Business Case

The role of boroughs in delivering apprenticeships

How can London boroughs be involved in apprenticeships, and what are the benefits?

As an employer, boroughs can create a wide range of apprenticeships in different roles, attracting a younger workforce, and new entrants to hard to fill roles such as surveying. Apprentices can also replace expensive agency staff, for example in administration roles, thereby retaining skills and experience in-house rather than it being lost when temporary staff move on.
As commissioners of services, London boroughs and the City of London spend around £8.8bn annually on procuring goods and services. This huge buying power can be used to secure additional benefits such as apprenticeships with contractors, either by writing requirements for apprentices into contracts or negotiating a voluntary agreement. More information about procurement is available here.
As local leaders, boroughs are able to influence and support local businesses to recruit apprentices. For example Southwark Council and local newspaper the Southwark News launched a campaign in 2010 to create 100 new apprenticeships in 100 days. They surpassed this target with 149 apprentices taking up offers of employment in 100 days.
As corporate parents local authorities have an obligation to support young people in their care to make the transition to independent adulthood. This includes accessing work experience, vocational learning and apprenticeships. For more information about how boroughs are supporting care leavers into apprenticeships see our publication here.

The Apprenticeships Ambassadors Network has a collection of business cases from public and private, small and large employers.