Future looks brighter for those who choose vocational training
4
The Business, Thursday, March 3, 2016
THE BUSINESS
BGA-EO1-S5
‘Apprentice torch’ is to arrive at Chelmsford College ahead of event to host
BGA-EO1-S5
THE BUSINESS
The Business, Thursday, March 3, 2016
5
50 employers in growing science, technology, engineering and maths sector
Future looks brighter for those who choose vocational training T
HE ‘apprentice torch’ will arrive at Chelmsford College next week as it welcomes more than 50 employers to celebrate and champion National Apprenticeship Week.
The event on March 8 will bring together company bosses with an interest in burgeoning science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) recruits, to find out more about apprenticeship programmes through the college, Essex County Council and other local providers.
AHEAD of National Apprenticeship Week, the Chronicle’s own trainee reporters were tasked with investigating initiatives that are helping to improve the skills and job prospects of young people across the county. Jasmine Wing and Tom Pilgrim are studying for their journalism diploma at the Press Association in London, whilst cutting their teeth on our newsdesk. Here, they look at Chelmsford College’s unique approach to apprenticeships.
The Olympic-style torch, which symbolises the passing of knowledge from one generation to the next, began its tour of employers in southern England at the National Apprenticeship Awards in London in January, when David Cameron ‘passed the torch’ as part of the Government’s commitment to create three-million apprenticeships by 2020. Chelmsford College is the first apprentice provider in East Anglia to welcome the torch before it heads back to the capital for the launch of National Apprenticeship Week in London on Monday, March 14. One Chelmsford College apprentice, Lucy Jenkinson, from Witham, knows how life-changing apprenticeship training can be. She is just one of 11,560 in Essex who started an apprenticeship last year.
Struggled “I really struggled to get to grips with the ways of traditional education”, the 19-year-old said. After failing her first year exams at college, Lucy said she “didn’t know what to do”, but “always dreamed of becoming a teacher”. Dave Cornwell, from Chelmsford College, caught wind of Lucy’s ambition and offered her a place on its Teacher Training Apprenticeship Scheme. The scheme offers school leavers an alternative route and the chance to train as a teacher on the job. “I thought apprenticeships were just for manual work and hairdressing, and I was so pleased to hear that they offered a teaching apprenticeship,” says Lucy. She is now living out her dream as a teacher at the school she once attended herself, teaching Year 3 pupils at Powers Hall Academy in Witham, Mondays to Thursdays. Most of her friends have gone to university but they will not have the level of experience in schools as Lucy. Her work-based degree, which she finishes in 2020, will give her more than six years’ experience in schools. “I have gained so much more experience from doing the apprenticeship than I ever would have if I had gone straight to university,” added Lucy, who was one of the first apprentices on the college scheme that runs with 24 schools signed up.
DIPLOMA AMBITIONS: Writers Tom Pilgrim and Jasmine Wing “Apprenticeships sometimes have a bad reputation among youngsters, but it was a great experience and I am always encouraging others to do them.” “She is a brilliant advocate for the programme,” said Lucy’s former teacher, Tim Cuerden, director of teaching school at Powers Hall Academy and co-founder of the scheme. “We offer an alternative route, another way forward for young people to get in the teaching industry.” The trainee teachers can earn while they learn, as they get paid for doing their degree. They earn £13,000 in the first three years and that increases to £17,000 in their fourth year of studies. “We want to change the stigma around apprenticeship and encourage not only young people to get involved but for schools to get on board,” added Mr Cuerden. Chelmsford College offers multiple levels of apprenticeship training across a range of sectors, including accounting, engineering, IT and technical construction. Under statutory requirements, apprenticeships must last at least 12 months and include 30 hours employment, English and maths qualification and off-the-job training. Anne Dixon, director of accountancy firm Tax Assist, speaks highly of her company’s experience of hiring apprenticeships. “It is a good, cost-effective way of getting people on board. It means we can spend time intensely training them in not only accountancy but in the ways of our company too,” she said. The company, which has an
office in Brentwood, has taken on four Chelmsford College apprentices over the past four years.
BRIGHT BUNCH: Young people on the apprenticeship scheme at Chelmsford College CMCR20160228F-004_C
“We been very lucky, all four have been of an excellent standard and we plan to take more on in the future. I would definitely recommend it to other employers,” she added. “It’s good to see young talent being nurtured. It is also a good alternative to university, as they end up getting trained without getting into debt.”
Options Adam Gillard, 19, from Braintree, is Tax Assist’s most recent apprentice recruit. On finishing sixth form, he knew he wanted to train as an accountant. “I looked at university options, but it would have landed me in a lot of debt,” he said. Instead he signed up to a two-year trainee scheme through Chelmsford College and hasn’t looked back. “I’ve really enjoyed it, everyone is very welcoming,” he added. He admits that his friends are envious of his decision. “This way I get three years’ work experience. It’s very helpful and gives you a wage, so you can survive and go out. Most of my friends are at university and they are jealous of me not having any debt. They like the sound of the experience side of it.” Katie James, from Trac Electrical, is a passionate advocate of apprenticeships. Her electrical installation company has 15 apprenticeships of all levels on its books, with plans to take on up to 12 more this year. “I’m all about development,”
TORCH: David Cameron with Skills Funding Agency staff Steve Nicolson and Julie Rossington she says. “I truly believe that no matter how old someone is they can develop. You’ve got to give them opportunities. They call me mother hen. “It can be hard work. Electrical apprenticeships are one of the longest you can do. But we pay them above the minimum wage, and we give them a travel allowance as well.” Katie believes other companies shouldn’t hesitate to hire apprentices. She said: “We’re building our workforce for the future. “If you use agency labour they have no loyalty to you. You have no control over what they are learning. They could have completed Level 1 and 2 but had no on-site experience.” “We are ensuring that the old trade skills are not being lost, that they are being transferred.”
BAE keen
YES, MINISTER: Employment minister Priti Patel met dozens of apprentices at a special event at DP World London Gateway
Women welcome at London’s deep-sea port
BAE Systems will take on a record 142 higher and degree level apprentices as part of a wider recruitment of more than 680 apprentices in 2016. For the first time the company, with offices in Chelmsford, will also offer a masters level apprenticeship.
EMPLOYMENT Minister Priti Patel has joined forces with Essex Chambers of Commerce and DP World London Gateway to champion female apprentices. The Witham MP visited the giant port to launch the Government’s #Notjustforboys campaign, a Department for Work & Pensions initiative aiming to challenge stereotypes and changing attitudes around the careers women are conventionally thought to pursue, especially in male dominated industries like engineering.
College principal Andy Sparks added: “We are delighted to have been chosen as the first College in East Anglia to host the torch. “We are committed to apprenticeships and we pride ourselves on the work we do with employers to ensure that our learners are equipped with the skills they need for the world of work.”
PLEASED: Lucy Jenkinson with pupils Lexi Helsby, Sharraani Gopi, Riley Thorogood-English, Elliot Cawley and Rayaan Haji CMCR20160228D-016_C
Ms Patel met young people – brought together by the Essex Chamber of Commerce – benefiting from apprenticeships with Essex employers. During the visit, the minister joined one of DP World’s own female engineering
apprentices to see how the operations of its quayside cranes are used to transfer containers to and from visiting ships. Ms Patel said: “It was great to meet apprentices today who are gaining practical skills in a range of industries to boost skills and career prospects.
Benefit “At a time when there are more women in work than ever before, we want everyone, no matter what their background, to benefit from growth in areas like professional and scientific jobs and construction. This is why we’re bringing #Notjustforboys to Essex. “I urge young people to make the most of the three-million new apprenticeships this Government is committed to delivering, to be at the heart of the growing economy.”
Cameron Thorpe, port general manager for DP World London Gateway, added “We are delighted to have hosted this event for the minister. “Not only have we shown Britain’s newest deep-sea port in action but also demonstrated that we are proud to be employing women in front line roles at the both our port and logistics park. We want to ensure more potential candidates see that we already have a diverse team and we are encouraging greater diversity.” The #Notjustforboys campaign launched in early 2015 and was backed by more than 100 leading businesses and individuals, including digital entrepreneur Martha Lane Fox, Lady Geek founder Belinda Parmar, Diageo, Unilever and Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.
The Business, Thursday, March 3, 2016
THE BUSINESS
BGA-EO1-S5
‘Apprentice torch’ is to arrive at Chelmsford College ahead of event to host
BGA-EO1-S5
THE BUSINESS
The Business, Thursday, March 3, 2016
5
50 employers in growing science, technology, engineering and maths sector
Future looks brighter for those who choose vocational training T
HE ‘apprentice torch’ will arrive at Chelmsford College next week as it welcomes more than 50 employers to celebrate and champion National Apprenticeship Week.
The event on March 8 will bring together company bosses with an interest in burgeoning science, technology, engineering and maths (STEM) recruits, to find out more about apprenticeship programmes through the college, Essex County Council and other local providers.
AHEAD of National Apprenticeship Week, the Chronicle’s own trainee reporters were tasked with investigating initiatives that are helping to improve the skills and job prospects of young people across the county. Jasmine Wing and Tom Pilgrim are studying for their journalism diploma at the Press Association in London, whilst cutting their teeth on our newsdesk. Here, they look at Chelmsford College’s unique approach to apprenticeships.
The Olympic-style torch, which symbolises the passing of knowledge from one generation to the next, began its tour of employers in southern England at the National Apprenticeship Awards in London in January, when David Cameron ‘passed the torch’ as part of the Government’s commitment to create three-million apprenticeships by 2020. Chelmsford College is the first apprentice provider in East Anglia to welcome the torch before it heads back to the capital for the launch of National Apprenticeship Week in London on Monday, March 14. One Chelmsford College apprentice, Lucy Jenkinson, from Witham, knows how life-changing apprenticeship training can be. She is just one of 11,560 in Essex who started an apprenticeship last year.
Struggled “I really struggled to get to grips with the ways of traditional education”, the 19-year-old said. After failing her first year exams at college, Lucy said she “didn’t know what to do”, but “always dreamed of becoming a teacher”. Dave Cornwell, from Chelmsford College, caught wind of Lucy’s ambition and offered her a place on its Teacher Training Apprenticeship Scheme. The scheme offers school leavers an alternative route and the chance to train as a teacher on the job. “I thought apprenticeships were just for manual work and hairdressing, and I was so pleased to hear that they offered a teaching apprenticeship,” says Lucy. She is now living out her dream as a teacher at the school she once attended herself, teaching Year 3 pupils at Powers Hall Academy in Witham, Mondays to Thursdays. Most of her friends have gone to university but they will not have the level of experience in schools as Lucy. Her work-based degree, which she finishes in 2020, will give her more than six years’ experience in schools. “I have gained so much more experience from doing the apprenticeship than I ever would have if I had gone straight to university,” added Lucy, who was one of the first apprentices on the college scheme that runs with 24 schools signed up.
DIPLOMA AMBITIONS: Writers Tom Pilgrim and Jasmine Wing “Apprenticeships sometimes have a bad reputation among youngsters, but it was a great experience and I am always encouraging others to do them.” “She is a brilliant advocate for the programme,” said Lucy’s former teacher, Tim Cuerden, director of teaching school at Powers Hall Academy and co-founder of the scheme. “We offer an alternative route, another way forward for young people to get in the teaching industry.” The trainee teachers can earn while they learn, as they get paid for doing their degree. They earn £13,000 in the first three years and that increases to £17,000 in their fourth year of studies. “We want to change the stigma around apprenticeship and encourage not only young people to get involved but for schools to get on board,” added Mr Cuerden. Chelmsford College offers multiple levels of apprenticeship training across a range of sectors, including accounting, engineering, IT and technical construction. Under statutory requirements, apprenticeships must last at least 12 months and include 30 hours employment, English and maths qualification and off-the-job training. Anne Dixon, director of accountancy firm Tax Assist, speaks highly of her company’s experience of hiring apprenticeships. “It is a good, cost-effective way of getting people on board. It means we can spend time intensely training them in not only accountancy but in the ways of our company too,” she said. The company, which has an
office in Brentwood, has taken on four Chelmsford College apprentices over the past four years.
BRIGHT BUNCH: Young people on the apprenticeship scheme at Chelmsford College CMCR20160228F-004_C
“We been very lucky, all four have been of an excellent standard and we plan to take more on in the future. I would definitely recommend it to other employers,” she added. “It’s good to see young talent being nurtured. It is also a good alternative to university, as they end up getting trained without getting into debt.”
Options Adam Gillard, 19, from Braintree, is Tax Assist’s most recent apprentice recruit. On finishing sixth form, he knew he wanted to train as an accountant. “I looked at university options, but it would have landed me in a lot of debt,” he said. Instead he signed up to a two-year trainee scheme through Chelmsford College and hasn’t looked back. “I’ve really enjoyed it, everyone is very welcoming,” he added. He admits that his friends are envious of his decision. “This way I get three years’ work experience. It’s very helpful and gives you a wage, so you can survive and go out. Most of my friends are at university and they are jealous of me not having any debt. They like the sound of the experience side of it.” Katie James, from Trac Electrical, is a passionate advocate of apprenticeships. Her electrical installation company has 15 apprenticeships of all levels on its books, with plans to take on up to 12 more this year. “I’m all about development,”
TORCH: David Cameron with Skills Funding Agency staff Steve Nicolson and Julie Rossington she says. “I truly believe that no matter how old someone is they can develop. You’ve got to give them opportunities. They call me mother hen. “It can be hard work. Electrical apprenticeships are one of the longest you can do. But we pay them above the minimum wage, and we give them a travel allowance as well.” Katie believes other companies shouldn’t hesitate to hire apprentices. She said: “We’re building our workforce for the future. “If you use agency labour they have no loyalty to you. You have no control over what they are learning. They could have completed Level 1 and 2 but had no on-site experience.” “We are ensuring that the old trade skills are not being lost, that they are being transferred.”
BAE keen
YES, MINISTER: Employment minister Priti Patel met dozens of apprentices at a special event at DP World London Gateway
Women welcome at London’s deep-sea port
BAE Systems will take on a record 142 higher and degree level apprentices as part of a wider recruitment of more than 680 apprentices in 2016. For the first time the company, with offices in Chelmsford, will also offer a masters level apprenticeship.
EMPLOYMENT Minister Priti Patel has joined forces with Essex Chambers of Commerce and DP World London Gateway to champion female apprentices. The Witham MP visited the giant port to launch the Government’s #Notjustforboys campaign, a Department for Work & Pensions initiative aiming to challenge stereotypes and changing attitudes around the careers women are conventionally thought to pursue, especially in male dominated industries like engineering.
College principal Andy Sparks added: “We are delighted to have been chosen as the first College in East Anglia to host the torch. “We are committed to apprenticeships and we pride ourselves on the work we do with employers to ensure that our learners are equipped with the skills they need for the world of work.”
PLEASED: Lucy Jenkinson with pupils Lexi Helsby, Sharraani Gopi, Riley Thorogood-English, Elliot Cawley and Rayaan Haji CMCR20160228D-016_C
Ms Patel met young people – brought together by the Essex Chamber of Commerce – benefiting from apprenticeships with Essex employers. During the visit, the minister joined one of DP World’s own female engineering
apprentices to see how the operations of its quayside cranes are used to transfer containers to and from visiting ships. Ms Patel said: “It was great to meet apprentices today who are gaining practical skills in a range of industries to boost skills and career prospects.
Benefit “At a time when there are more women in work than ever before, we want everyone, no matter what their background, to benefit from growth in areas like professional and scientific jobs and construction. This is why we’re bringing #Notjustforboys to Essex. “I urge young people to make the most of the three-million new apprenticeships this Government is committed to delivering, to be at the heart of the growing economy.”
Cameron Thorpe, port general manager for DP World London Gateway, added “We are delighted to have hosted this event for the minister. “Not only have we shown Britain’s newest deep-sea port in action but also demonstrated that we are proud to be employing women in front line roles at the both our port and logistics park. We want to ensure more potential candidates see that we already have a diverse team and we are encouraging greater diversity.” The #Notjustforboys campaign launched in early 2015 and was backed by more than 100 leading businesses and individuals, including digital entrepreneur Martha Lane Fox, Lady Geek founder Belinda Parmar, Diageo, Unilever and Tottenham Hotspur Football Club.
