EEF: Apprenticeships must be on a higher level

Commenting on the report from the House of Commons business innovation and skills select committee on apprenticeships, Tim Thomas, head of employment and skills policy at EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, said:

“The Committee is right that we must focus on the quality as well as the quantity of apprenticeships. Whilst apprenticeship numbers across the economy have increased in recent years, in manufacturing and engineering this has come from intermediate rather than higher-level apprenticeships.

Looking forward, manufacturers are placing a growing emphasis on research and development, more sophisticated products and a relentless focus on improving processes. This means they need more high-level skills and the government should adopt a benchmark of raising the number of higher level STEM apprenticeships by a quarter by 2015.”

With regard to the committee’s recommendation to make the National Apprenticeship Service (NAS) responsible for increasing awareness of apprenticeships in schools, NAS has a key role to play in raising awareness of apprenticeships and should engage with schools to help relay this message, but it can’t do this on its own.

Over half of manufacturing companies offer apprenticeships to young people to get them into the industry, so they are well placed to go into schools to speak about the opportunities associated with undertaking an apprenticeship and these relationships should be encouraged.