The theme for this year’s National Apprenticeships Week is ‘skills for life’, and at the National Theatre we recognise the importance of investing in skills and education to empower the next generation, sustain the creative workforce and open up career pathways for young people nationwide.
Data from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport shows 30 per cent of job vacancies in the cultural sector are affected by skills shortages, with 60 per cent of theatres reporting that staff shortages have become much worse since 2019.
Ravensbourne University London also found that three-quarters of 18-25 year-olds want to work in creative sectors, but almost half say it’s too hard to find entry-level opportunities.
Investing in skills and training for young people now is vital to sustain and support the pipeline of talent into the creative industries.
The National Theatre’s apprenticeships programme, which was recently awarded a Princess Royal Training Award in recognition of its impact across the sector, has recruited over 50 apprentices across 17 departments since 2011.
It has upskilled 17 employees and recruited four apprentices as part of the government’s pilot portable flexi-job apprenticeships scheme – in conjunction with the Royal Ballet and Opera, Ambassador Theatre Group and White Light.
Ten apprentices are currently training across the organisations in areas including technical theatre, finance, props and carpentry.
Over 90% have gone into paid professional work
Over 90 per cent of those entry-level apprentices who completed their training with us in the last decade have gone directly into paid professional work in the area they were trained in, with eight former apprentices now working at the National Theatre.
Skills are also being applied across the creative industries and further afield, with former apprentices going on to work at the Royal Shakespeare Company, Netflix, the Royal Navy and one even going on to open their own tattoo parlour, now employing their own apprentices.
We also recognise the need to ensure this training is fit for purpose and meeting the needs of employers. Recognising the growing gaps in the range of qualifications and training for essential technical roles, we are working in collaboration with the Royal Ballet and Opera and other organisations across the industry to deliver new, early career pathways for the UK’s world-leading live performance industry.
New apprenticeship standards have been developed for key backstage roles including wig and make-up technicians, costume performance technicians and scenic artists, giving young people the opportunity to learn hands-on, transferable skills to benefit the whole creative industry.
In the context of skills for life, it’s not just entry-level routes into early careers that apprenticeships offer. Level 7 apprenticeships offer the equivalent of a master’s degree and provide essential training for the creative sector that otherwise would not be available.
There are currently 10 level 7 apprenticeship standards in the creative and design route, from curator and archivist to visual effects supervisor and production manager.
These apprenticeships provide paid professional training and can open routes that would otherwise be inaccessible due to barriers such as cost. An archivist, for example, would traditionally require an MA which incurs a huge cost that excludes some prospective candidates. The level 7 archive assistant apprenticeship gives training equivalent to this.
A recent House of Commons library research report shows that the higher education entry rate among 18 year olds was only 36.4 per cent in 2024, so it’s essential we recognise the need to offer alternative and viable pathways for the next generation.
Our current apprentice archive assistant Nadia had intended to study for a master’s degree to get the necessary qualification, but found it was not financially feasible for her. Through her apprenticeship, she says she “can learn about the archive industry in an accredited archive with experienced and knowledgeable colleagues, and earn at the same time”.
National Apprenticeships Week shines a spotlight on the value of apprenticeships to create meaningful career pathways for young people. By recognising their worth, we can open opportunities and make a real and lasting impact on our world-leading creative industries.
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