Semta Announces Commitment to Double the Number of Higher Level Apprenticeships

Embargoed until 00:01, 18 May 2011

Semta announces commitment to double the number of higher level apprenticeships

Leading employers Siemens, Tata, Ford and Airbus will today join Semta, the Sector Skills Council for Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies, at the launch of a new commitment to double the number of higher level apprenticeships in England.

The Semta Apprenticeship Ambition, launched at the House of Lords, with the National Apprenticeship Service, will demonstrate the importance of higher level skills in supporting economic growth and rebalancing the economy.

The new scheme aims to take the number of advanced and higher level apprenticeship registrations from 8,000 to 16,000 by 2016 through delivery of a ten point plan.

The demand for higher level skills is increasing as the UK competes in high value markets such as advanced manufacturing, bio technology and emerging and green technologies. And as traditional industries become leaner, many jobs require multi-skilled technicians or demand very specific skills sets. The combination of current apprenticeship starts and achievement rates is producing less than half the current demand of 13,700 new entrants per year, a figure which doesn’t include the need to address skills gaps within the existing workforce.

Philip Whiteman, Chief Executive of Semta said: “Our employers, right across the UK, put apprenticeships at the top of their priorities. But only 7% currently offer apprenticeships. So we plan to work with The National Apprenticeship Service and employers to implement innovative ways of overcoming the barriers to take-up. Semta is ideally placed to help employers get a return on investment from apprentices. We have strong employer leadership and a successful track record from our sector funding compact, shared apprentice schemes, pathways to apprenticeships, and over training by bigger companies.”

National Apprenticeship Service research highlights that 80 percent of companies who employ apprentices say they make their workplace more productive, with 83 percent of employers relying on their Apprenticeship programme to provide the skilled workers they need for the future.

Semta’s 10 point plan includes measures to help combat the barriers to apprenticeship uptake, especially within SMEs who are typically less likely to train apprentices. It also includes approaches to attract more quality entrants, reduce bureaucracy, ensure apprenticeship frameworks meet employers needs, improve training provision and increase employer commitment.

Employers are invited to respond to the plan which will be available later this week on www.semta.org.uk.

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For further information please contact:

Lottie Dutton, Consolidated PR on 07760 104 654 or email

NOTES TO EDITORS:

Semta

Semta is the employer-led skills council for Science, Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies in the UK. The sectors it represents are: Aerospace, Automotive, Bioscience, Composites, Electrical, Electronics, Maintenance, Marine, Mathematics, Mechanical, Metals and Engineered Metal Products, Renewables and Science. Its role is to raise skills levels and competitiveness in the 132,000 companies and over 1.7 million-strong workforce that make up these sectors. Its National Skills Academy for Manufacturing delivers an independent national standard for manufacturing training content, delivery and process by focusing on business return which is typically 6:1.