Doug Richard’s review of apprenticeships is about to be published. For months I have been pressing the case for a Whitehall apprenticeship scheme and the Richard review offers the opportunity to take this forward. The government should now immediately launch a civil service apprenticeship scheme to run alongside Whitehall’s existing graduate fast scheme.
Whitehall currently employs virtually no apprentices below the age of 21, and few above this age. BIS, the department responsible for apprenticeships nationally, is one of the worst offenders. The government preaches apprenticeships to the private sector but does not lead by example, as it should. A Whitehall apprenticeship scheme would be worthwhile in its own right, given the number of technical and clerical jobs in government departments well suited to apprenticeship training. It would also give a decisive lead to the rest of the public sector and to the private sector.
A huge expansion of good quality apprenticeships for under-21 year-olds is needed to tackle youth unemployment and to give good opportunities and incentives to the 50 per cent of young people who are not on track to go to university. As Ed Miliband said in his conference speech, these are the ‘forgotten 50 per cent,’ and nothing would do more to bring them into the ‘one nation’ mainstream than for there to be as many apprenticeship places as university places on offer for school leavers each year. This should be a key objective of national policy, starting in Whitehall.
Here in more detail is the case for a Whitehall apprenticeship scheme I set out earlier this year.
Andrew Adonis is chair of Progress and former Transport secretary.
Photo: Kyuss Q