What estimation has the Cabinet Secretary made of the number of apprenticeship opportunities for people aged 16-24, broken down by region?
The latest available data suggests that 10,765 apprenticeship programmes were started by 16-24 year olds during 2016/17. This represents 45% of all apprenticeships commencing during this year. The breakdown by region (based on the learner’s postcode) is as follows
|
Region
|
Apprenticeships |
|
North Wales |
2,395 |
|
Mid Wales |
615 |
|
South West Wales |
2,660 |
|
South East Wales |
4,955 |
|
Outside Wales |
140* |
Source: Lifelong Learning Wales Record
The Welsh Government has recently introduced an Employer Incentive Scheme to encourage SME’s to engage with the apprenticeship programme and recruit learners aged 16-19, particularly at key transition points for learners.
The scheme commenced in August 2017 and provisional data indicates that at least 550 additional young apprentices have been recruited.
As a result of this incentive, we anticipate that the number of apprenticeship opportunities made available to learners aged 16-24 will increase.
*Please note that Welsh Government supports apprenticeships programmes where the employment of the apprentice is predominantly in Wales.