IET Launches New Apprentice Award

Posted on May 16, 2013 by stephensmyth

Later this year, the Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) will celebrate

ATG Apprentices awards

the contribution of apprentices and technicians to the advancement of the engineering and technology sectors. This will be done through the newly launched IET Apprentice and Technician of the Year Awards. The winners will be announced on 20 November during the IET Achievement Awards Ceremony. Those wishing to compete for the honour have until the end of this month to submit their applications.

In the case of apprentices, the award will go either to an individual or a team comprising up to five apprentices. One condition is that the person or people need to be in at least their second year of an apprenticeship scheme approved by the IET. The applicants also need to be progressing well on their road to apprenticeship qualifications and to have contributed significantly to the business of their employer or area. This contribution will be documented in a report that has to accompany the application. Candidates also have to provide an endorsement statement from their employer or scheme coordinator.

The prize combines a certificate, a cash payment of £1,000 and two years’ free IET membership. If the apprenticeship award goes to a team, the cash prize should be shared equally among the apprentices.

The IET will also honour exceptional contributions and achievements by technicians. Nominations will be made in two categories: “Technician of the Year” and “Armed Forces Technician of the Year.” To be eligible, applicants in the second category must be serving members of the UK Armed Forces.

NAS Taps Young Digital Talent To Promote Apprenticeship Agenda

Posted on May 3, 2013 by stephensmyth

Technology plays a central role in young people’s lives and the National Apprenticeship

Facebook login page

Service (NAS) plans to make the most of this. Through the freshly launched “Can you hack it as an apprentice” design challenge, the NAS will kill two birds with one stone: bringing apprenticeships to the attention of more young people while giving young people themselves the chance to demonstrate their creative potential.

The competition will involve the design and development of a Facebook app or game, the plan being to have the prototype ready for launch in late summer. The five best ideas will be shortlisted and each developer will get £3,000 to bring their design to a prototype beta stage. Once testing is done, the winning developer will be granted another £10,000 to complete his or her work. The NAS will launch the product on its Facebook page in August. The competition is open to developers aged between 16 and 24 and entry forms must be submitted by 24 May 2013.

With the help of the new app or game, the NAS is aiming to increase awareness of apprenticeships and thus boost the number of young Britons entering vocational training. The initiative also seeks to address employer demands for high quality of apprenticeship applications.

The NAS has chosen to break with tradition, which would have seen the development task assigned to a creative agency. It said that by opting for an alternative course of action, the organisation is giving young people the chance to spread their creative wings and deliver a product for their peers.

Finalists For Brathay Apprentice Challenge Announced

Posted on April 30, 2013 by stephensmyth

The Brathay Trust charity has shortlisted the finalists for this year’s Brathay Apprentice

Successful ATG Training Apprentices

Challenge, which seeks the best apprenticeship team in the UK. The eight finalists were selected among 800 individual apprentices from 90 apprenticeship employers, training providers and colleges from across the country.

The finalists were announced by skills minister Matthew Hancock and include Broadland Council Training Services (BCTS), a Norfolk-based team of apprentices from local small businesses, as well as Burnley Borough Council, last year’s winners aerospace company Cobham, Cumbria-based packaging manufacturer Innovia Films, Norwich facilities management firm Norse Group, Plymouth City Council and Unilever.

Over the past two months, applicants took part in more than 60 community projects and 280 school visits to educate young people about the benefits of being an apprentice for a person’s career development and qualifications.

The Brathay Apprentice Challenge is supported by the National Apprenticeship Service and aims to find the best apprentices in terms of non-technical work skills and personal attributes. The shortlisted finalists will take part in further fundraising and awareness raising activities in May before the winner is announced at the final event, which will be held at Brathay Trust’s headquarters in Windermere on 10-12 June.

Matthew Hancock commented that all apprentices that participated in the Challenge this year have demonstrated the remarkable ambition and dedication they deliver to their employers on a daily basis. The selected finalists can be a real inspiration to young people who are thinking of becoming apprentices, he added.

Employer Event for companies seeking Apprentices

Posted on April 17, 2013 by stephensmyth

Following on from the high profile National Apprenticeship Week, ATG Training held an employer event on 16th April.

24 employers attended with several taking the opportunity to discuss their recruitment requirements for this year. With so many high profile companies seeking to add to their workforce with new #Apprentices this year it pays to register on www.atgapprenticeships.com to be kept informed of the latest opportunities as they arise.

Apprenticeships Event for Engineering Employers

Posted on April 4, 2013 by stephensmyth

We are holding an Apprenticeships Event for Engineering Employers at our head office on Tuesday 16th April 2013, starting at 4pm. Whether you already work with us or would like to know more about Apprenticeships, this is an event you should attend! Come and see our facilities, talk to our trainers and hear first-hand from our students the advantages of being an apprentice and how they have benefited their companies. To book your place, call 0845 894 9530 of e-mail: future@atg-training.co.uk.

Apprenticeships To Give UK Economy £3.4bn Annual Boost By 2022

Posted on March 13, 2013 by stephensmyth

National Apprenticeship Week (#NAW2013) is in full swing and a newly published report comes as a reminder of how important apprenticeships are for UK companies and the economy as a whole. According to estimates by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR), the UK economy stands to make net productivity gains of £3.4 billion annually by 2022.

The CEBR report, which is available on the National Apprenticeship Service website, was released on Monday to coincide with the start of the sixth annual National Apprenticeship Week. The independent economics consultancy has come up with the figure after estimating the productivity gains from 3.8 million apprentices who will complete their training in the decade ahead.

According to the publication, the average productivity contribution of an apprenticeship completer amounts to £214 weekly. The CEBR forecasts that 260,000 apprenticeships will be completed in 2012/2013 and the number will reach 480,000 by 2021/2022. The greatest beneficiaries are companies operating in the engineering and manufacturing sectors, where weekly productivity gains are estimated at £414 for each former apprentice. The annual number of completed apprenticeships in these sectors will grow from 38,000 to 81,000 between 2012/2013 and 2021/2022.

Charles Davis, CEBR head of macroeconomics, pointed out that the research left no doubt about the importance of apprenticeships to UK economic growth. Comments to that effect were also made by Business Secretary Vince Cable, who stated that the report gave a clear indication of the benefits apprenticeships deliver for businesses, individuals and the wider economy. Cable added that as part of its drive to make vocational training more accessible, the government is offering a £1,500 cash grant to small and medium-sized enterprises that recruit an apprentice aged under 24. National Apprenticeship Week is an excellent opportunity to make more employers aware that apprentices make a significant contribution to company skillsets and productivity, Cable said.

National Apprenticeship Week 2013: Two Young Britons Explain Their Choice Of The Apprenticeship Route

Posted on March 12, 2013 by stephensmyth

As part of National Apprenticeship Week, many young Britons in vocational training will be sharing their stories through the media or the numerous events organised around the country. The Guardian caught up with two apprentices, who talked about their choice and the reason they had opted for an apprenticeships over university.

Sixteen-year-old Natasha Swan is doing an engineering apprenticeship at aerospace and defence giant Rolls-Royce. In addition to her practical work at the company, she is studying for an engineering BTEC. The combination gives Natasha the opportunity to apply theory to practice, understanding both the whys and hows of the products and processes. She also notes the diversity of the programme, with subject matter including life skills such as business and communication. According to Natasha, many students simply drift along at school without developing an interest in anything but everyone at her workplace is sharply focused and ambitious. Natasha is now hoping to obtain a degree as part of the apprenticeship programme and will then strive to climb as high as possible in the business. She concluded by saying that she wants to explore different opportunities because she likes variety, which is something an apprenticeship can provide.

Billy Utting is 22 and favours an active lifestyle, which makes a desk job unappealing to him. He is currently in training at Pimlico Plumbers and describes his decision to become an apprentice as “looking at the bigger picture.” Billy, who was earning £200 a week at 17, says that many of his friends see no reason in doing an apprenticeship when a person could simply get a job. However, he believes he is gaining the skills that will ensure a well-paying job is there waiting for him when his training is done.

BAE’s Apprenticeship Intake Reaches Highest Level Since 2008

Posted on March 11, 2013 by stephensmyth

Over the course of this week, hundreds of events around England will pay tribute to apprenticeships and their invaluable contribution to the economy. Employers, training providers and apprentices are coming together to celebrate the sixth annual National Apprenticeship Week, showcasing the importance and benefits of apprenticeships for all parties involved. One UK company that considers apprenticeships vital for its future is aerospace and defence giant BAE Systems, which has expanded its trainee recruitment programme this year by 60 positions, bringing the number of its UK engineering and business apprentices to 387.

This makes 2013 the biggest year for apprenticeship intake at BAE since 2008. Nearly 10% of the newly recruited trainees will undertake the five-year Higher Apprentice Programme, seizing an opportunity to combine hands-on training with free study for degree-level qualifications.

Apprentice training is at the heart of the company’s Skills 2020 programme, which reflects BAE’s commitment to securing the talent it needs to operate competitively and successfully in its home market until and beyond 2020. In the UK alone, BAE allocates about £80 million annually for educational activities, partnerships with training providers and development initiatives for its employees.

According to Nigel Whitehead, group managing director at BAE, the company’s ongoing commitment to its apprenticeship programme indicates the sustainable nature of BAE’s UK operations and the success it has achieved in shaping the future BAE workforce. The company offers its young recruits the chance to train on the job and pursue academic studies without the burden of fee-incurred debts. This combination has proved a powerful motivator for apprentices to remain part of the BAE family, Whitehead added.

Aspiring Apprentices To Get Extra Help With Application Process

Posted on February 15, 2013 by stephensmyth

An estimated 17,000 young Britons are set to benefit from extra support through 16 projects launched under the Apprenticeship Application Support Fund. Training providers, colleges, charitable organisations and employers have joined forces to help 16 to 20 year-olds achieve success in applying for an apprenticeship, the National Apprenticeship Service (NAS) reported recently on its website.

Many of those projects will offer help to young people whose previous apprenticeship applications have proved unsuccessful. The assistance they receive will take the form of practical guidance in different areas, for example interview skills and CV preparation. The projects are expected to run until June, at which point they will be evaluated.

The fund sponsoring these projects is under the supervision of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP), which is acting on behalf of the NAS. The Apprenticeship Application Support Fund started with £450,000 from the NAS and its size later grew to £700,000 with a contribution from the Skills Funding Agency. The latter joined the initiative after an extremely positive response from bidders. The Skills Funding Agency was particularly impressed by the fact that many bids focused on facilitating access to apprenticeship programmes for under-represented groups, for example learners with disabilities.

Graham Hoyle, chief executive of the AELP, noted that both young people and employers had come to regard apprenticeships as a precious commodity, especially in light of the cut-throat competition in the youth employment market. However, aspiring apprentices can often find the application process their biggest challenge. With extra support at hand, more young Britons will be equipped with the skills to address this problem and embark on the path of vocational training, Hoyle stated.

It’s National Apprenticeship Week 2012!

Posted on February 6, 2012 by stephensmyth

It’s National Apprenticeship Week 2012! We are currently recruiting for a number of Apprenticeship positions in a variety of sectors, including Manufacturing, Business & Administration and Customer Service. For more details, go to: http://www.atgapprenticeships.com

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