New apprenticeship funding announced for Worcestershire

A further £250,000 funding has been made available to help young people gain employment in Worcestershire.

Worcestershire County Council is working alongside Worcestershire Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) to release its apprenticeship levy to provide training funds for local apprenticeships.

This is the latest initiative to help the county’s economy recover from the financial effects of COVID 19.

With an aim to support Worcestershire employers, this scheme will directly address skills shortages in the region and create apprenticeships for disadvantaged groups.

It will also enable community and voluntary organisations to enhance stability within their workforce.

Councillor Marcus Hart, Worcestershire County Council’s Cabinet Member with Responsibility for Education and Skills, said: “This funding is encouraging news for both local businesses and young people in Worcestershire who are interested in taking the apprenticeship route, which is incredibly valuable to our county.

“Now more than ever, it is important to recruit and inspire our county’s future workforce. Apprenticeships are a really great opportunity for young individuals looking to develop their skill set and build upon the county’s success stories within this area.”

Gary Woodman, Chief Executive of Worcestershire Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “This is great news around the release of funding to support more Worcestershire firms to take on apprentices, this is a crucial step towards allowing more businesses across the county to hire an apprentice in these difficult times and give a young person an opportunity to start their career.

“When we speak to businesses, many plan to hire apprentices and by releasing this funding we hope it will support more employers to use apprenticeships as part of their plans to create their future workforce in the county.

Anybody in England over the age of 16 can apply for an apprenticeship. They are nationally recognised and can help young people to gain qualifications and employability skills.

Worcestershire County Council currently offers apprenticeships at intermediary, advanced and higher levels across a variety of different sectors including customer service business administration, finance and accounting, social care and civil engineering.

To be eligible for funding, businesses must be paying Worcestershire Business rates with an application that supports Worcestershire’s growth agenda.

For more information, contact the team at Worcestershire County Council Apprenticeships Service at [email protected]