Apprenticeships can take between one and four years to complete depending on the level of Apprenticeship, the apprentices’ ability and the industry sector. The minimum salary is £95 a week; however, many apprentices earn significantly more.

What does an Apprenticeship consist of?

An Apprenticeship is a programme of learning which builds the skills of the apprentice, so they can make a better contribution to your business.  To become a qualified apprentice, your employee will undertake:

• A National Vocational Qualification (NVQ), which tests the apprentice's ability to do practical tasks related to their job, to certain quality standards
• A technical certificate, which gives the apprentice a broader understanding of your business area, to help them to understand more about how their job fits in to the company's overall activities
• "Key skills" such working with numbers and communication - as these underpin many activities in most jobs

There are two levels of Apprenticeship:

• The Apprenticeship (called a Foundation Modern Apprenticeship in Wales), which usually takes a minimum of one year to complete
• The Advanced Apprenticeship (called a Modern Apprenticeship in Wales), which usually takes a minimum of two years to complete

Apprentices learn through a combination of actually doing the job (with assessments along the way), and practical teaching.  This is usually carried out by a local college, although some private-sector training providers also offer apprenticeships.

The Fashion and Textiles Apprenticeship

Skillfast UK has developed Apprenticeship Framework (since August 2009) which allows the Apprentice to follow one of five "pathways", including:  apparel, textiles, footwear, leather goods or saddlery.  That means that each apprentice will learn the skills that are best suited to their job in your company.  As many employees now have to be multi-skilled and work across more than one area of the business, it is also possible to create your own apprenticeship pathway, by selecting from a number of qualification options.  This means that your employee will learn what they need to know, and won't waste time developing skills that are not relevant.

For more information on the Skillfast UK scheme: www.skillfast-uk.org

The government in England has launched the National Apprenticeship Service to help "match" employers who want to recruit, with young people with an interest in taking a job that will train them through an apprenticeship. The government in England is very keen to push apprenticeships as a way of up-skilling employees - particularly those under 25 years of age.  That means that you can receive funding to help pay for the cost of training. 

For more information on the Government scheme: http://www.direct.gov.uk/en/EducationAndLearning/AdultLearning/TrainingAndWorkplaceLearning/DG_4001327

Information provided by www.skillfast-uk.org