More than 400 Newham residents attended the second Newham Apprenticeship Fair to find out more about the exciting array of opportunities available in the borough.
The fair was organised by Newham Council’s job brokerage scheme Workplace and took place at their office in Westfield Stratford City on Thursday 6 February as part of National Apprenticeship Week 2020. The theme of this year’s event is ‘Look Beyond’, to encourage people to look beyond outdated stereotypes surrounding apprenticeships and celebrate the diversity of opportunity and value they bring.
The event is also in line with the council’s new Community Wealth Building agenda, a bold approach to drive inclusive growth in Newham to benefit all residents, address poverty and tackle inequality.
High profile international and national organisations including Accenture, BT, UK Parliament and University College London were available to meet attendees of all ages along with local employers such as Newham College and West Ham United Football Club. Some of these businesses brought along employees who had found success through their apprenticeship scheme to share their stories and experiences.
Councillor Steve Brayshaw, Newham Council’s Commissioner for Skills who attended the fair said: “This was a fantastic event bringing together some great businesses with potential future apprentices. Apprenticeships are an essential tool, which can equip people of all ages with the skills and qualifications to enable them to succeed in the future. There are also many benefits to employers and it was great to see so many businesses recognise this.
“We have the highest percentage of residents in low-paid jobs in London and we are working hard to reverse this through our Community Wealth Building agenda. We will continue to work closely with all businesses in the borough to ensure we are creating opportunities for local residents and they are able to unleash their potential.”
Alongside the apprenticeship fair, significant work has been carried out by the council to increase the number of apprenticeship opportunities for residents. The council recently started working with Newham College on a 12-month pilot Apprenticeship Levy Transfer scheme. The scheme works by using a percentage of the council’s unspent levy to train apprentices for small-to-medium-size enterprises (SMEs) via the College and its subsidiary company Digital Skills Solutions.
The council has also recently overhauled its own apprenticeship scheme, expanding it to offer 30 places to local residents under the age of 30, with three places ring-fenced for those leaving care. All contracts are paid at the London Living Wage level.