PRESS RELEASE
West Dorset MP encourages employers to apply for new apprentice grants
- Plan for Jobs grants incentive is on offer to West Dorset employers
- MP encourages businesses to create new apprenticeships
- Scheme supports skills, training and jobs for local people
- Businesses of all sizes and sectors are encouraged to apply
Chris Loder MP encourages employers from businesses of all sizes and sectors across West Dorset to apply for grant incentives from the Government, to help them take on new apprentices and get more local people trained and into work.
The MP says: “Apprenticeships are a great way to get ahead in a wide range of local businesses. Indeed, it was the route I took myself; going straight from school to work on the railway, instead of going to university. West Dorset has a proportionally high number of small and micro-sized businesses and this scheme represents a real opportunity for employers to invest in new skills, creating jobs growth and stability as our local economies seek to recover after coronavirus”.
As part of the Government’s Plan for Jobs, employers are being offered a support grant of £2,000 for each new apprentice they hire aged under 25 and £1,500 for each newly-recruited apprentice aged 25 and over. This includes taking on apprentices who may have been made redundant.
The MP continues: “Government is listening to the needs of us here in West Dorset and this support for apprentices comes following a record investment in education, skills and training at Kingston Maurward College and local schools. I have spoken in the House of Commons just today, during Question Time on International Trade, on behalf of our local businesses, to press for even more opportunity to be available to them.”.
Employers who want to take advantage of the new apprentice grants scheme should apply as soon as possible through the Government’s award-winning digital apprentice service at gov.uk.
ENDS
3rd September 2020 – for immediate release
NOTES TO EDITORS
Chris Loder has spoken on behalf of West Dorset’s small and micro-sized businesses today (3rd September 2020) in the House of Commons: https://youtu.be/VFIQvuZdPBI
The new apprentice grants incentive for employers is on top of the existing £1,000 payment for new 16 to 18-year-old apprentices, and those aged under 25 with an Education, Health and Care Plan.
The Government’s digital apprentice service is at: https://accounts.manage-apprenticeships.service.gov.uk/
To support people, particularly young people, affected by Covid-19 the Government has also announced a range of support, including:
- A £111million boost to triple the number of traineeships available across England – the largest-ever expansion of traineeships – to help make sure more 16 to 24-year-olds have the skills, experience and confidence they need to enter the world of work.
- A new £2billion Kick-start Scheme to create hundreds of thousands of new, fully-subsidised jobs for young people across the country.
- A £17million investment to increase participation in sector-based work academies, to upskill job seekers to fill locally identified vacancies.
- A Job Retention Bonus – a one-off payment of £1,000 to UK employers for every furloughed employee who remains continuously employed through to the end of January 2021.
- £111million to support school and college leavers at risk of becoming unemployed to do a fully-funded optional extra year of study.
The Government is also providing a new online and telephone support service for apprentices who have lost their jobs during the Covid-19 outbreak. The Redundancy Support Service for Apprentices (ReSSA) ensures apprentices can access services that can provide financial, legal, health and wellbeing support and help them get back on track and on the path to a new career.
For more information contact:
Liz Murray, Communications Manager for Chris Loder MP
