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| SKILLSACTIVE
LAUNCHES NEW GOVERNMENT INITIATIVE FOR
SPORT |
SkillsActive, the Sector Skills
Council for sport and active leisure,
this week announces the launch of a
Young Apprenticeship programme for the
sector.
Aimed at 14-16
year olds, Young Apprenticeships aim
to address the issue of school leavers
entering the working world under-skilled
and under-qualified.
The initiative, already successful in
other sectors including engineering
and health and social care, aims to
make learning more flexible and meet
the individual needs of the students.
SkillsActive’s entry to the workforce
manager, Steve Mitchell said; “Young
Apprenticeships are a fantastic opportunity
to develop the future workforce of our
sector, and ensure the skills gained
will continue to improve and professionalise
the sector.
“The initiative takes nothing
away from the national curriculum and
the students will continue to work three
days a week on core subjects. It’s
aimed at those students wanting to gain
a vocational qualification and gives
them more options when they make their
FE or 6th Form choices, or decide to
enter a career at 16.
“We have spent the last 12 months
talking directly with employers across
the sector, and everyone is saying the
same thing, they find it difficult to
recruit new staff as they have no work
experience and no idea about working
in the sector. With the introduction
of Young Apprenticeships, we are able
to give future employees in the sector
the experience they need to get the
job they want.
“We look forward to working closely
with the partnership schools and helping
support the young people involved.”
Secretary of State for Culture, Media
and Sport, Tessa Jowell welcomed the
scheme; “This is a great initiative
designed to give young people the practical
experience they need to go on to careers
in the sport sector.”
SkillsActive is coordinating two pilot
schemes within selected specialist colleges,
each focussing on different employment
areas within the sector. Dorothy Stringer
Specialist Sports College in Brighton
and Hove will concentrate on Sport Operational
Services, and a partnership of Benjamin
Britten Specialist Technology College,
The Denes Business and enterprise Specialist
Sports College, and Lowestoft College
FE in North Suffolk will focus on Sports
Coaching and Development. Both pilots
have set up close relationships with
local employers who will provide the
apprentices with the required work experience.
Companies involved include, British
Triathlon, Ipswich Town Football Club,
Fit for All, and a variety of local
sports centres.
With over 30% of the Active Leisure
and Learning Sectors’ employers
reporting ‘hard to fill’
vacancies, SkillsActive have recognised
that the Young Apprenticeship programme
is an excellent opportunity to involve
a wide variety of the sectors employer’s
within the training of their future
staff, subsequently increasing the investment
made by employers in developing the
skills needed across the sector’s
workforce.
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