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Apprenticeships: Teesside

Volume 472: debated on Friday 7 March 2008

To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what steps his Department has taken to involve employers on the Tees to establish and deliver plans to increase the number of apprenticeships on (a) Teesside and (b) Stockton. (189336)

As part of National Apprenticeships Week in February 2008, the Learning and Skills Council worked with partners including employers and the Tees Valley work-based learning provider network to promote the broad range of apprenticeships available. This built on existing work with apprenticeship providers including in Stockton and the Tees Valley to improve quality and completion rates and to offer the apprenticeships employers and young people demand.

The Government report “World-class Apprenticeships: Unlocking Talent, Building Skills for All available at:

http://www.dius.gov.uk/publications/world_class_ apprenticeships.pdf

sets out plans to expand the number and range of apprenticeships throughout England. Plans to expand the number of employers delivering apprenticeships include developing more flexible and responsive apprenticeship frameworks, and incentives payments to targeted businesses.

Over the past decade, we have more than doubled the number of young people and adults starting apprenticeships in England. Over the period to 2020 we project that apprenticeship starts will increase to over 250,000 per year.

To ask the Secretary of State for Innovation, Universities and Skills what steps the Government plan to take to increase the number of apprenticeship in (a) Teesside and (b) Stockton. (189337)

The Tees Valley Learning and Skills Council will build on its existing work with partners including employers, sector skills councils and the Tees Valley work-based learning provider network to increase the number of apprenticeships on offer locally.

Government plan to expand the number and range of apprenticeships in England were set out in 'World-class Apprenticeships: Unlocking Talent, Building Skills for AH11 available at:

http://www.dius.gov.uk/publications/world_class_ apprenticeships.pdl

Over the past decade, we have more than doubled the number of young people and adults starting apprenticeships in England. Over the period to 2020 we project that apprenticeship starts will increase to over 250,000 per year.