Alison McGovern: Apprenticeships are the key to future prosperity

Feb 8 2012

THIS week is National Apprenticeship Week, a time to celebrate the contribution made by apprentices, vital for the future success our economy.

People in Wirral will know that I have supported the return of the modern apprenticeship under the last Government and the continuation of this under the current administration. Here in Wirral, the council has led its own scheme assisting small businesses to hire apprentices.

However, I do have some worries that the term "apprentice" is not always used correctly. Under close scrutiny, figures last week show the number of under 18 year olds starting an apprenticeship compared to last year dropped by 1,500 and there was only a modest increase of 7,000 for those aged 19 to 24. And there has been a large increase in the number of people over 25 starting an apprenticeship.

Unemployed young people now number over 1 million – the highest level since 1992. So apprenticeships should enable young people to get a start on a career ladder, but I worry that the statistics indicate this isn't happening.

In November last year it was revealed there had been an increase of 900% in the number of people aged over 60 starting an apprenticeship.

While we need to invest in the training of our adult workforce – and the last Labour Government introduced the Train to Gain scheme, which helped over half a million employees and their employers in 2010 – I am concerned that the rise in "apprenticeships" is not offering a new chance to those worst affected by the current recession: young people.

I worry that the quality of schemes labelled "apprenticeships" risks being diluted.

Many highly respected successful people started their working life as an apprentice. If this is to continue, we must be clear what is on offer to young people. And preventing any more young people facing the tragedy of unemployment should be our objective.