We are JBT, an apprenticeship agency, we have been providing placements with Host employers for those leaving FE with their diplomas, who otherwise would fall of the cliff. This is an extremely challenging task for us as the number of barriers are many and high.

Everyone is working in their own silos.

FE want to hang onto their students for further diploma levels, when in fact they need lengthy, on the job experience.

Host employers do not want the administrative burden of employing PAYE nor getting their students enrolled for their apprenticeship qualification, which is where we come in. But placements are often too short, so we have to try to get further placements for the apprentices to give them time to qualify.

Mostly our placements with host employers are dictated by their obligations under a Section 106 planning permission agreement, this then often comes with the criteria that they are first-time apprentices, and they must live in the borough. This does cause a huge problem when the apprentice’s short 26-week placement ends and the site they could conceivably go to is in another borough.

It is all so darn complex at the coal face when all we want to do is get are employees qualified and to go into sustainable employment in the trade they have worked so hard and long to get into.