Provisional figures from the Department for Education show an increase in starts on apprenticeship standards.Figures are released just days after the Institute celebrates its 400th approved standard.
At the start of the 12th annual National Apprenticeship Week, the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (the Institute) celebrates reaching 300,000 starts on standards - the latest milestone in a year of successes.
Provisional figures released by the Department for Education last week show that in December 2018, although the total number of apprenticeship starts are down overall, those that are underpinned by standards have seen an increase month-on-month this academic year. Compared with 2017/18 these latest results show starts on standards for this period are 68% higher. This means that each month more people start an apprenticeship on a standard compared to starting an apprenticeship on the old method of frameworks.
This latest release comes just days after the Institute announced the publication of its 400th standard – two months ahead of when they were scheduled to reach this number. This monumental milestone represents the success of the Institute’s ‘Faster and Better’ programme designed to approve standards more efficiently and effectively.
The Institute works with employers to develop apprenticeship standards that set out the knowledge, skills and behaviours an apprentice needs to learn to thrive in a specific occupation. In comparison to the old frameworks, these new standards are developed by employers and specifically address their skills needs.
Gerry Berragan, Chief Executive of the Institute, said:
“National Apprenticeship Week is a great time to celebrate the many opportunities available through apprenticeships and to recognise the integral role they play in supporting our economy by helping to develop a skilled workforce.
“Since this time last year the Institute has come a long way – from a relatively new organisation to one that has now secured over 400 standards and helped enable over 300,000 starts on those standards. This demonstrates how apprenticeship standards are working for both the employer and the learner.”
Notes to Editor
Figures released by the Department for Education can be found on GOV.UK