Apprenticeship

JTL welcomes the new skills investments announced in the spring budget

The leading work-based training provider in England and Wales, JTL, has welcomed the increased incentives for apprenticeships and traineeships announced in Chancellor Rishi Sunak’s spring budget, in the hope they will support employers to take on apprentices. The financial incentives introduced as part of the Chancellor’s Plan for Jobs last year, offered employers £2,000 to take on apprentices aged 16 to 24 and £1,500 for those aged 25 and over.…

JTL’s response to Covid testing

Jon Graham, chief executive, JTL:As chief executive of JTL, one of the largest work-based training providers in England and Wales which also receives the largest funding for 16-19-year-olds from the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), I was horrified to learn that apprentices will not have access to Covid testing in their place of learning until at least April. This is despite the government ensuring those students aged 16-18 returning…

At-home apprenticeship “has not prevented me from progressing with my learning”

An apprentice has revealed the challenges of learning a trade at home, as a result of college closures due to Covid-19. According to Derbyshire Live, 17-year-old Adam Poulton, from Buxton, says the challenges of lockdown learning have not prevented his progress with his Tarmac apprenticeship. Adam says, “I have always been in to engineering, getting involved with Lego and robot clubs at school. But it was hearing about Tarmac from…

Engineering apprentice wins Apprentice Endeavour award

Northumberland College engineering apprentice, Hamish Carroll, representing Tharsus Ltd., won the Apprentice Endeavour award at the recent Make UK 2020 Awards. The Awards celebrate the brilliance of UK manufacturing and engineering, with the Apprentice Endeavour award given to an apprentice who has engaged with their apprenticeship programme despite adverse circumstances. It acknowledges their determination and progress on their individual journey. Hamish says, “I’m incredibly proud to have won the Make…

Scottish Minister echoes praise for employers’ commitment to training

Minister Jamie Hepburn has joined influential training providers, the Scottish Electrical Charitable Training Trust (SECTT) and the Scottish Joint Industry Board (SJIB), in saluting Scotland’s employers for continuing to support young talent during COVID-19. The industry bodies have applauded businesses for recruiting, training and nurturing trainees during the pandemic and say their dedication is the perfect example of “business backing talent” – the theme of Scottish Apprenticeship Week (March 1-5). Anne Galbraith, chief executive…

“I would like to be an ambassador for female engineers”

If you could bottle enthusiasm and a passion for plumbing, you’d probably have to put Lily Clarke’s face on the label. She did her apprenticeship fifteen years ago and quickly overcame her initial misgivings about embarking on, what some at the time considered, an odd choice for an 18-year-old woman. “I started work on Monday and was in college on Tuesday, having never held a pipe in my life,” says…

Diageo apprentice in running for prestigious award

As reported by the Daily Record, Cameron MacDonald, from Bathgate in West Lothian, has been shortlisted for the Scottish Apprentice Ambassador of the Year award. Nominated by his employer, Diageo, Cameron currently works at the company’s site in Blackgrange, Alloa, having joined Diageo as a modern apprentice in electrical engineering, before progressing as a graduate apprentice in engineering – electrical design and manufacture at Heriot Watt. Cameron was shortlisted by…