The government has expanded youth apprenticeships to 50,000 places in three years with \u00a3725 million of investment.<\/p>\n
The number of young people starting apprenticeships has fallen by almost 40% over the last decade, a drop Labour said is \u201cholding back opportunity\u201d.<\/p>\n
Apprenticeships at small and medium sized businesses will be fully funded, removing the barriers companies face when taking on trainees.<\/p>\n
The 5% levy on apprentices for under-25s will be removed.<\/p>\n
Prime Minister Keir Starmer: \u201cI went to university and I\u2019ve always thought that we don\u2019t value the two equally \u2013 and we should.<\/p>\n
\u201cUniversity is a good thing to do, I\u2019m not going to knock it, that\u2019s what I did, but being an apprentice is an equally good thing to do, that\u2019s what my dad did and he was a highly skilled engineer and tool-maker.\u201d<\/p>\n
The \u00a3725 million will target industries like artificial Intelligence and digital roles, engineering and advanced manufacturing, hospitality and tourism, and local growth sectors identified by mayors and councils.<\/p>\n
Some \u00a3140 million will also be handed to mayors to connect unemployed young people with companies offering apprenticeships.<\/p>\n
The surveyor group RICS backed the move.<\/p>\n
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Justin Young, its chief executive, said: \u201cThis investment will allow more SMEs to take on apprenticeships and is the right way to support small businesses and facilitate them to back young talent.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe funding will help SMEs to play an even greater role in driving economic growth across the UK and support skills development, particularly for under 25s.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe government\u2019s plan to invest across the country and empower regional leaders to partner with employers will unlock opportunities in the right places. Cutting-edge training in areas like AI, engineering and digital skills that are critical to our sector, will also set more young people up for success.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt is evident that there is a need to support new talent, but we must upskill and reskill too. RICS will continue to equip our members, candidates and future chartered surveyors with the knowledge and tools they need to play their part across the built and natural environment in the years and decades to come.\u201d<\/p>\n
Engineering and digital skills courses will be rolled out from April 2026.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile there will be a Level 4 apprenticeship in AI, as well as short courses to provide more flexible training options.<\/p>\n
Rico Wojtulewicz, head of policy and market insight for the NFB, said: \u201cThe consistent support for apprenticeships is fantastic because too often a change of government means a change of education policy. Historically, this has really hurt construction because apprenticeships are the key entry point for most workers.<\/p>\n
\u201cGoing forward, we must consider why employers do not or cannot train and ultimately retain apprentices, as particularly in construction, SMEs train 8 in 10 of them. In the NFB\u2019s housebuilder survey, 43% of respondents said they had reduced directly employed labour due to planning uncertainty or delay and 57% said that \u2018no pipeline of work\u2019 and \u2018lack of planning certainty\u2019 stopped them from taking on more apprentices.<\/p>\n
\u201cNow the black hole in the nations finances has been filled, the government must think about how it can remove the taxation and regulation which stops businesses employing more staff, so support for apprenticeships delivers meaningful and sustained change.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
The government has expanded youth apprenticeships to 50,000 places in three years with \u00a3725 million of investment. The number of young people starting apprenticeships has fallen by almost 40% over the last decade, a drop Labour said is \u201cholding back opportunity\u201d. Apprenticeships at small and medium sized businesses will be fully funded, removing the barriers […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":6295,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6294","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-second-home"],"yoast_head":"\n