The number of apprenticeship places given out in 2020 was significantly fewer than in previous years, according to new research from IronmongeryDirect.
The research showed that 31% of firms and tradespeople who regularly hire apprentices feel that the program has been made harder due to the Covid-19 pandemic, as new ONS figures show a 30% drop in new construction apprentices between August and October 2020, compared to the same period the previous year.
Demonstrating the effect of Covid-19 on the apprenticeship scheme, research found that 22% of companies that usually hire apprentices took on fewer in 2020, despite 19% of tradespeople believing that the program is more important now than ever.
Thankfully, with National Apprenticeship Week taking place this week, there are signs of improvement. 23% of businesses and tradespeople plan to bring on apprentices in 2021, with building surveyors (34%) and electricians (28%) the most likely trades to be looking for apprentices this year.
Men in the industry are more likely than women to think that an apprenticeship is a great way for people to learn skills (31% vs 23%). Contrastingly however, it is tradeswomen and female-led companies that are most likely to be looking for an apprentice in the year ahead, with a quarter of women (25%) planning to hire a trainee compared to only one in five tradesmen (20%).
According to the Office of National Statistics, female apprentices in construction are also on the rise, increasing by 19% in the 2019/20 academic year compared to the previous 12 months. This represents a much larger trend in growth as there are a huge 333% more female construction trainees than in 2014/2015. So far in the 2020/2021 academic year, the percentage of female new starters has increased to 9%, suggesting that this growth is set to continue.
The statistics also reveal a changing story for apprentices of colour. While BAME apprentices made up only 6% of new construction apprentices in 2019/2020, this represents a 16% increase to the previous year and an 82% rise since 2014/2015. What’s more, despite the challenges of the Coronavirus pandemic, the proportion of BAME trainees continues to grow as they make up 8% of new starters so far this academic year.
The proportion of new apprentices with learning difficulties is also on the increase, making up 14% of the 2019/2020 intake. This is a 53% increase from 2014/15. This trend seems set to continue as 16% of the 2020/2021 year’s new starters so far have learning difficulties.
Commenting on the research, Marco Verdonkschot, managing director at IronmongeryDirect, said, “It’s great to see many tradespeople and companies are still looking to make use of the apprenticeship program, despite the difficulty of the past year.
“We think the apprenticeship scheme is an amazing way to help shape the next generation of tradespeople. That’s why we’ve launched a competition for a UK based tradesperson or company to win £5,000 towards funding an apprentice.
“There are so many people who do amazing work in the industry today who started out as apprentices, so it’s important that the program continues to be well-funded. More needs to be done to support apprentices throughout this pandemic to ensure that we continue to have great talent in the future, and we wanted to do our bit to help.”
To enter the competition or learn more about this research, visit: https://www.ironmongerydirect.co.uk/blog/apprenticeships-and-covid-19-looking-ahead-to-2021