On target! Record number of apprentices recruited to meet PSA target A record 176,500 apprentices were recruited in 2004/05, meeting the Learning and Skills Council’s Public Sector Agreement target and demonstrating the increasing popularity of the Apprenticeship programme. The news was announced by Ruth Kelly, Secretary of State for Education and Skills, at the Association of College’s annual conference in November. read more... Funding for ideas and innovation Six Sector Skills Councils have received seed funding from the Learning and Skills Council for Apprenticeships marketing pilots. read more... A chance to network The Learning and Skills Council and Sector Skills Development Agency hosted a highly successful networking event to help stakeholders drive Apprenticeships forward. read more... Working together to boost completions As Apprenticeship completion rates continue to rise, the Learning and Skills Council has launched new strategies to help the lowest-achieving sectors. read more... "My parents are chuffed to bits" The Young Apprenticeships Programme gives 14 and 15 year olds the chance to experience Work Based Learning while continuing with their studies at school. read more... We are deeply committed to Apprenticeships Key players from SEMTA and Rolls-Royce discuss how they work in partnership to promote Work Based Learning. read more... Read more on the latest news stories... The Big Brother survey New opportunities for young apprentices Guidelines become compulsory A boost to apprentice starts If you're not already a subcriber and would like to subscribe, please click here... Welcome to issue 14 of the apprentice newsletter. As readers are well aware, Apprenticeships are open to anyone aged 16 to 24 living in England and not taking part in full-time education. But now other age groups are getting the chance to become apprentices too. The Young Apprenticeships Programme offers 14 to 16 year olds the opportunity to experience Work Based Learning while they are still at school, while Apprenticeships for Adults trials are currently being held for the over-25s. In this issue we focus on young apprentices and adult apprentices. Gateshead schoolboy Ryan Henderson, who’s midway through a Young Apprenticeship, tells us about his first steps towards an engineering career, while the LSC’s Senior Policy Manager David Stephen explains the thinking behind the ground-breaking Apprentices for Adults initiative. We also look at the latest research on Apprenticeships – including the most up-to-date completion rate figures and a survey of apprentices’ pay – and announce the date of next year’s prestigious Apprenticeship Awards. Our regular Teamwork feature highlights an innovative new project devised by a group of Sussex-based training providers to make the process of applying for Apprenticeships simpler and more straightforward. As one of them explains: “We felt there was scope for a scheme whereby the candidates for Apprenticeships got a better service and we as training providers reduced the cost of duplication and effort.” As always, we welcome your views and comments on the newsletter. Please email us at newsletter@lsc.gov.uk