Three thousand more apprenticeships could be created if all local councils simply performed at the average level according to new snapshot findings Communities Secretary John Denham said recently.
On a visit to Barking the minister meet some of the 100 apprentices the council has recruited including Apprentice of the Year, Hidy Larcher. Mr Denham said:
“Our snapshot findings shows top councils are creating one apprenticeship for every 65 employees, the average is one per 248 employees. But almost 60 per cent of councils are doing worse than this and just under a quarter are doing nothing to up their numbers at all.”
Government has committed to increasing public sector apprenticeships by 21,000 as part of its drive to reduce the number of young people not in school or working which currently stands around 5 per cent – the lowest for over a decade.
By March councils expect to have almost 7,700 apprentices as part of their pledge to create 15,000 apprenticeship places and to encourage partners and other local businesses to create opportunities too. If the worst performing councils came up to the standard of the average that would create about 3,000 more apprentices.
As part of National Apprenticeship Week Mr Denham also announced £700,000 to put into 61 council pots so they can cultivate 175 new horticulture apprenticeships.
This will help young people develop new ‘green-fingered’ skills and get public parks and gardens growing in some of the country’s most deprived areas. The grants follow an overwhelming response to the 60 places created last year.
