Employers urged to take on trainees
Hundreds of employers are now behind Traineeships, helping to unlock the potential of motivated young people who are not yet work ready.
Hundreds of employers are now behind Traineeships, helping to unlock the potential of motivated young people who are not yet work ready. And the government is urging even more employers to get involved to help 16 to 23 year-olds gain the vital work experience needed in order to get an Apprenticeship or other job.
Launched last year (2013), Traineeships give unemployed young people work preparation training and work experience as well as English and maths qualifications. And employers including Siemens, the Port of Tilbury and Virgin Media have already committed to Traineeships.
The Port of Tilbury in Essex has announced that it will triple the number of trainees it takes on, from 20 in 2013 to at least 60 in 2014. The majority of the Port of Tilbury’s existing trainees, many from areas with traditionally high levels of youth unemployment, have gone on to start Apprenticeships and other permanent full-time positions after impressing on their Traineeship. The work by the Port of Tilbury was recently recognised in the Thurrock Civic Awards where they won the Business in the Community award.
Skills and Enterprise Minister, Matthew Hancock MP said:
We introduced Traineeships to unlock the great potential of young people. Employers involved in the programme are now helping their trainees to develop the skills that are required in the workplace. They can then build on this and begin their career with an Apprenticeship or other sustainable job.
With National Apprenticeship Week starting next week (3 to 7 March 2014), there has never been a better time to start thinking about offering a Traineeship or an Apprenticeship.
Perry Glading, Chief Operating Officer at the Port of Tilbury said:
Traineeships are a significant part of our recruitment strategy. Like Apprenticeships, Traineeships are a means to invest in the future of our business and to ensure we have the skilled workforce we need for the future. Our announcement today (27 February 2014) is a result of the importance we place on our Traineeship programme and we hope to increase our trainees to 60 this year.
As well as helping improve the prospects of young people in our local community in Thurrock, Traineeships are vital in bringing fresh talent into the Port and addressing the local skills shortage. Our ultimate aim is to offer suitable trainees an Apprenticeship or other job at the port.
Traineeships are delivered by training providers with the content tailored to the needs of the business and the individual. Employers can visit bitly.com/Traineeships2014 to find out how they can take on their first trainee and help develop talented young people with the practical skills for the workplace.
For more information, case studies of Traineeships employers and trainees, please contact:
Alice Guttmann, 020 7089 6123, alice.guttmann@munroforster.com
Notes to editors
1.National Apprenticeship Service
The National Apprenticeship Service supports and co-ordinates the delivery of Apprenticeships and Traineeships throughout England.
It is responsible for increasing the number of Apprenticeship and Traineeship opportunities and providing a dedicated, responsive service for both employers and learners. This includes simplifying the process of recruiting an apprentice or trainee through Apprenticeship vacancies, an online system where employers can advertise their vacancies and potential apprentices or trainees can apply.
Apprenticeships bring considerable value to organisations, employers, individuals and the economy. Businesses across the country are increasingly realising the enormous benefits that Apprenticeships create, not only in terms of developing a highly skilled workforce but also by boosting productivity and staff retention.
Research shows that Apprenticeships are an optimal way of training, developing and skilling people for the future, helping businesses to secure a supply of people with the skills and qualities they need and which are often not available on the external job market.
A Traineeship is an education and training programme with a work placement that is focused on giving young people the skills and experience that employers are looking for. At its core are work preparation training, English and maths for those who need it, and a high quality work experience placement.
Traineeships are for young people aged 16 to 23 who are motivated to get a job but who lack the skills and experience that employers are looking for. Traineeships prepare young people for their future careers by helping them to become ‘work ready’. They give young people the skills and experience to be able to compete for an Apprenticeship or other job.
Traineeships are a stepping stone to future success for young people, businesses and the wider economy. There has never been a better time to employ an apprentice, or start an Apprenticeship.
Visit apprenticeships.org.uk or call 08000 150 600 to find out more.
2.The Skills Funding Agency
The Skills Funding Agency is a partner organisation of the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS). Its job is to fund and promote adult further education (FE) and skills training in England, including Traineeships and Apprenticeships, in a way which supports economic growth. The Agency delivers £4.1 billion of skills training through contracts with over 1,000 colleges, private training organisations and employers, with a highly effective supply chain that means FE meets local need in the most cost-effective way.
Within the Skills Funding Agency, there are 2 customer-facing services: the National Apprenticeship Service, which is responsible for increasing the number of Traineeship and Apprenticeship opportunities, and the National Careers Service, which provides impartial careers information, advice and guidance online, by telephone or face-to-face.
3.The government’s economic policy objective is to achieve ‘strong, sustainable and balanced growth that is more evenly shared across the country and between industries’. It set 4 ambitions in the ‘Plan for Growth’, published at Budget 2011:
- to create the most competitive tax system in the G20
- to make the UK the best place in Europe to start, finance and grow a business
- to encourage investment and exports as a route to a more balanced economy
- to create a more educated workforce that is the most flexible in Europe
Work is underway across government to achieve these ambitions, including progress on more than 250 measures as part of the Growth Review. Developing an Industrial Strategy gives new impetus to this work by providing businesses, investors and the public with more clarity about the long-term direction in which the government wants the economy to travel.