The automotive sector should be taking a larger chunk of the £800 million the government puts into apprenticeships annuall, says Stephen Gardner, director of apprenticeships at the Learning & Skills Council.

Speaking at last week's AM People Skills Conference, Gardner said measures are being taken to encourage employers to access the funding available.

The LSC’s National Apprenticeships Service wants to help employers launch new programmes which will meet their exact needs.

Wage funding

The LSC has made great gains in recent years in driving up the percentage of apprentices who successfully complete their training, in order to raise the profile of apprenticeships among employers.

As Gardner points out: “There are only 10% of employers in this industry engaged in apprenticeships.”

Several initiatives will be trialled, such as funding wages of apprentices at SMEs or encouraging companies with industry leading programmes to over-recruit and train people for elsewhere in the sector.

For more from the conference, read AM on October 3.