Apprentice travel pledge doesn’t go far enough

Conservative manifesto pledge: Introduce significantly discounted bus and train travel for young apprentices

Verity O’Keefe argues AGAINST

The manifesto pledge to support apprentices with discounted train travel is hard to argue against –but does it go far enough?

We think not. The pledge seeks to solve the problem of young people being put off from taking an apprenticeship because they can’t afford the associated travel costs. However, the real issue stopping many young people signing up for apprenticeships is the paltry wage rate of just £3.50 per hour.

If the next government really wants to put apprenticeships on the map and demonstrate to school leavers that they are a viable, credible career pathway to quality employment, they must pledge to raise the apprentice pay immediately.

READ MORE: Apprentice travel discount means politicians are listening

Boosting apprentice pay is something EEF, the manufacturers’ organisation, has called for in its recent submissions to the Low Pay Commission. We see a strong argument to protect the apprenticeship brand and safeguard quality admissions by increasing pay, alongside other incentives to attract more candidates such as the proposed discounted travel initiative.

Governments have never set out what they mean by quality when it comes to apprenticeships but we think it can be done. Quality should be determined on the positive outcomes achieved: long-term employment, opportunities for career progression, salary thresholds. Importantly, these are influenced by factors during the apprenticeship, including the length of the apprenticeship, the level of training and what is paid to the apprentice during training.

So to what would we increase pay? The age-specific minimum wage rate. Such a move won’t complicate matters, it will simplify them. And what employer wouldn’t want an easier life after the raft of apprenticeship reforms, in particular the apprenticeship levy?

The apprentice rate is currently set at £3.50 per hour, applying to apprentices under the age of 19 or in the first year of their apprenticeship. Any apprentice outside these parameters is paid their age-specific rate.

This is easy to understand if the apprenticeship on offer is 12 months long, where no matter what age the apprentice, they are entitled to £3.50 per hour. Not so easy when your apprenticeship, as is the case in engineering, lasts for four years. An apprentice starting aged 25 would be eligible for £3.50 per hour their first year, but that would increase to £7.50 per hour in the second year when they become eligible for their age-specific rate.

Increasing pay could attract better quality candidates

So why not make it easy and simply pay apprentices their age-specific rate from the start? Those employers that do recruit apprentices aged 16 would pay £4.05 until they turned 18, which is not a huge hike up from the current apprentice rate.

And if the apprentice rate is to do what it was set out to achieve at its introduction – strike the balance between a minimum wage level that prevents the exploitation of apprentices and wage costs being so high that they reduce the opportunity for employers to offer young people training and employment – then this is a fair argument.

But it’s not just about making things easy. Increasing pay could attract more and better quality candidates to take apprenticeship vacancies. We know manufacturers plan to increase apprenticeship numbers, and the levy will undoubtedly lead to other employers doing the same, however this will come to nothing if it is not met with demand.

Of course there are major challenges to tackle careers provision in schools and move parents away from the mind-set that apprenticeships are for other people’s children, but increasing pay is surely an attractive selling point?

Our own pay benchmarking data and previous government apprentice pay data reveals that pay for engineering apprentices is almost double the minimum rate. On top of that, apprentices in engineering are more likely than others to receive bonuses as they progress on the learning pathway. We know pay is not the problem in our sector. Our industry needs to shout louder that pay in manufacturing and engineering is higher than average, but in addition we also need to lose the tagline that the apprentice rate is still just £3.50 per hour.

So, by all means offer discounted travel for apprentices, but a real boost to apprentice pay would more than pay for the bus.

 

Verity O’Keefe is head of Education & Skills Policy at EEF the manufacturers’ organisation

Apprentice travel discount means politicians are listening

Conservative manifesto pledge: Introduce significantly discounted bus and train travel for young apprentices

Frankie Linn argues FOR

The Conservative manifesto commitment to an apprentice travel discount is a pleasant reminder that sometimes politicians listen. That sometimes including the ‘apprentice voice’ in meetings isn’t tokenism. That all those meetings and emails and trips to London might actually be worthwhile. Of course the money it’ll save will be useful but the most exciting thing about this announcement is that we know that when we get apprentices together to speak to decision-makers, things can change.

READ MORE: Apprentice travel pledge doesn’t go far enough

The National Society of Apprentices delivers the apprentice voice at a local, national and European level, supporting apprentices to reflect on their apprenticeships and engage with decision-makers on the issues that affect them. This announcement shows us that it works.

In 2014 one of the first things we did as the national society was to go and ask apprentices about travel. The message came back loud and clear: apprentices were paying too much on travel. Back in 2014 it was £24 a week and we can’t imagine it’s got any cheaper.

This means that working 35 hours a week for £3.50 an hour, travel consumes 25% of an apprentice’s weekly wage. Essentially that works out as working until your morning tea break on Tuesday just to pay your bus fare.

Here are some of the comments we received from apprentices:

“I worry a lot about my money situation … it puts a hard strain on me. Getting to work each day financially is a struggle”

“I’m enjoying my apprenticeship, however worrying about my financial situation is a regular occurrence”

Discounted bus and train travel is a change that will make a big impact on younger apprentices, who are more likely to be paid £3.50 an hour. We’ll know exactly how many that is once last year’s apprenticeship pay survey is finally published (cough, cough). This change means that fewer apprentices will have to rely on a second job, or worry as much about getting into debt.

Apprentices are a pretty positive, proactive bunch, but 40% of us regularly worry about money. We’ll have to wait and see exactly how the transport offer pans out and how it compares to the new MY Travel Pass in Wales and the changes afoot in Scotland. That said, when many of us are paying a quarter of our wage getting to work, a little help won’t go amiss.

 

Frankie Linn is part of the leadership team at the National Society of Apprentices

Panel of public services representatives encourage diversity in the workforce

Representatives from the world of policing, politics, education and the armed forces visited Bradford College for a discussion about diversity in the public sector.

The chief superintendent of West Yorkshire, Mabs Hussain, lieutenant colonel Paul Davies of the British Army and Naz Shah, Labour’s parliamentary candidate for Bradford West, were among the panel that spoke to students considering pursuing a career in the uniformed services.

As well as addressing the need for the public services to have the trust of the people they serve, the panel discussed the importance of having staff that reflect the diversity of the population.

PC Amjad Ditta, a specialist firearms officer with West Yorkshire Police and its positive action co-ordinator, was also on the panel, and explained how he encourages underrepresented groups to apply to join.  

“The event was to inspire and motivate our public services students and above all to empower them to make the right choices when it comes to career prospects,” said Lenka Kaur, the inclusion and diversity coordinator at the college.

“It was an amazing opportunity for our students to listen to and engage with such positive role models.”

Team of medics perform live post-mortem dissection for students and staff

An anatomist and team of practising medics have performed a live post-mortem dissection for students and staff at Walsall College.

The four-hour demonstration took place on a specially built artificial human cadaver, which housed real internal organs from a pig.

The event was open to all at the college, but was tailored for students looking to progress into careers in health and medicine, addressing how the body functions in a healthy individual, and what happens when disease takes hold.

Attendees also had a chance to handle anatomical samples, as well as putting questions to the medic team.

The college’s head of curriculum for health and social care, Jo Parton, said: “We are delighted to have hosted this unique event as it gave our students an opportunity to gain a real hands-on experience of human anatomy from a team of experienced industry professionals.”

Jade Sampson, a 16-year-old level two health and social care student, said: “I found the event really fascinating and I learnt a lot about the role different organs play in our bodies.”

Parliament for disabled students meets for the first time

A membership organisation for specialist colleges and independent providers has launched a student parliament for disabled learners to discuss the issues that are affecting them.

Natspec’s Student Voice Parliament met for the first time at Queen Alexandra College in Birmingham, with 20 student union representatives in attendance from 13 specialist colleges.

Topics debated by students included adding disability awareness to the curriculum, and the struggles faced on public transport, with many learners complaining about a lack of sufficient wheelchair space on their college commutes.

The issue of funding for education was also brought up, as many students attending specialist colleges are funded by their local authorities.

Cameron McQueenie

Cameron McQueenie, a third-year student at Beaumont College in Lancaster, said: “You shouldn’t have to fight for funding for education. An able-bodied person can get an education but a disabled person has to fight for everything.

“This partnership and the parliament will give young people with disabilities a greater sense of power. If we stand together our voices will get louder and louder and the politicians will have to listen.”

Salford City College students behind new steel artwork at Walkden train station

Salford City College students are behind the new steel artwork lining the walls of Walkden train station.

Students on the college’s BTEC art and design course came up with the series of travel-themed designs as part of a community project to improve the appearance of the 120-year old station in Manchester.

The project was conceived by the train operator Northern, the Friends of Walkden Station and Salford City Council, who enlisted the college and its students.

Manchester artist Mark Mennell worked closely with the students and chose a selection of their work which he made into 10 steel panels, which are now displayed outside the station entrance and continue down the stairwell.

“Working in partnership with the students from Salford City College really helped the delivery of an extremely important public art commission. Their ability to work as a team, even with these unfamiliar processes and with many high expectations, was truly an inspiration,” said Mr Mennell.

“As a result they have a set of completed artworks that reflect their creativity and hard work. Plus, these new pieces of art will create a much more enjoyable experience for the station’s users.”

£35k-a-year private school seeks £3.50-an-hour apprentice

A private school with annual fees of £35,000 has been branded “a disgrace” by one of the UK’s largest trade unions for offering a rate of just £3.50 an hour for an apprentice to tend its grounds.

Cheltenham College, an independent coeducational boarding school in Gloucestershire, advertised for an ‘apprentice groundsperson’ on the gov.uk ‘Find an Apprenticeship’ website with a September start date.

But despite the 175-year-old school charging annual boarding fees of £34,650 for its secondary level year groups and £35,595 for sixth formers, it is offering far less to prospective apprentices, who would earn a level two diploma in sports turf in return for their work.

Jon Richards, head of education at trade union Unison, described the salary as a “disgrace”, and told FE Week that the college should be “embarrassed” with its offer, asking it to “think again”.

“The apprenticeship minimum rate of £3.50 an hour is a disgrace, especially when the government is claiming that apprenticeships are no longer aimed at young workers, but are for all,” he said.

“How many of the school’s privileged pupils will be encouraged to take an apprenticeship when they can see the poverty wages on offer?”

In the last academic year, over 200,000 young people under 19 took a funded apprenticeship, according to government statistics.

An apprentice taking up the training offer at Cheltenham College would work a 39-hour week over two years, according to the gov.uk job advert. The minimum wage for all apprentices under 19, or in their first year of the programme, is £3.50 – for those over 21 it is £7.05.

There are no rules preventing employers from paying more.

In the role the apprentice will “prepare surfaces for cricket, rugby, and also maintenance of artificial pitches”, “help the grounds team to keep the college and prep school site to its high standards”, and “learn machinery maintenance and how to operate them”.

Mr Richards said paying just £3.50 an hour for this type of work “makes a mockery of the government’s claim that the apprenticeship route is valued as equally as the academic route”.

The University and College Union general secretary Sally Hunt said: “Just meeting the absolute minimum requirement is not something any employer should be proud of.

“One would hope schools, colleges, and universities would place a greater value on education and pay their apprentices in line with the national minimum wage.”

From next year the Technical and Further Education Act, which passed in April, will make it a legal requirement for schools to provide “an opportunity” for training providers to “access registered pupils… for the purpose of informing them about approved technical education qualifications or apprenticeships”, in an attempt to encourage more young people to access a vocational route.

Dr Alex Peterken, the headmaster of Cheltenham College, told FE Week that apprentices would be supported to complete their training in 18 months instead of two years if requested.

“The role is advertised in line with government published minimum wage rates in force at the time and is commensurate with other similar posts elsewhere,” he said.

 

 

Aspiring nail technician creates acrylic nails with real-life bugs, locust wings and snakeskin

A student nail technician has carved out a niche in the crowded nail art market by using dead bugs, insect wings and real snakeskin in her designs, reports Samantha King

Leanne Douglass (pictured), a nail services student at Stockton Riverside College, was inspired to do something different following a module on her course that explored embedding objects into acrylic nails.

The 28-year-old decided to go beyond using glitter and colour sprinkles, instead experimenting with snakeskin – procured from her mum’s pet snake.

“My mum keeps snakes, and when one shed its skin I thought I could use it in my nail designs. I’d seen people on Instagram painting snakeskin designs on nails, but not using the real thing.”

From there, Leanne spread her wings into embedding dead crickets, locust wings and feathers, after being inspired on her commute to college.

“I got the crickets from a pet shop I was walking past on the way to college,” she said. “I saw they were about to throw away these dead ones, so I asked if I could have them. I told them what I wanted to use them for and the lady working there really liked the idea; she said she wanted to see the nails when they were finished”

Before going into the nail, the bugs go through a complex sanitising process – to the relief of potential customers.

The raw materials

Posting the designs on her Instagram account, feedback on these unique creations has been positive, with one comment reading “they massively creep me out but they’ve been done really well”.

Alongside her course – from which she graduates in two weeks’ time – Leanne has been running nail business, Aurora Nails, from her home in Stockton, which also offers designs featuring sparkles, sequins and hundreds and thousands for the bug-averse customer.

“The crickets and snakeskin are quite a specific market,” Leanne said. “So far no clients have asked for the bug nails, but I haven’t properly advertised them yet. I’m focusing on finishing my course at the moment.

“A lot of people do think it’s creepy, but amazing at the same time. It is definitely quite a statement look so people tend to just go for one accent finger rather than a bug on every nail.”

The quirky designs have won her a £100 grant from the college’s enterprise forum to help her establish her fledgling business and stock up on supplies, after she successfully pitched to a panel of business, university, council and voluntary sector leaders from across the region.

“When I first started training as a nail technician I didn’t expect to enjoy it as much as I have. I have fallen in love with it,” she added.

Movers and Shakers: Edition 211

Your weekly guide to who’s new and who’s leaving

Steven Foden has been appointed vice principal of the Worthing College in West Sussex.

The college achieved an Ofsted rating of ‘good’ in its most recent 2016 inspection, following a ‘requires improvement’ rating.

Mr Foden has served as interim vice-principal at the college since 2016, and now takes it up on a permanent basis with immediate effect.

He will be working closely with the college’s principal Paul Riley, whom he says he “relishes the opportunity to work with”.

He continued: “I am thrilled and very excited to have been given the responsibility that comes with being the vice principal of Worthing College. I’m relishing the opportunity to work with our principal and all the staff and students to create an exciting and dynamic place to work and study.”

Paul Amoo, the college’s chair of governors, added: “This appointment means the leadership of the college, from a governance and management perspective, is now in a strong position to take the college forward to reach its goal of becoming an outstanding educational establishment.”

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The principal and chief executive of Gateshead College, Judith Doyle, has been appointed to the North East LEP’s business growth board to represent the FE sector.

The board works with public, private and education sectors across Durham, Gateshead, Newcastle, Northumberland, North Tyneside, South Tyneside and Sunderland local authority areas, and aims to create more jobs for the local economy.

Doyle has been principal of Gateshead College for almost four years. She first joined as a director of teaching and learning and worked her way to assistant and then deputy principal before taking her current job.

She said: “I am delighted to join the board and welcome the opportunity to work with such a great team of people who all share a passion and drive to help businesses grow and thrive in our region.

“A strong infrastructure of education, training and skills aligned to the needs of industry is crucial if we are to achieve our collective ambitions.”

Mark Thompson, the LEP business growth board chair, said: “Judith’s nationally renowned knowledge of the FE sector and proven experience of managing a large business will prove to be an invaluable asset to our board.”

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The vice-principal of Chichester College, Julie Kapsalis, has meanwhile been appointed to the Institute of Economic Development’s board of directors.

The IED is a professional body representing economic development professionals from both the private and public sectors.

Ms Kapsalis has been co-opted to the board until November 2017, and plans to help build links with Local Enterprise Partnerships, and use her knowledge of skills in the role.

“We have to train young people to give them the skills needed,” she said.

“The government’s focus on apprenticeships and the new apprenticeship levy is an opportunity to harness growth in this area, but it will mean that colleges and universities have to become more commercially minded and agile in supporting the ever-evolving skills needs of businesses.”

Ms Kapsalis has been vice-principal at Chichester College for almost three years, where she oversees commercial business. She is also chair of the Chichester Chamber of Commerce and Industry, and a board member of the Coast to Coast Local Enterprise Partnership.

 

If you want to let us know of any new faces at the top of your college, training provider or awarding organisation please let us know by emailing news@feweek.co.uk