Communities called to examine apprenticeship route

Communities called to examine apprenticeship route

Youth charity Rathbone is launching a drive to get more Black and Asian youngsters ‘learning on the job’ – after statistics showed that just 9% of apprentices in England come from these backgrounds.

Working in Bradford, Leicester and Oldham, Rathbone aims to recruit 300 new apprentices over the next 18 months. The charity believes that a lack of information on work based training allied to a shortage of places has meant that many BAME (Black and Asian Minority Ethnic) communities have been under-represented when it comes to apprenticeships.

Launching the drive at a meeting of community bosses at The Spice City Journal Business Network at the Taj Palace Restaurant in Oldham tonight (Monday 21st March), Phil Carey, Employer Engagement Officer for Rathbone, will call for apprenticeships to be, “put on a par with a university education. They give young people that vital taste of the work place and can lead to careers as diverse as medicine and teaching.”

Rathbone has already had considerable success in working with communities in places such as Derby, East London and Bolton and believes the secret to success is to listen to young people such as office worker Kouser Khalifa (24, from Leicester) - who has made a success of work based learning.

“A lot of parents don’t know about apprenticeships and think the only options available to their children are university or work” said Kouser.

Oldham child carer Amina Kador agrees that parents need to know more about apprenticeships. “I have similar responsibilities to university students on placements and my mum is dead proud because she can tell everyone I’m working at a school!” added the 18-year-old.

Aside from convincing young people to examine the apprenticeship option, Rathbone will be encouraging bosses to take on more work-based trainees through meetings and specially designed marketing materials.