Woodspeen Training reacts to today’s apprenticeships reforms
Lisa Davies and Kim Morrison discuss what today’s announcement means for the businesses we work with
Apprenticeships can be career enhancing and ultimately life-changing opportunities for young people. Today’s announcement from the Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, fully funding apprenticeships for small businesses will have an impact that will be felt across the country.
Coming into effect on 1st April, the changes will empower businesses to provide opportunities, through apprenticeships, to anyone up to the age of 21. This change will have major consequences in local communities, increasing employment in this often difficult to reach age group.
The changes will be particularly welcome in the Early Years sector, which is struggling to recruit and retain skills. Apprenticeships are key to enabling early years settings, many of which are SMEs, to bring new staff into the business. Together with developing their existing workforce, apprenticeships are an effective tool for the sector. To further support the early years sector, Woodspeen Training recently announced a package of measures to support settings considering apprenticeships.
Another sector in strong focus for us this week is Adult Care. We’re attending UK Care Week this week to hear firsthand the concerns of care businesses around the skills shortages that they are facing, to understand how we can increase the help with we currently give to the sector.
As a training provider, Woodspeen Training works with numerous businesses that already donate 25% of their levy pot to enable SMEs to access apprenticeships. With committed Levy Transfer funds from a range of business, the increase to a 50% levy donation will enable us to change the trajectory of many businesses both right now and to facilitate their future prosperity.
We understand the difference apprenticeships can make to a business, a young person, and to a community as a whole. We’ve watched people start out on level 2 courses, that are now flying on level 5 apprenticeships. They’ve taken the opportunity offered with both hands and have flourished. With this announcement we anticipate seeing more and more of this, as businesses access apprenticeships for workforce development together with new starts, creating skilled and sustainable careers all over the country.
