Asked by: Philip Boswell (Scottish National Party - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, what steps his Department has taken and what mechanisms are in place to ensure that apprentices in the retail and commercial enterprise sector are taught skills that they would not otherwise be able to learn on the job under a normal employment contract.
Answered by Nick Boles
In England, apprenticeships are jobs with an accompanying skills development programme to support the individual to achieve full competency in an occupation. The apprentice develops through a wide mix of learning in the workplace, formal off-the-job training and the opportunity to practise new skills in a real work environment.
A key expectation of apprenticeships is that they must be more than just training for a single job or employer: they must ensure that apprentices can adapt to a variety of roles, with different employers, and develop the ability to progress their careers. This is set out in the apprenticeship framework or standard.
The list of apprenticeships frameworks available for employers and training organisations is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apprenticeship-frameworks-live-list
A list of all the apprenticeship standards approved by the Skills Funding Agency that are ready for employers and training organisations to use is available here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apprenticeship-standards-ready-for-delivery
Asked by: Philip Boswell (Scottish National Party - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his Department's practice in consulting manufacturers on policy of the findings by the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in its report, Engineered in Britain, on the proportion of manufacturers who consider that the Government is performing well on manufacturing policy.
Answered by Anna Soubry
The Institution of Mechanical Engineers report “Engineered in Britain” states that the proportion of manufacturers who consider that the Government is performing well on manufacturing policy rose from 12% in 2011 to 24% in 2015. BIS Ministers and officials hold regular discussions with manufacturing companies and their representatives, including the Sector Councils, to develop a clear understanding of the capabilities and needs of UK manufacturing. Most recently, my right hon. Friend the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills spoke at the EEF National Manufacturing Conference on 24 February 2016 and I attended and spoke at the EEF National Manufacturing Dinner on the same date.
Asked by: Philip Boswell (Scottish National Party - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policy on apprenticeships of the finding of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in its report, Engineered in Britain, published in December 2015, on the number of manufacturers who would be encouraged to take on more apprentices if the Government provided £3,000 to any person who completed their apprenticeship.
Answered by Nick Boles
Apprenticeships are paid jobs. In October 2015 we increased the apprenticeship National Minimum Wage by over 20% to £3.30 per hour for apprentices aged under 19 and those aged 19 and over in the first year of their apprenticeship. Most employers pay more than this. The average gross hourly pay received by apprentices in England is £6.31 an hour for Level 2 and 3 apprentices and £9.69 for higher apprentices.
Apprenticeships have excellent wage returns for individuals over their working life. These add up to between £48,000 and £74,000 for level 2 apprenticeships and between £77,000 and £117,000 for level 3 apprentices. Those completing an apprenticeship at level 4 or above could earn £150,000 more on average over their lifetime.
These are the right long-term financial incentives for individuals to support the growth of apprenticeships towards 3 million new starts by 2020.
Asked by: Philip Boswell (Scottish National Party - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, how much funding has been allocated to apprenticeships in each year since 2010.
Answered by Nick Boles
The following table shows actual spending figures for apprenticeships in England for Financial Years 2010-2014
£K | FY2010-11 | FY2011-12 | FY2012-13 | FY2013-14 | FY2014-15 |
16 to18 inclusive | 744,870 | 758,966 | 670,211 | 717,575 | 783,198 |
19 and over | 450,880 | 624,602 | 753,886 | 737,022 | 776,573 |
TOTAL | 1,195,750 | 1,383,568 | 1,424,097 | 1,454,597 | 1,559,771 |
Responsibility for the Apprenticeship Programme is shared between the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills which funds adult apprenticeships (19+) and the Department for Education which funds 16-18 year olds.
The apprenticeships levy will put apprenticeship funding on an even more sustainable footing and improve the technical and professional skills of the workforce, which is an important component of productivity.
Asked by: Philip Boswell (Scottish National Party - Coatbridge, Chryston and Bellshill)
Question to the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, if he will make an assessment of the implications for his policy on apprenticeships of the finding of the Institution of Mechanical Engineers in its report, Engineered in Britain, published in December 2015, that more than half of manufacturers think that a lack of skilled people is the biggest danger to UK manufacturing.
Answered by Nick Boles
Skills policy is a devolved area so the Devolved Administrations have complete flexibility over how to support businesses in all sectors to ensure there are sufficient skilled workers. In England, our 2020 Vision sets out how we will reach 3 million apprenticeship starts by 2020. We are supporting the growth of apprenticeships in all sectors by working with large and small businesses to begin or expand their programmes, setting new expectations for public sector bodies, and through public procurement.
Employer-led reforms continue to improve the quality of apprenticeships, with employers designing new apprenticeship standards that fully meet their skills needs. Employers in the advanced manufacturing and engineering sector are involved in developing apprenticeship standards in over 30 occupations, including aerospace engineer and manufacturing engineer.