At risk of going well ‘off piste’, there are young people who want to do apprenticeships and employers who’d like them to do so (larger employers pay a levy to HMRC to be used specifically for them). The problem in my experience is that the learners must have passed GCSE at levels A to C. Some colleges will support them to study and get to the right level and so will many employers, But others won’t. . Thera are many who can’t apply themselves to academic learning but would make terrific plumbers, electricians, gas engineers etc. They are just excluded by the demands of functional skills. I spoke personally to the Secretary for Education, Gillan Keegan and, while she listened and empathised, she did say there are no plans to change the entry criteria. I wonder if a Labour government would do anything different but the chances of getting an answer out of Ruth Cadbury are very slim. Employers won’t, and often don’t have the funds, to pay for the studies, but they’d love to use their levy payments to fund learning.
Antony Smith ● 394d