Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
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Doug Richard to lead government apprenticeships review
Entrepreneur and founder of School for Startups, Doug Richard, is to lead an independent review into the future of apprenticeships for the Government.
The Richard Review of Apprenticeships will look at how to build upon the record success of recent years by:
Ensuring that apprenticeships meet the needs of the changing economyEnsuring every apprenticeship delivers high quality training and the qualifications and skills that employers needMaximising the impact of Government investment.
Looking to the future, the review will examine how
apprenticeships can continue to best meet the needs of employers,
individuals, and the wider economy; which learners and employers
can and should benefit most from apprenticeships; and what the
core components of a high quality apprenticeship should be.
Mr Richard was selected by the Department for Business,
Innovation and Skills and the Department for Education for his
strong reputation in the spheres of both business and business
education, enabling him to provide an independent analysis of the
future priorities of the Government’s scheme.
A senior figure in the UK and global business communities,
with over 20 years’ experience in the development and leadership
of start-ups and established businesses, Mr. Richard will bring
unrivalled commercial insight to the study.
His commercial expertise is matched by hands-on experience in
the teaching of business skills. Through his social enterprise,
School for Startups, Mr. Richard has delivered practical and
theoretical instruction to more than 10,000 business owners and in
2009 he received the Enterprise Educator of the Year award for the
excellence of his teaching.
Today’s announcement marks the continuation of Mr. Richard’s
involvement in enterprise policy. He previously published the
Richard Report in 2008, his investigation into the British
government’s support of small businesses. Earlier this year he
partnered with the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills
to stage his ‘Web Fuelled Business’ initiative – a nationwide
series of bootcamps helping small businesses exploit and leverage
the internet.
Business Secretary Vince Cable said:
“To build a prosperous economy we need a skilled workforce.
The apprenticeship programme has been a real success, not only
boosting chances for young people, but also helping businesses to
address their skills gaps.
"However in the past vocational youngsters have been
let down by weak courses and our competitors have stolen a march.
I have just come back from a fact finding mission to Germany where
two-thirds of young people take some form of apprenticeship by the
time they are 25.
"To keep pace it is vital that we build on our
initial success and continue to look at how apprenticeships can
adapt to meet our future needs in the fast-evolving global
economy.
“The Richard Review will do just that, establishing the core
principles that will keep apprenticeships relevant to the future
needs of individuals, employers and the wider economy. Doug
Richard’s experience as a business mentor and setting up his
School for Startups make him the perfect candidate to complete
this task.”
Secretary of State for Education Michael Gove said:
"Doug Richard is a proper entrepreneur not a
corporate bureaucrat. That's why he's the right
man to get apprenticeships right. It's great that the
numbers taking up apprenticeships has grown. But there are still
serious issues - there is still too much bureaucracy getting in
the way of small firms taking people on, too much money appears to
be going to middle men and the quality of some vocational
qualifications taken by apprentices is still not good enough. Doug
will help us get that right."
Mr Richard said:
“I am delighted to have been given this commission to lead
the review into the future of apprenticeships. In today’s
challenging climate, apprenticeships will and must play a vital
role in equipping our young people with the skills they need to
succeed.
“As an entrepreneur, but also as an educator, I am convinced
of the importance of business education in helping not only
individuals but society at large. For our economy to recover and
flourish, we need a workforce that possesses the requisite skills
of twenty-first century commerce and industry. A strong
apprenticeship programme is essential in delivering that.”
Skills Minister John Hayes said:
“The government has built the biggest and best
apprenticeships programme of modern times. Last year there were
over 457,000 apprenticeship starts and we have set out rigorous
new standards to guarantee all apprenticeships are of the highest
quality. Apprenticeships have never before been given the status
or significance that I, as the Minister responsible, has afforded them.
“However, if we are to ensure that apprenticeships continue
to meet the skills needs of our constantly evolving economy then
we must take every opportunity to re-examine the why, what and how
of apprenticeships, to ensure they are equipping learners and
employers for the future.
“I’m delighted that Doug Richard will be leading this review.
His personal commitment and track record in training, developing
and inspiring people speaks for itself, and as an entrepreneur and
educator who has helped thousands of fledgling businesses get off
the ground, his insight and expertise will be invaluable.”
Notes to editors
TERMS OF REFERENCE
Summary 1. The Government wishes to commission an
independent review of apprenticeships in England, to ensure that
in the future the programme is meeting the needs of the changing
economy, consistently delivers high quality training and the
professionally recognised qualifications and skills which
employers and learners need, and is maximising the impact of
government investment.
Detail 2. To be led by a senior, independent business
figure, the review should take critical look at apprenticeships
and look to identify a set of principles and priorities for the
optimal content of future apprenticeships, to ensure that every
apprenticeship delivers new high quality training and
professionally recognised qualifications.
3. The review should identify the best of current practice
and recommend ways to extend this.
4. Key questions to be considered include:
· What should the core components of an apprenticeship be - to meet the needs of employers (large and small), individuals, and the wider economy?
· Who should apprenticeships be for – which types of learners and employers can benefit most from apprenticeships?
· Are there elements of apprenticeships which should be simplified or stripped back?
· Are the qualifications which are undertaken as part of an apprenticeship sufficiently rigorous, and recognised and valued by employers?
· How should delivery arrangements adequately ensure all that apprenticeships provide significant new learning and acquisition of new skills, rather than the accreditation of existing ones?
· Are there opportunities to improve the impact and value for
money of public investment in apprenticeships?
Timing 5. The review should report in Autumn 2012.
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