New research released to mark the start of National Apprenticeship Week has found businesses place apprentices at the heart of their plans to rise to the top and rank hiring the right staff as the most important factor in helping them grow.
![Engineering Technician (Marine Engineering) Zak Carroll Royal Navy [Image: MOD Crown Copyright]](http://africanvoiceonline.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2016/03/Royal-Navy-450x300-1.jpg)
Apprenticeships are at the heart of the government’s drive to equip people with the skills that employers need to grow and compete and today’s research shows that eight in ten managers believe apprentices are vital to their organisation’s expansion plans.
The research also showed that managers hiring apprentices were five times more likely to believe the company would expand rapidly, than those that don’t.
Two thirds (61%) of managers in growing firms felt that hiring the right staff or having employees with the right skills was the most important factor in realising the company’s ambitions.
The new independent research found that the right people and skills are ten times more important to businesses when it comes to expansion than access to finance.
National Apprenticeship Week launches on Monday, 14 March with an event at London’s Shard that is designed to encourage more businesses to take on apprentices.
Business Secretary Sajid Javid said: I hope National Apprenticeship Week will inspire many more businesses across the country to commit to taking on an apprentice. Apprenticeships don’t just offer life changing opportunities to our young people, they also deliver for the bottom line. We are committed to 3 million apprenticeships by 2020 because apprenticeships are good for Britain.
To mark the start of the week, seven top companies are announcing major commitments to apprenticeships, including Starbucks, Prezzo, Fortnum and Mason, Deloitte, Greene King, BT and Addleshaw Goddard.
David Sproul, chief executive of Deloitte UK, said: Improving social mobility is one of the UK’s biggest challenges. One of the ways in which we are seeking to address this is by doubling the number of positions available through our BrightStart Business Apprenticeship Scheme.
The scheme will provide 200 high quality apprenticeships to school and college-leavers, giving them the opportunity to study technical qualifications whilst working at the firm. For us, there is a clear business imperative to get this right. In order to provide the best possible service and make an impact with our clients, we need to hire people who think and innovate differently, come from a variety of backgrounds and bring a range of perspectives and experience into the firm. We truly value this difference.
Meanwhile, The Ministry of Defence is proud to be recognised as the single largest employer of apprentices in the UK. Apprenticeships are offered in a wide range of trades from engineering and construction, to hospitality and animal care, with more than 20,000 apprentices in training at any one time.
The Royal Navy delivers around 2,500 apprenticeships every year, with all recruits having the opportunity to achieve intermediate and advanced apprenticeships throughout their career. Engineering Technician (Marine Engineering) Zak Carroll joined the Royal Navy from Falmouth Marine College. A former Sea Cadet, the 18 year old swapped a job in McDonalds to become a submariner, and he wants to be a nuclear engineer technician once his training is complete.
