This week marks National Apprenticeship Week, an opportunity to celebrate apprentices and the impact they have on our community, local businesses, and the wider economy.
I’m pleased this Labour government has marked National Apprenticeship Week not just with words, but action.
That’s because Keir Starmer has put apprenticeships at the front of his agenda since becoming Prime Minister.
Labour’s first piece of education legislation since entering government, going through Parliament as I write, paves the way for Skills England – a body that will find and fill skills gaps across our country.
The Prime Minister announced new foundation apprenticeships, rebalancing our training system back towards young people to create more opportunities.
We’re opening pioneering Homebuilding Skills Hubs to train the next generation of bricklayers, roofers, plasterers, scaffolders and electricians, so we can get Britain building again. We’ve created a Youth Guarantee to get all young people earning or learning.
As a result, the first set of statistics under the new Labour government saw an increase in apprenticeship starts, participation and achievement compared to the same period under the Tories.
Here in Birmingham that meant 9,460 apprentices currently on their course, with 580 having recently completed and 2,080 just beginning on their apprenticeship journey.
But we’re not stopping there – as the Chancellor said, we’re going further and faster in our pursuit of growth. Measures set out this week are evidence of that.
Labour is slashing red tape to ensure providers can focus their time on training the workforce of the future rather than on unnecessary admin.
We’re creating shorter apprenticeships to fast-track the skills we need.
We’re modernising the apprenticeship journey through the creation of a new app, a one-stop shop for tools and support.
We’re creating new apprenticeship standards in the sectors we need to boost to fulfil the government’s missions, like apprenticeships in the green sector.
Crucially, we’re bringing English & Maths in line with other qualifications, to unlock apprenticeships for up to ten thousand more young people, including here in Birmingham, Edgbaston constituency.
Apprenticeship starts collapsed on the Tories watch, and young people took the biggest hit.
It's time to end the snobbery around skills. There was a time when our country valued them, when boosting training was a national priority, when workers got the respect they deserve.
We can get back to that golden age and Labour is creating the apprenticeships we need to do so.
Labour will harness the talents of young people through ambitious reform to power this mission-driven government and our Plan for Change.
ENDS
Notes for editors
'Geography Region - starts, achievements, participation, population by age, level' from 'Apprenticeships', Permanent data table - Explore education statistics - GOV.UK
Comments