Made in the Midlands interviewed the Deputy Director at the City of Wolverhampton College, Andrew Cartwright and Health & Safety Officer and Training Supervisor at Heller Machine Tools, Owen Needles to discuss: Apprentices & Bridging the Manufacturing Skills Gap.
Owen and Andrew answer vital questions including the potential impact of the levy on manufacturing businesses. Heller have a vibrant apprenticeship programme that has been running for over 30 years, which has resulted in a sixth of their workforce being apprenticeship graduates.
The Apprenticeship Levy is a levy on UK employers to fund new apprenticeships. In England, control of apprenticeship funding will be put in the hands of employers through the Digital Apprenticeship Service. The levy will be charged at a rate of 0.5% of an employers pay bill. Each employer will receive an allowance of £15,000 to offset against their levy payment.
Owen and Andrew also discussed the importance of utilising the levy. The levy means that employers who are committed to training will get back more than what they put in, which results in a positive for companies such as Heller Machine Tools. The episode also considers companies who want to use the levy to invest in their own staff.
The government is committed to boosting productivity by investing in human capital. As part of this, the government is committed to developing vocational skills, and to increasing the quantity and quality of apprenticeships. It has committed to an additional 3 million apprenticeship starts in England by 2020.
You can find learn more about the apprenticeship levy and gain some great ideas on building a thriving apprenticeship programme by watching our special MIMTV episode here: