Scrap lower level apprenticeships for under-18s, says think tank

New research from a UK think tank suggests that lower level apprenticeships are failing 16–­18 year olds, calling for them to be replaced with a new pre-apprenticeship programme.

The Institute for Public Policy Research, otherwise known as the IPPR, today (Thursday) publishes a new report on apprenticeships for those aged 16 to 18 in England. It states that these apprenticeships are falling short in helping young people get on the career ladder due to them often being narrowly job specific, rather than offering a wider view of an industry, and not including enough off-the job training. Additionally, from next year they will not be required to include a recognised qualification and just two in five students studying a level 2 qualification (including these lower level apprenticeships) at age 17 move on to a level 3 qualification.

While the overall employment level is at an historic high, youth unemployment remains a persistent problem, with young people two and a half times more likely to be unemployed than those aged 25 or over. For those young people with lower levels of skills, the employment rate is almost 20% lower than those with higher levels of training.

The IPPR is arguing for a new pre-apprenticeship programme for 16­–18 year olds, based on the best systems internationally to ensure young people get the high quality training they need. It proposes that this would contain a better balance of ‘on the job’ and ‘off the job’ training and be designed to help young people continue to higher training or study, which would include having a transferable qualification and being tied to one of 15 clear career paths. It would also incentivise employers to recruit young apprentices by giving them the flexibility to use Apprenticeship Levy funds to subsidise wages. The programme would also be available through further education colleges.

Clare McNeil, IPPR’s Associate Director for work and families, said: “Young people often struggle to make the transition from education to work. Our apprenticeship system is failing too many young people. It is just not giving them the opportunity they need to build a successful career, and to make the most of their talents. 

“Britain can’t afford to waste young people’s talents like this anymore. Our system needs to help business and training providers to work together to deliver radically better training for these young people, learning from the best systems around the world.

“IPPR’s plan will do just that.”

The JPMorgan Chase Foundation has supported today’s report as part of its New Skills at Work programme, which aims to identify strategies and support data-driven solutions that help improve labour market infrastructure and develop the skilled workforce globally.