APPRENTICESHIP NEWS
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The Hospitality apprenticeship showcase is making a return next year as part of the National Apprenticeship week from 7th-13th February for its seventh year, the event will take place on Wednesday 8th February in the House of Commons.
Companies due to attend include Beds and Bars, Fullers, Smith and Turner PLC, Marstons, Mitchells and Butlers, Stonegate and UKHospitality. The industry has rallied together in hopes of showcasing the diverse range of roles available within the industry. Over the last 6 years over a 1,000 MP’s have had the chance to showcase their skills to Lords, Ladies and MP’s as part of the yearly week long celebration.
- BAE Systems has announced its plan to recruit more than 2,600 apprentices in 2023 with the majority of roles being in Cumbria, Lancashire and Warton. Other opportunities (cyber security, software development and aerospace engineering) will also be available across the South of England and Scotland.
BAE has claimed it invests around £100M in Education, Skills and Early Careers activities in the UK annually and currently has almost 4,300 apprentices in training across its UK businesses.
- The Forestry Commission has announced that it will reopen its woodland officer programme in 2023, a first of its kind apprenticeship initiative. The programme offers a 3 year paid development opportunity for passionate individuals looking to kickstart their careers in forestry. Upon completion of the programme, successful graduates will earn a Professional Forester Apprenticeship (equivalent to Level 6), a BSc (Hons) in Forest Management and the potential to gain Chartered Forester status with the Institute of Chartered Foresters.
This news comes after a recent report claimed that nearly half of apprentices failed to complete their course with “poor quality” being cited as the main reason. The government has responded to say it is introducing reform to boost quality going forward. One of the main problems is that the government allows watching videos to count as training, meaning some apprentices were going weeks/ months without any in person training. It has been 10 years since the government reviewed apprenticeship standards, education watchdog OFSTED are planning to review all apprenticeship training providers by 2025.
