticeships that the sector needs.