Taking on an apprentice

[PDRD]

Hi. We are about to hire a 20 year old lad for our workshop and plan to train him on various aspects of the job but we were wandering if we can take him as an apprentice? He is currently unemployed and has been in for a couple of trial periods and he 'seems' to have a good attitude and work ethic.

What are the pro's and con's of having an apprentice?

Are there grants for taking them on?

Any advice, experiences or info welcome.
Thanks
PDRD

 

[BustersDogs]

To be an apprentice he has to do 30 hours a week, which includes the time they are at college training - an apprenticeship should lead to a qualification. I looked into this about a couple of years ago and yes there were grants (one ran out while I was dithering) for this age group. More info here - http://www.apprenticeships.org.uk/e...small-business/what-is-an-apprenticeship.aspx

 

[Gaz Walker]

Well worth doing, the link from BoredomBusters above will cover most of the details and questions.

Most places do grants upto £1500 from the Gov, sometimes you can get more from certain training providers.

Takes 5-7 months before you get it though so keep that in mind.

 

[DavidWH]

YES! We've a 19 year old with us at the moment. The hard part is finding a decent provider, let alone a decent apprentice.

 

[maxine]

Hi

I really like apprenticeship framework and have used about 7 times now and currently recruiting 2 more.

Pro's & Cons (and tips etc)

- Make sure you get your recruitment right. Even though you have this lad in mind it's good to stand back and ask yourself if he is the right person for the apprenticeship role? He probably is, but doesn't hurt to stand back and think about it properly.

- Consider what role they will be doing at the end of the apprenticeship and make sure that whatever training is done it helps to actually develop competency towards that job role in 12-18-24 months time. You don't want them to get to the end of the training/apprenticeship and then not really want to take them on full time in a different role because the training hasn't gone so well. My biggest learning here is to make sure that I commit to proper in-house / on the job training on the way I do things here alongside the apprenticeship training at college or the nvq modules.

- You can get £1500 back after 12 weeks approx although it's usually another month after that provided they have been on 30hrs a week at the minimum wage (apprentice wage)

- Make sure you pick the right training course for them to do with a college or private learning provider.

- Talking of learning providers the private providers have always been better in my experience as they seem to be a bit more in touch with businesses than colleges are

Good luck and what industry are you in?

 

[fairdealworld]

If the young man is enthused by the idea of an apprenticeship when you put it to him this could be a very good move both for you and for him.

I'm a shopkeeper (in a small specialist shop which requires a big variety of skills from staff which go far beyond filling shelves and serving at the till) and took on my first ever apprentice in October 2012, and it has worked out very well both for the apprentice and for me and my business.

I used a private provider and my apprentice received her formal tuition from a tutor who came to our place of business. This was a mixed blessing, in some ways helpful, in some ways an extra demand to find them space to work together, be hospitable to the tutor, etc.

I agree with most of the comments made by the others (except that I had some good applicants for the post and the person who took up the position is a very good employee). I'd add the following:

the employee is more motivated because they will end up with a qualification which will help them in the future,

my employee certainly regarded it as a thing of 'status' to be an apprentice and on an official apprenticeship programme, essentially she regards it as the start of 'her career' and not 'just a job',

it is quite stimulating for the employee to either have a tutor come in or go to college and also gives them the ongoing discipline of having to complete assignments for college or tutor (and the college or tutor has to nag them about it not you!). It can also be quite stimulating for the business. I wasn't altogether impressed by the contents of the course offered (but in my sector there are particular reasons for that) but things did come up which made me think if we should be doing this or that or definitely avoiding this or that,

it can be a selling point for your business and products that you offer an apprenticeship i.e. it can help enhance the status of your business.

 

[Wavecrest Ltd]

We've just signed up for our second apprentice after having a good experience with our first one (he has now been taken on by us as full time member of staff).

Good luck if you decide to go ahead.

Glen

 

[PDRD]

Thanks everyone.

We are a steel fabrication company so we may look to take someone on in both the workshop and the office.

Is it best to check the courses etc which are available first then find the candidate to suit? or find a good candidate and then match a course to them?

Thanks
Phil

 

[Gecko001]

The apprentice I took on left after six months and thus even though I had paid for his day release at college (fees and time off) I did not qualify for any of the grant I was promised because he had not finished a year. That was probably not the worst part of the experience as far as I was concerned. the worst part was dealing with the granting authority. The people I dealt with were so obtuse in everything they did. When I queried something with them often they would hide behind educational jargon even though few if any of them were educationalists. I remember being told that they did not use the word "qualification" but instead preferred the word "outcomes".