Responding to the recommendations of a Department for Business, Innovation and Skills-commissioned review on apprenticeship bureaucracy – led by the Employer Reference Group, the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and large companies (including BT and TUI Travel) – Hayes said that firms contracting directly with the Government to train apprentices will now benefit from simplified payment, reporting and assessment requirements.
Those companies will also receive better guidance to help them manage the recruitment, training and assessment of apprentices more efficiently and cost effectively.
The news dovetails neatly with the premise and ethos behind the 100 in 100 campaign launched by Skills for Security, CSL DualCom and SMT Online at IFSEC 2011: a campaign aiming to place 100 new apprentices in security sector employment prior to the Security Excellence Awards on 19 October.
Sue Hawkins – Skills for Security’s senior marketing and PR officer – has today reported that 70 apprentices have now signed up for the security sector-focused 100 in 100 campaign (more of which anon). 49 companies are involved, with 57 organisations still in the pipeline.
“We are receiving new enquiries all the time,” Hawkins told SMT Online, including leads generated only yesterday by the British Security Industry Association.
On the Government’s latest announcement, business secretary Vince Cable commented: “Apprenticeships are proving an increasingly effective training route for young people and companies. They’re a proven way to fill skills gaps in our economy. That’s why we are boosting the number of apprenticeships and putting them at the heart of our Skills for Growth strategy.”
Cable added: “For far too long now, too many businesses have been put off by overly complex procedures and unnecessary layers of paperwork. We’ve worked with business to cut bureaucracy and ensure the benefits for employers, learners and the economy are maximised.”
Unprecedented investment in apprenticeships
Announcing the measures at a summit hosted by the Confederation of British Industry, John Hayes stated: “I’m determined that more employers and learners than ever should have the opportunity to benefit from our unprecedented investment in apprenticeships. Where red tape and bureaucracy deters employers from taking on apprentices, we’ll sweep it away.”
Hayes enthused: “That will give more firms access to the skills they need to thrive, in turn creating new jobs and new growth, and it will also give many more individuals better prospects and the chance to gain a real stake in society.”
Key aspects of the Government’s action plan for cutting red tape for employers include:
Response from the
Responding to the Government’s announcement, Susan Anderson (the CBI’s director for education and skills policy) said: “We welcome this latest report and the Government’s commitment to expanding apprenticeship schemes. Apprenticeships are vital to developing the skills that support economic growth, and many employers already deliver excellent programmes.”
Anderson went on to say: “Cutting bureaucracy will support even more businesses to become involved: these latest recommendations set out the right path for reform. They recognise that employers are primarily concerned with the day-to-day running of their businesses, and that they’re committed to offering high quality training as their reputation and business success depends on this. We will work with Government to take these plans forward.”
Continuing the theme, Anderson said: “We need to maximise spending on productive training and not divert resources to deal with administration. The money saved by reducing bureaucracy should support more apprenticeship places.”
As far as the CBI’s concerned, these reforms should now be applied to smaller and medium-sized companies and the providers they work with. SMEs represent a significant market for apprenticeships, and it’s essential to make it easier for these firms to access apprenticeship programmes.
Andy Palmer – BT’s director of education and skills – said: “For the last year, BT has worked as part of BIS’s Employer Reference Group to improve the system and reduce the burdens on employers. The changes we are proposing will have a significant impact on bureaucracy rather than merely tinkering at the edges.”
The Government has put the expansion of a high-quality, employer-led apprenticeships programme at the heart of a reformed skills system. This year’s budget included an additional GB pound 150 million to deliver 50,000 additional apprenticeships.
In July, the Prime Minister announced details of a new Higher Apprenticeships Fund to help key industries including advanced manufacturing and engineering develop the advanced skills needed to drive growth and create an ownership society.
Further measures to cut red tape for small and medium-sized employers taking on apprentices will be unveiled this autumn as part of the Government’s overall plan for economic growth.
100 in 100 campaign: momentum continues to grow
Meanwhile, the numbers of companies signing on for the 100 in 100 campaign continue to grow.
“The purpose of 100 in 100 is to put the security industry ‘out there’ as a credible opportunity for young people who want a good career with prospects,” urged Simon Banks, commercial director at CSL DualCom and one of the major driving forces behind the initiative.
“There needs to be a sea change in the way that parents view their childrens’ future and how the children themselves see their future. There is no fast-track route to success.”
Banks explained: “Modern apprenticeships are not the only answer to a hugely complex social and educational issue, but in our small corner of the world 100 young people will have jobs and an education structure in a flourishing Industry as a direct result of this pioneering campaign.”
Plenty of company representatives have lined up to support the campaign, among them Anthony King of Kings Security.
“Kings Security has been avidly supporting the 100 in 100 apprenticeship drive. We’re proud to be part of an initiative that creates a solid career path for young people in our industry while offering them a viable alternative to a university education.”
Jonathan Parker of Swift Fire & Security is also on board with the campaign. “Swift Fire & Security is very proud to be associated with the 100 in 100 apprentices drive. Our experience of the process has been seamless, with guidance on hand from start to end.”
Swift continued: “The campaign has helped put the industry on the map as an attractive career path for young people as well as providing a much needed alternative to the now very expensive academic route.”
100 in 100: access to a career
Ian Jarvis of campaign supporter PWP Fire and Security has also had his say on the initiative.
“The 100 in 100 campaign is one of the strongest incentives in recent times to encourage young people to take the first step into employment in our industry. It allows them to continue their education into what could become a lifelong career with good rates of pay and job security.”
As a company, PWP Fire and Security believes in skills for the future and training apprentices to the required industry standards.
“Our experience is that apprentices are keen, hardworking and loyal to our company,” said Jarvis. “They help us to improve productivity and provide a long term reduction in our training and recruitment costs.”
In conclusion, Jarvis told SMT Online: “We’ve found the whole process very easy. After contacting Skills for Security they basically took care of the rest and handled all aspects of the apprenticeship signing, learning plan and college liaison.”
Mark Ashall of Unique Integrated Systems offered his opinions on the 100 in 100 campaign.
“The main appeal of the scheme is that it gives apprentices access to a career and an industry-recognised training plan. 100 in 100 allows us to train the apprentice in-house to a very high standard in exactly the way that we require in the hope that this will instil an element of loyalty towards UIS.”
He went on to explain: “In doing so, the initiative provides UIS with the opportunity to show our customers that we train and employ fully-qualified staff. Our experience with Skills for Security to sign up our apprentice was first class. We found all parties involved to be extremely helpful to both ourselves and our new apprentice.”
The Quadrant Security Group’s spokesperson Paul Betts added: “Quadrant Security Group wants to be part of helping to get the economy moving. We view the 100 in 100 scheme as a small way to contribute towards this. Having an apprentice allows us to instil our company values early on, as well as creating a workforce for the future.”
Betts enthused: “Following my initial contact with Skills for Security, I found the learning plan and sign-up process for the apprentice easy to navigate.”
The 100 in 100 Roll of Honour
Among those companies who have signed on to participate – and now sit within our ‘Roll of Honour’ are:
TI Security, CIS Security, A.P.E Security, CSI Systems, UIS (Unique Integrated Systems), Active Security, CSL DualCom, E-Bound, Security 1, CCS (Covert Camera Solutions), Morse Security Systems, Cryptex Security, BDS Fire and Security, Octagon, Dash Security, Code Security Systems, Quadrant Security Group, Technica, Boss Security, All Secure Security, Network Security and Alarms, Access and Lock, Griffin Fire, Black Box Security, Intelligent Fire Systems, Thompson AVC, SIS, C&C Barnsley, PWP Fire and Security, BJC Fire and Security, H S Security Services and Access Fire and Security.
How does 100 in 100 work?
100% funding is available for would-be security sector apprentices in the 16-18 age range, with available fiscal support duly scaled by age from that base point.
For employers who want to take part there’s no catch involved – merely the opportunity to mirror the current Government’s thinking by leveraging the opportunity to employ quality candidates who will benefit the host business both in the short and longer terms, and for a minimal economic outlay.
All of the arrangements for those security companies who want to take part in this brilliant scheme are taken care of, whether that be in terms of assistance in sourcing apprentices, appointing the college(s) at which they’ll study, providing assessors or drawing down the crucial funding.
For further information on the ‘100 in 100’ project, contact Skills for Security’s Customer Relations Team on (telephone 08450 750111), or send an e-mail to: [email protected]
**Help us make the target, which will be a fabulous – not to say landmark – achievement for the sector!**
