CELEBRATING APPRENTICESHIPS IN WILTSHIRE
By Fiona Scott, Features Editor
NATIONAL APPRENTICESHIP WEEK 2017
This year marks the tenth anniversary of National Apprenticeship Week- Monday March 6 to Friday March 10- which celebrates the positive impact made by apprentices in UK businesses. Events will be held around the UK and will bring together employers and apprentices to celebrate the success of apprenticeships over the last decade. Nationally the scheme is run by the National Apprenticeship Service and its aim is to continue to raise awareness of apprenticeships as a route to a great career.
|
Apprentices are a very important part of the economy here in Wiltshire with many employers large and small, recruiting new talent into the local workforce.
One big local employer which currently is inviting applications for apprenticeships is BMW Group with 40 places across three UK manufacturing sites in Swindon, Oxford and Birmingham.
The team have designed an intense selection process to attract the best candidates who will get the chance to work directly alongside skilled and experienced employees in a range of roles including engineering, maintenance, finance, IT, business and communications.
Jason Gaskell, Manager of Apprentice
|
to attract the very best young and talented people to come and work for us.”
Kelly Monaghan and Tyler Knock, both aged 18, joined the Maintenance Engineering apprenticeship programme in August 2015 after finishing their GCSEs.
“ After leaving school I wasn’ t certain that going to university would necessarily lead me on to a job and so I applied for an apprenticeship with BMW,” said Kelly.
“ One of the things I love about it is the fact the scheme combines a real mixture of both theory and practical which is the best way to learn I think.”
Tyler said:“ I’ m really happy working in what is a very hands-on role. I’ ve always been interested in cars and the mechanical side of
|
|
|
Apprenticeships start in August 2017 but the closing date for interested applicants is Friday March 13.
One small business which is about to recruit a new apprentice is JP IT Solutions, run by Wiltshire-based Jason Parrington.
“ Apprenticeships work for me because I am able to train them in the way we work with our clients. At this level, it’ s about being able to communicate with people, before having the technical background to resolve the problems.”
|
“ I now feel confident in talking to clients and helping them with their technical questions, queries or challenges.” |
|
|
|
Jack Hayward, Systemagic |
BMW apprentices
“ it’ s given me that opportunity and the chance to work with so many different people, of all different ages and experience”
Training Programmes at BMW Group UK, said:“ Apprenticeships give young people the chance to get their careers off to a flying start and are essential for us to develop the future talent needed for our business.
“ We have three state-of-the-art manufacturing sites and there are some fantastic opportunities available. We want
18 THE BUSINESS EXCHANGE 2017 things so I knew that I wanted to work with them in some way but I just wasn’ t sure how.
“ I applied for the apprenticeship and it’ s given me that opportunity and the chance to work with so many different people, of all different ages and experience. It means that even in a short time I feel I’ ve learnt so much.”
Jason Parrington, JP IT Solutions
Jason believes a new apprentice will also provide increased support in the office and that this will, in turn, bring in more client work.
He said:“ Taking on an apprentice is a commitment – it’ s a two-way commitment or it will never work. It’ s a commitment to the person, the college and to our business to develop the person and coach them. I’ ve recruited apprentices in previous roles so am utterly confident the right apprentice will work for us.”
Twenty-one year old Jack Hayward has just qualified after completing two years of an advanced apprenticeship with IT company Systemagic.
Jack said:“ It’ s been absolutely brilliant. The amount I’ ve learned is unbelievable looking back. It was more than I could ever have imagined.
There are major changes coming to the way in which apprenticeships are funded which appear to have been largely welcomed by employers. On April 6, the new apprenticeship level will come into force in England. This is part of the Government’ s plan to train three million more apprentices by 2020( announced in 2015).
The Government is introducing the levy and it will fall on those larger businesses with a pay bill of more than £ 3 million. Those businesses will have to pay 0.5 per cent of their total pay bill to the government to fund apprenticeships minus an allowance of £ 15,000.
This will in turn allow these businesses access to a digital apprentice service account and they will also be able to access funding for their own apprentices. However all employers should be able to access this digital platform by 2020.
Alongside these new measures is a register for apprenticeship providers where those organisations will be subject to government scrutiny around quality and finance. Providers of apprenticeship training in Wiltshire include organisations such as Wiltshire Council and New College Swindon but also other companies such as Green Labyrinth, also in Swindon and Mizuna Training in Malmesbury.
Any training providers with an inadequate rating from Ofsted will be excluded from the national register.