Business secretary Vince Cable has approved the first post-Richard Review Trailblazer apprenticeship in the sector construction – for construction assembly technicians – allowing employers to recruit young people onto the new training scheme.
But the announcement has come amid concerns that the government’s new approach to funding apprenticeships – also ushered in by the Richard Review – could potentially increase the bureaucracy and costs for employers.
The CITB this week called for SMEs and micro-businesses to be allowed the option for a third party to manage their apprenticeship delivery, and for plans to force employers to pay upfront for training before reclaiming the cash to be dropped.
The approved scheme is the first of three Trailblazer apprenticeships that the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) is using to help shift the industry from the present apprenticeship framework to a new generation of employer-defined and employer-led qualifications.
Alison Lamplough, head of operational training at Laing O’Rourke and chair of a group of industry employers, the Construction Trailblazer Group, said: “I am pleased the government has approved one of our Trailblazer apprenticeships and I am confident that such apprenticeships will help raise standards within the construction industry.”
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Steve Radley, director of policy and strategic planning at CITB, said: “The government’s Trailblazer apprenticeships have given the construction industry the opportunity to develop apprenticeship standards that meet the needs of employers and improve the assessment and grading system.”
“We are working closely with government to find ways to continue to implement the new Trailblazer approach and are keen to find ways forward to enable more construction Trailblazer apprenticeships to be approved.”
But when Radley gave evidence to the House of Commons education committee earlier this week, he warned that apprenticeship funding reform would become an administrative burden on small and medium size businesses (SMEs), and welcomed proposals that would mean employers would not have to pay apprenticeship training costs upfront (before reclaiming them via the tax system).
He said: “We welcome recent government announcements of a fresh look at the new upfront contribution that employers would have to make for a third of apprenticeship training under the reforms. This contribution would have put the construction industry, 95% of which is SME, under enormous financial pressure.
“Smaller firms are telling us they want choice in how they take on and support their apprentices and are concerned about the cost and bureaucracy of receiving funding directly to train apprenticeships. To stop these employers walking away from the new model of apprenticeship funding, a flexible approach to funding is key, with one option being to channel funding through third party providers, such as apprenticeship managing agencies, to help relieve the pressure on smaller firms.”
