Bristol South MP Karin Smyth met recently-appointed Apprenticeships Minister Rt Hon Anne Milton MP in Westminster to discuss joint working on better involving parents and small businesses in promoting apprenticeships in her constituency.
“Bristol South sends fewer young people to university than any other UK Parliamentary constituency,” says the Labour MP. “It means apprenticeships are especially valuable for our young people as they provide an opportunity of paid work and training that can open more doors in future.
“I support the government’s drive to improve apprenticeship opportunities for people I represent, and I was pleased to meet the Minister to discuss joint working to achieve this.”
She outlined to the Minister that 80 per cent of apprentices in south Bristol are in retail, health & social care and business administration – which lead to lower wages than other types of apprenticeships.
“We discussed the need to boost local opportunities for young people to take up schemes that lead to higher wages, such as engineering, construction and IT.
“I explained to the Minister the importance of bringing a Construction Training Centre to my constituency, at the site of the City of Bristol College’s South Bristol Skills Academy.
Parent and carer support
“The Department for Education uses a number of means to explain to young people the value of an apprenticeship and at our meeting we agreed that parents have a key role in promoting apprenticeships to young people.
“Parents and carers want to support young people but are rarely equipped or informed about those options. I believe we need much better communications and support to parents and will be looking to develop this locally in the next year.”
The meeting also covered the role of small and medium sized enterprises (SMEs) in improving apprenticeship opportunities in Bristol South.
Karin Smyth adds: “My constituency has hardly any large employers. 99.6% of business in Bristol South employ fewer than 250 people, 88% employ fewer than eight.
“SMEs in my constituency are pivotal to the success of future apprenticeships – both in helping young people find out about apprenticeships, and in supporting them through their programme.
“I look forward to working with the Minister, and with parents, SMEs and others, to help ensure local young people are able to make the most of the opportunities available in future.”