Graham Simpson MSP visited the New College Lanarkshire campus in Motherwell to hear about the pre-apprenticeship electrician course.
New College Lanarkshire offers a pre-apprenticeship model with a 5-week training course before apprentices enter the workplace. This model provides invaluable experience and is an efficient use of taxpayer’s money. The college liaises with employers to ensure the course is designed to support their requirements.
Graham Simpson said: “I was delighted to visit the New College Lanarkshire campus in Motherwell to learn more about their pre-apprenticeship course model. Students get a real taste and experience before starting a modern apprenticeship as an electrician. They gain a better understanding if an apprenticeship is right for them. I was delighted to learn that there are no barriers to the pre-apprenticeship course – with no entry requirements to the course.
“Employers want young people who are ready and prepared to start work. This pre-apprenticeship course provides employers with greater certainty that successful candidates will finish their electrician apprenticeship. There are 15 centres around Scotland running this course, with over 800 active employers across Scotland. Eight out of the last ten Apprentices of the Year came out of the pre-apprenticeship course.
“Pre-apprenticeships provide an excellent grounding for young people to develop their skills. We need to make vocational training part of the mainstream delivery of the school curriculum. The Scottish Conservatives have recently called for the SNP to ensure that foundation apprenticeships are a part of every single Scottish secondary school’s offer by 2020. There is considerable evidence that softening the divide between academic and work-based learning is key to a well performing modern economy. It is therefore extremely important for our economy and our students that all local authorities offer this real-world work experience”.
