With the first week in March marking National Apprenticeship Week 2018, serial entrepreneur Jan Cavelle identifies why Britain has never needed a super-strong apprenticeship system so badly, and why it should follow France’s lead.
Do you know the rules and regulations for hiring employees under different kinds of contracts?
Whenever anyone asks me about my past, I praise my apprenticeship as my vehicle to success. It’s no surprise then that I couldn’t be happier that the Apprenticeship Levy has been launched.
With Theresa May saying the UK now has to “make its own way”, British businesses must put customer service at the forefront to get ahead of competition.
Apprenticeships have experienced a renaissance in recent years. This group is rapidly closing the gap on their university counterparts in terms of employability, while having a significant impact on businesses’ futures.
The government has announced its proposals for how the new funding arrangements for apprenticeships will work. The plans detail, for the first time, what proportion of the cost of training would be borne by businesses.
The Apprenticeship Levy – which comes into force in April 2017 – is part of the government’s plans to tackle the UK’s skills shortage and create 3m apprenticeships by 2020. However, with less than a year to go, a few hurdles have been made evident.
Lord Sugar has been named enterprise tsar, but it’s not the first time he finds himself with that job description. In fact, he ended up taking his role with him after quitting Labour and joining the rival Conservative Party.
While many still ponder whether to hire a graduate or implement an apprenticeship scheme, we asked Phil Hitchox, director of commercial and business development at First4Skills, on his thoughts on how the two options compare.
National Apprenticeship Week offers the chance for small business bosses to consider implementing a scheme of their own. But since the announcement of the National Living Wage and the apprenticeship levy, many SMEs are concerned about taking the leap.
Even for medium-sized firms that have the luxury of a dedicated personnel department, one of the things that keeps entrepreneurs awake at night is how they can maintain a workforce that delivers on their vision for the enterprise.
The UK is among the handful of shining lights in the global economy, with the International Monetary Fund predicting global growth of 3.6 per cent. However, the skills shortage across the world means many firms will struggle to capitalise on this growth.
