Apprenticeships in West Yorkshire 2023: 3 reasons why you should hire an apprentice, and support available
National Apprenticeship Week runs from 6 February - 12 February, offers an opportunity to recognise the important role apprentices play in helping businesses grow and their potential to address skills shortages in your business.
In West Yorkshire, nearly 7000 businesses have taken on an apprentice in the past year with 33,600 new apprenticeships started.
West Yorkshire Combined Authority can help your business recruit an apprentice through our Skills for Growth programme. We can connect small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) from all sectors in West Yorkshire, Harrogate, York, Craven and Selby with local schools, colleges and universities.We’ve pulled together three reasons why you should consider hiring apprentices to help you build talent pipelines, increase productivity, help young talent thrive and close skills gaps across the region:
Adds a new dynamic to your business
Fresh faces and innovative ideas for improving organisational culture. Hiring apprentices is a fantastic way to introduce new and fresh ideas to the business. Young people starting their careers are often ambitious and keen to learn and bring with them innovative ways of thinking.Recruiting apprentices can help you fill entry-level positionsNurture junior employees to fit your business. 85% of employers said apprenticeships helped them develop skills relevant to their organisation. This is because having an apprentice gives them exposure to the world of work, and specifically the world of your work.You can improve retention rates by hiring apprenticesCreate a motivated and fulfilled workforce. Apprenticeship programmes offer young people with a clear pathway into a career, which is essential in the job market and is usually accompanied with significant support from a mentor in the business. As employers invest time in apprentices, it can offer them structured career progression and build confidence that can improve their job satisfaction.
Neil Durham of D&E Metal Fabrications adds: “We recruited an apprentice to grow our fabrication business. The apprentice is a very quick learner and is progressing in the role quicker than we could have expected. She has already settled in and is a valued member of the team and has positively added to the dynamic in the office.”
The fully funded programme from West Yorkshire Combined Authority and Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership is part-funded by the European Social Fund as part of the 2014-2020 European Structural and Investment Funds Growth Programme in England.
To learn more about how your business could benefit from the programme, visit the-lep.com/SkillsforGrowth.