How Apprenticeships can transform your business

APPRENTICESHIPS can transform businesses by making them more productive and open to new ideas, an expert panel has said.

Representatives from around 40 companies across the region heard how there has never been a better time for businesses to take on Apprentices.

TheBusinessDesk.com teamed up with the National Apprenticeship Service for a seminar during National Apprenticeship Week in Manchester.

One of a number of events to be held in the region this week, the seminar at the Park Inn  heard from entrepreneur Jennie Johnson, apprentice Meg Heaton, Winstanley College principal Jo Bailey as well as Sue Price, divisional area director North at NAS.

Mrs Price said while other departmental budgets were under pressure, the Department of Business has increased its support for Apprenticeships to £3.4bn this year.

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She said firms hiring 16 to 24 year-olds can receive a new £1,500 Government grant.

“In the North West this year nearly 80,000 apprentices will be taken on in 280 different apprenticeships. And 72% of businesses reported seeing increased productivity after taking on an apprentice,” she said.

“Apprenticeships are providing real jobs, real qualifications and a real future for young people. We want to engage with more employers so we can give more young people a first chance to step on to the ladder.”

She said the National Audit Office had endorsed the impact of Apprenticeships by finding that for every £1 spent it generates £18 for the economy. 

Jennie Johnson, founder and chief executive of Kids Allowed, an independent North West nursery business , said how apprentices bring both financial and cultural benefits to businesses.

“We started taking on apprenticeships as a means of doing our bit to try and help tackle youth unemployment, and quickly saw that it can bring real benefits to our business.

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“The apprentices we take on earn while they learn, and they give us a chance to mould them into the employees we want in our business from day one, rather than having to spend time un-doing bad habits.

“I do think more businesses should think about Apprenticeships, it’s a brilliant scheme and one I am really passionate about – it’s a core part of our growth strategy.”

Meg Heaton, 18, who joined Kids Allowed in Macclesfield as an apprentice last year, said she had not been enjoying sixth form and was “loving life” working at the nursery.

“I was finding all the work and exams very stressful. Since joining Kids Allowed I have become more confident as a person and I have learned a lot too, I am still studying but it’s different because it’s practical.”

Jo Bailey from Winstanley College, a 2,000-strong sixth form college said increasing numbers of her students were exploring Apprenticeships since the introduction of tuition fees.

“There is certainly concern among the students and their parents about the levels of debt and the mood has changed towards apprenticeships as a means of developing their careers after A-levels.”

For more details on apprenticeships and National Apprenticeship Week go to www.apprenticeships.org.uk or call 08000 150600