Apprenticeship 'Clearing House' launched to save skills affected by the economic downturn

Tuesday, 23 September 2008

The Secretary of State for Skills, John Denham, has announced a series of measures to safeguard house building skills during the economic downturn, including a Government Task Force established with ConstructionSkills, the employer-led Sector Skills Council.

It will lead on a rapid response service to find new employer places for apprentices facing redundancy and will ensure there are enough new apprentices in the system to deliver the Government's ambitious house building plans in the future.

The immediate task is to support the 1,000 apprentices at risk of not completing their apprenticeship. A network of regional ConstructionSkills staff will be providing a range of support measures to encourage employers to retain their existing apprentices.  Where this is not possible, an apprenticeship ‘clearing house' developed with the Department for Innovation, University and Skills (DIUS) and the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) will encourage employers across the wider construction sector to take on those apprentices at risk.

 It is anticipated that, in the absence of an upturn in the private new housing market, this will rely on identifying additional placements in the social housing, repair and maintenance or environmental improvement markets. Away from the housing sector there are also opportunities linked to some of the Government's major infrastructure projects.  

Longer term, industry must expand the number of apprenticeship starts to meet the sector's future needs. Major infrastructure projects like the Olympics, Crossrail, the Building Schools for the Future programme, colleges and hospitals are thought to be the key to a rapid expansion of apprenticeship places. Government construction clients will be given responsibility for identifying and securing additional apprenticeship places through their procurement processes and supply chains.

Mark Farrar, ConstructionSkills Chief Executive comments: "We are encouraging employers to hold on to their existing apprentices and consider taking on new ones where they can. Despite the uncertainty of the current economic climate the long term trend is for rising levels of construction activity so it is imperative that the industry continues to train ahead of the recovery. Skills will be in great demand in years to come and, in some cases, will need updating as the nature of the industry changes through innovation and technological change. Apprenticeship training will be the key to meeting these demands so I'm pleased the Government is working with us to provide the appropriate support to both employers and apprentices during these difficult times." 

In terms of this year's recruitment of apprentices, ConstructionSkills is still calling on companies of all sizes to commit to helping young people enter the industry before they are lost to other sectors.  Good progress has been made so far this year with over 3,800 young people in England either already placed or about to start their placement through ConstructionSkills. However thousands more employers are needed to match the demand with 19,000 applications received so far and only 4,600 employer vacancies offered[1].

To help employers take on an apprentice there is financial support towards Traditional Apprenticeships of up to £9,820 and for the alternative Programme-Led Apprenticeships direct funding of £3,000. In addition through a network of trained advisors ongoing mentoring and support is provided. This end-to-end support has helped achieve a completion rate of 77%, 10% higher than the average for the sector.

National Construction College

The National Construction College (NCC) is responsible for training over 30,000 adults and apprentices each year. It offers the widest…