Apprenticeship Week with the Music for Good Scheme

KEVIN Brennan, MP for Cardiff West, has continued to promote National Apprenticeship Week across the country by visiting a scheme in Brixton that is helping youngsters in the music industry.

The UK's Apprenticeships Minister joined young people on the Music for Good Scheme to see how they are benefiting from their training.

"This is a great scheme that is helping train youngsters in the music industry for jobs in areas such as management, A&R or production," said Mr Brennan.

"National Apprenticeship Week is about celebrating the commitment of employers to recruit apprentices and urging people to look at the benefits to their skills and career of becoming an apprentice.

"Major UK employers are expecting to hire thousands of apprentices in 2010 and the government is encouraging all businesses to take up the new Apprentice Grant for Employers (AGE) scheme offering a £2,500 grant for each 16 or 17-year-old apprentice taken on.

"In the last year we have seen a record increase in the number of people starting an apprenticeship," said Kevin.

"The benefits are clear and this week I am urging businesses and young people alike to take a close look at what they can gain from them.

"Skills will be key to the recovery of the UK economy and apprentices can be vital to businesses looking to innovate and grow.

"I am proud so many businesses are hiring apprentices already. Last year 143,000 people completed an apprenticeship, helping to give them the skills and experience they need to get on at work."

New research commissioned through the National Apprenticeships Service and the British Chambers of Commerce shows that more than three in five UK companies plan to recruit this year, while 62% of businesses who employ apprentices said they made a positive contribution during the recession.

The good news for young people considering Apprenticeships is that drive and enthusiasm is the trait most prized by employers (83%) while having skills that the business will need in the future is also sought after (71%).