Employers invited to snap up funds to boost staff training - 26th February 2008

Cash is being made available to help food and drink manufacturers in the north-east increase productivity and profits by boosting the skills levels of existing staff.

Improve, the food and drink sector skills council, has worked with the North East Chamber of Commerce and Myerscough College to secure funding for 35 apprenticeship places for people aged 25 and over who work in food and drink manufacture in the region.

It’s hoped that if sufficient demand is shown, the region’s Learning and Skills Council (LSC), the government agency responsible for funding training and qualifications in England, will unlock more funding for further adult apprenticeship places. Employers in the region are being urged to register their interest in order to secure the extra funding.

David Hickman, operations manager for Improve in the north-east, said the offer represented a fantastic deal for companies looking to plug skills gaps in their workforce. “The government has only recently extended funding for apprenticeships to people over the age of 24. This is a massive boost to the food and drink industry in particular, which is characterised by an older workforce. In the north-east, 90 per cent of the 14,000 people working in food and drink manufacture are aged 25 or over.

“This is the first time there has been any funding available in the region for adult apprenticeships,” continued Mr Hickman. “Apprenticeships for people under the age of 19 are already fully funded, with partial funding available up to the age of 24. But there are a number of advantages to training up older staff. One is that adult trainees can complete apprenticeships in as little as six months, compared to the average two years it takes entry-level apprentices. It also means employers can hand-pick trusted, experienced staff who already know the business and will be able to move on to more senior positions with the training offered by an apprenticeship. All in all, this represents a time-efficient and cost-effective means of companies responding to changing skills needs.”

Since taking over responsibility for apprenticeships in food and drink manufacture, Improve has overseen a steady increase in both apprentice numbers and completion rates. At the end of last year, a new apprenticeship framework for food and drink manufacture was introduced, which has slashed the amount of time apprentices need to spend outside the workplace on college courses, and which offers flexible training in specialised skills covering the whole breadth of the sector. It is anticipated this is will increase apprentice numbers more than five-fold over the next four years.

For more information about adult apprenticeships and how to secure funding, e-mail David Hickman at david.hickman@improveltd.co.uk, or log on to www.improveltd.co.uk.