Mayor's View: Changing futures, one apprentice at a time

Last week was National Apprenticeship Week, and I had the chance to spend time with some of our region’s apprentices and the businesses backing them.

What stood out immediately was the optimism around this ‘earn and learn’ route into the workplace and the very real difference it makes to people’s lives.

For apprentices, they get the skills they will actually use in the workplace while building confidence, employability, and securing a real wage from day one. For employers, they provide the skilled workforce we need to grow our economy here in Peterborough.

One of my key roles as mayor is to help people of all ages into a job, or a better job. Apprenticeships may be as old as employment itself, but they remain one of the most effective ways into a great career.

Apprenticeships are central to my plan to make our local economy the fastest growing outside of London. As a Combined Authority, we’re backing that ambition with action.

Over the last year, we’ve seen phenomenal growth in vocational training across Cambridgeshire and Peterborough. Apprenticeship starts have not that far off tripled and participation from local employers has more than doubled.

That’s more opportunities young people and, crucially, more employers seeing the benefits of apprenticeships.

So how are we helping?

So firstly, last autumn, we set up the Peterborough Youth Hub, with the Peterborough United Foundation and partners, to help those young people at risk of falling between the cracks. We still have too many 16 and 17-year-olds in the city leaving school with no plan. The Youth Hub is helping those, and many others, on to a better path.

I’ve also protected the Tiger bus pass, helping under 25s get to work and college for just £1. Young people and education leaders have been clear about the difference this makes.

And the Combined Authority is helping build and fund the places where apprentices can train. ARU Peterborough now offers degree apprenticeships, and Peterborough College’s Centre for Green Technology is equipping apprentices with the skills needed for tomorrow’s industries.

We’re also making it easier for businesses to take on apprentices.

The Combined Authority has doubled the grant we provide to small and medium-sized businesses hiring a new apprentice. Employers can now access £4,000 from us, alongside £1,000 from the Government. For many smaller firms, that financial support can make the difference between wanting to hire and being able to do so.

Peterborough has huge potential. We have ambitious businesses, growing sectors and a generation of young people ready for opportunity.

Apprenticeships are still important in construction trades, in manufacturing and engineering – but they’re also now in almost every sector, from business management and HR, to sales and marketing.

They are for any age and any stage of life. And we should talk more about them as a proven, practical way to open up new careers — and change lives.

If you’re a young person wondering what comes next, I would encourage you to explore whether an apprenticeship would work for you. And if you’re a local employer thinking about taking on an apprentice, now is the time.

I want to accelerate our economy and build new opportunities for people in Peterborough. Every new apprenticeship we help create brings us a step closer.

Find out more: https://naw.appawards.co.uk/