Nick Clegg: Apprentices hard at work building a prosperous future

At the age of 19, six out of ten young people choose not to go to university, but unfortunately, there is still a barely concealed snobbery in this country against vocational education. For far too long, academic qualifications have been seen as better than vocational qualifications, but nothing could be further from the truth.

Independent research released this week showed that apprentices delivered around £1.8bn of net economic benefits to UK organisations last year.

Apprenticeships are vital to our country’s future – apprentices build our houses, design our aircraft, programme our computers, make our furniture, the list goes on. That is why it is so important that we celebrate the achievements of hard-working apprentices across the country.

Since 2010, the Liberal Democrats in Government have helped create a million and a half new apprenticeships across the country and more than 200,000 people have started apprenticeships here in Yorkshire and the Humber. In 2012/13, nearly 60,000 people started apprenticeships in the region 
and more than half of these 
were female.

I’m proud that Yorkshire apprentices were well represented in Leipzig, in Germany, last year at the WorldSkills competition, the world’s largest international skills competition which is like the Olympics for vocational skills.

Representing Team UK, George Moffat, Andrew Maguire and Daniel Gebhard, from Carnaud Metalbox Engineering in Bradford, won a Medallion For Excellence in the Manufacturing Team Challenge.

The trio were recognised as some of the best engineers in the world after they competed over three days to design and build a solar-powered can and bottle crushing disposal unit.

I was really pleased to meet them at a reception I held to celebrate the success of the competitors who really showcased the best of British talent and 
the diverse career opportunities available to young people today.

On the national stage, STEM ambassador Natasha Pitts from generator manufacturer Dale Power Solutions in Scarborough, was highly commended in the Higher Apprenticeship category at the National Apprenticeship Awards for her outstanding work in electrical engineering.

The apprentice builders I 
talked to at Sheffield College and other apprentices I have met around the county have always impressed me with their drive and enthusiasm and their commitment to helping their businesses grow.

Many organisations already recognise the value of qualified apprentices, but we need more of them to build on that potential and start training their own apprentices. The success of businesses in Yorkshire can show them the way.

I want to congratulate Yorkshire companies like law firm Gordons LLP who are helping a new generation of talent to achieve their ambitions across a range of legal disciplines, which is why they were highly commended in the newcomer category of the National Apprenticeship Awards. The supermarket Morrisons, Yorkshire Housing and North Yorkshire County Council were also all recognised as being among the Top 100 Apprenticeship Employers in the country.

These companies can inspire more businesses to realise the benefits of taking on an apprentice to their organisation. It shows the genuine difference an apprenticeship can make by increasing productivity, helping the company grow and supporting individuals to pursue their dream job.

I have sought to make this a priority. Working with Vince Cable, the Business Secretary responsible for increasing the number of apprenticeships across the UK, it is highly rewarding to see apprentices thriving in their learning and careers. Every young person deserves to have the support they need to reach their potential and apprenticeships are a great way to gain the skills for success.

Last week I announced big changes to how we help young people get into training and employment, including a new UCAS-style one stop online shop for young people who don’t want to go to university to help them make choices about what they want to do when they leave school.

We are going to boost the careers advice given in schools. This will give them a new responsibility to develop close links with local employers so that more young people can meet successful business people, spend time working in their organisations and access valuable support from people in the careers they want to do.

We are also trialling new ways of using Job Centre support to help young people find work or training quickly, including helping them get basic skills in maths and English.

I am really pleased that apprenticeships are getting more recognition.

It is important that we work together to secure their future and Britain’s long term success: building a stronger economy and fairer society for this generation and the next.

Nick Clegg is Deputy Prime Minister, leader of the Liberal Democrats and the Sheffield Hallam MP.