‘Apprenticeships success story should be celebrated’, says AELP

Association of Employment and Learning Providers  

Press release – 31 January 2012 - Aidan Relf Communications Consultant AELP

‘Apprenticeships success story should be celebrated’, says AELP

Independent training providers have welcomed today’s record apprenticeship success rates as a clear indicator that the apprenticeship programme is in rude health despite recent adverse publicity.

Last year’s completion rate put the UK among the best in Europe and the confirmed overall rate for 2010-11 of 76.4% has cemented that position still further. In the Data Service’s own words, success rates ‘have risen dramatically since 2006-07, increasing by 17.4%’.

Training providers, who deliver in excess of 70% of apprenticeships in England, have been in the vanguard of a major drive over recent years to improve the quality of learning for apprentices and the level of service for employer customers. Recently published official employer and learner satisfaction data showed that the providers’ significant investment in improving quality is paying off.

Apprenticeships - Building a Brand

Stewart Segal ~ Apprenticeships - Building a Brand

The national and sector press continue to run stories criticising the Apprenticeship programme. The Guardian ran an article on Friday 9th December which repeats the theme presented by several other journalists. It is a rather simplistic view of Apprenticeships that suggest that long Apprenticeships are good and short Apprenticeships are bad, Apprenticeships for people over the age of 25 are bad, Apprenticeships in engineering and manufacturing are always higher quality than in the service sector and that Apprenticeships in large companies should not be supported. This view of the sector masks a complex market in which the credibility of Apprenticeships depends on many different factors.

It is not true that delivering Apprenticeships to people who are already in work and who might be over 25 reduces the number of Apprenticeships delivered those who most need it, which is young people starting in their first jobs. There is no shortage of support for these young people and the funding is not substitution. In fact many companies only take on young people if they get support for training for some of their more experienced staff. Stopping training for older people will not help our young people get the opportunities they need.