Traineeship: Supporting young people to develop the skills for Apprenticeships and other sustained jobs

21 February 2013

In January 2013, the Government published a discussion paper setting out its ideas for introducing Traineeships from September 2013. Developed in response to concerns voiced by some employers that young people often lack the right skills and attitudes when they apply for an Apprenticeship or other employment, the proposed Traineeship programme aims to support young people aged 16-24 to develop the skills they need to impress potential employers and to secure and succeed in employment or an Apprenticeship.

The Traineeships would offer young people the opportunity to undertake a substantial work placement and work skills training, and would also offer them support in improving their English and maths.

NFER wishes to contribute to policy thinking and its practical application for this skills priority area of the Coalition Government and has consequently responded to the opportunity to submit evidence in response to the proposals in the discussion paper. For this submission we have drawn on an extensive track record of research relating to youth transitions and vocational education undertaken by NFER, including research on training provision for young people aged 19 to 24 years of age who are not in education, employment or training (NEET); evaluations of Diplomas and an IT training programme for 16- to 18-year-olds; and the From 'Education to Employment' strand of the NFER Research Programme.