Small businesses are getting a much-needed helping hand to boost
apprenticeship opportunities across the city-region, Greater
Manchester leaders have announced.
The £1.9M support package, launched as part of National
Apprenticeship Week (4- 8 March), will provide the tools and
funding needed to help more than 1,500 small employers and create
at least 700 new apprenticeship opportunities.
There are approximately 60,000 small businesses across Greater
Manchester and around 25,000 new apprenticeship starts a year.
Approximately half of these starts are within small businesses,
therefore there are a huge number of employers who have yet to
provide apprenticeship places due to funding challenges and a
lack of clear advice and understanding.
The Greater Manchester #SeeDifferent Small-to-Medium Enterprise
(SME) Apprenticeship Support will help smaller employers and
offer additional incentives and support to remove barriers
preventing them from embracing apprenticeships.
Business will have access to grants, help with training and
recruitment, support with workforce planning, and advice on
creating quality opportunities in order to boost the number of
high quality apprenticeship opportunities across the city-region,
and help Greater Manchester achieve its target of significantly
more high quality apprenticeship starts by 2020.
Mayor of Greater Manchester said: “Small businesses are
the backbone of our local economy, representing two-thirds of
Greater Manchester’s business community. By doing things
differently we can help smaller employers breakdown the barriers
to providing high-quality apprentices and unlock hundreds more
opportunities for our young people and those who want to reskill
and retrain.
“In Greater Manchester we do not underestimate the value of
apprenticeships in bridging the skills gap, providing quality
employment and boosting productivity. We are leading the way in
developing our apprenticeship offer, putting it at the heart of
our plans to making this city-region the best place to grow up,
get on and grow old – this new support package will enhance our
work.”
Councillor Sean Fielding, Leader of Oldham Council and GMCA lead
for Education and Skills, said: “We’re building a Greater
Manchester where everyone has the opportunity to get on, from
making sure our young people are equipped for life to ensuring
our workforce has the right skills to grasp the opportunities on
offer across the city-region. Apprentices are key to achieving
this ambition.
“Historically, around 80% of apprenticeship opportunities were
with small-to-medium enterprises, benefiting apprentices and
employers alike. We’re committed to supporting small businesses
to re-grow this scale of apprenticeship opportunities, not only
giving local people employment opportunities, but also giving
employers the tools to shape the skilled and talented workforce
they need to thrive.
Funding for the package has been made available after another
Greater Manchester apprenticeship scheme came in under budget.
Levy transfers from large employers, including the public sector,
will also be used to support training costs.
The GMCA has worked with the ten Greater Manchester local
authorities, The Growth Company and the Greater Manchester
Chamber of Commerce to shape the support offer. More information
about how to access the package is available here.
GMCA has been working to improve the quality and grow the numbers
of apprenticeships in Greater Manchester, which saw 22,591
apprenticeship starts in 2017/18. This is in the face of
challenging reforms to apprenticeships, which has seen a fall in
apprenticeship starts since the Apprenticeship Levy was
introduced in April 2017.
Visit www.theapprenticeshiphub.co.uk to
find out more about the apprenticeship offer across Greater
Manchester.
