North West Apprentice Conference 2010
As part of National Apprenticeship Week 2010, we held our second annual apprenticeship conference.
‘Apprenticeships: Investing for the Future’ took place on 3 February and it saw representatives from North West local authorities come together to discuss how to promote apprenticeships, specifically within a local authority context.
Our key partners in developing the conference were the National Apprenticeship Service and Bentley Motors. A tour of the Bentley factory was an added bonus on the day, but it was also a great opportunity to hear success stories from the private and public sector.
In addition to some valuable input from unionlearn regional manager Dave Eva, who outlined the various ways in which trade unions can work with local authorities to promote apprenticeships, the event showcased two exemplary local authority apprenticeship schemes, one from Wirral Council and the other from Manchester City Council.
In order to improve employment and training opportunities for its residents and support businesses during the economic downturn, Wirral uses Working Neighbourhood Fund (WNF) money to offer employers a wage subsidy to employ an apprentice. As a result, an additional 100 apprenticeships have been created throughout the borough.
Moreover, The Wirral Apprentice has also been particularly successful in attracting ‘hard to reach’ individuals such as 16-18 year-olds who are not in employment, education or training (NEET), 16-18 year-olds who are at risk of becoming NEET, care leavers and teenage parents, as well as other vulnerable groups. For example, out of the 100 apprenticeships created, 43% went to NEET individuals or those at risk of becoming NEET. In addition, most of the apprentices came from economically deprived areas.
Such has been the success of The Wirral Apprentice that the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) has chosen an employer and an apprentice from the scheme to interview as part of the Backing Young Britain promotional campaign. The interview is to be filmed and shown on the DWP website.
Whereas Wirral uses WNF money to fund an apprenticeship scheme, Manchester City Council has taken the step of ring-fencing grades 1-3 within its own workforce and reserving some of these positions for apprenticeships. Elaine Bowker, Strategic Director for Transformation at Manchester, explained that the council employs around 24,000 staff, but, until fairly recently, they had no apprentices. However, this is currently being addressed and apprenticeships are now linked to the council’s recruitment and workforce development strategy, as well as to its strategic planning around the 14-19 agenda.
Wirral Apprenticeships Resource PackMoreover, in an effort to tackle worklessness and also to help meet its responsibilities as a corporate parent, Manchester City Council targets its apprenticeship scheme towards NEET 14-19 year-olds, workless Manchester residents and looked after children. Whilst this has required significant changes to its recruitment policy and appraisal systems and is seen in some quarters as highly controversial, this move is helping to improve the low skills base amongst the local population and is creating genuine opportunities for local residents.
The conference concluded with a passionate call to arms from Councillor Ron Round, the leader of Knowsley Council. Councillor Round reminded delegates that both Members and Officers have a responsibility to promote employment opportunities for local people. He also reflected on the success of Knowsley’s own apprenticeship scheme – The Knowsley Apprentice – which was the inspiration behind Wirral’s scheme and, since its inception in 2008, has recruited 200 apprentices.
For more information contact
Tom Goodwin.
North West Apprentice Conference 2009