The Department has confirmed there will be no further starts on the national Young Apprenticeship pilot. This decision does not affect the announcement made on 17 February that existing young apprentices (September 2009 and September 2010 starts) will continue to be supported in financial years 2011-12 and 2012-13.
This means that if you are a student currently on a Young Apprenticeship, you will be able to complete your course and work experience, and gain recognised Young Apprenticeship qualifications and certificates. These will support your progress to further education or an Apprenticeship.
If you are interested in taking a vocational option at Key Stage 4 from September 2011, please discuss your school's Key Stage 4 options with your teacher or careers advisor.
What is a Young Apprenticeship?
The programme is closed to new entrants. Young Apprenticeships were developed to offer motivated 14- to 16-year-old pupils the opportunity to take industry specific vocational or vocationally related qualifications alongside their programme of GCSEs.
Young Apprenticeships support access to post-16 education. They are different and separate from the Apprenticeship programme for people aged 16 and over.
Why is the programme being closed?
The pilot will end due to the high delivery costs which are not justified in the current economic climate. Professor Wolf's Review of Vocational Education published on the 3 March 2011, proposes a framework to deliver high quality, age appropriate, 14-19 vocational education within current budgets. The Department's response to the Wolf Review will be published in Spring.
9,400 young apprentices started on the programme in September 2010 against a target of 10,000.
Evaluation of the Young Apprenticeships Programme
This report focuses on the outcomes for the third cohort of Young Apprenticeships participants and explores their achievements on the programme and overall, and their destinations following completion of their course. It aims to assess the extent to which the Young Apprenticeships programme has fulfilled its national aims and objectives and to inform future policy.
