Helping young people gain the skills and qualifications they need to get on in life is a key part of the Conservative plan for economic growth. A good education provides a solid platform that can give all our children the chance to succeed and is the reason I have focused so much of my time since becoming an MP on supporting our schools locally.
As part of my visits, I regularly speak to students about their future careers – and more and more it’s apprenticeships that are being seen as a way to learn and earn, once they leave school.
Under this Government apprenticeships have been a real success story. Since 2010, 5.4 million apprenticeships have been started, with over 570,000 people participating in an apprenticeship in England between 2022-2023 alone. 90% of apprentices staying in work after their apprenticeship is over; and 71% with the same employer. The stats speak for themselves.
This month I had the pleasure of meeting Daniela Barbosa from Hextable at the Hospitality Apprenticeship Showcase in Parliament to mark National Apprenticeship Week. Daniela was a huge advocate for the training, and it was great to hear how positive she found the apprenticeship experience, and the future opportunities it will bring her.
I want even more of our community to benefit and that is why I am co-hosting my first Apprenticeship Fair on Friday 10th March, alongside my fantastic Kent MP colleagues, at Maidstone Leisure Centre, 9.30am-1pm.
The event is open to anyone who is thinking about their plans for the future or considering re-training in a new sector. There will be a whole range of organisations in attendance, including local companies FM Conway and UK Power Networks, as well as British Airways, BAE Systems, Kent Police, and Southeastern to name but a few, so please do pop along if you are interested.
I am committed to seeing more apprenticeships within Sevenoaks, and that is why I have invited every local secondary school to the event. Equally, it's free to exhibit at the event, so if you're a business looking to hire apprentices then please do contact me at [email protected] about getting involved.
Apprenticeships are a brilliant way to invest in future talent and are helping help more people access high skilled, high wage jobs. It’s shaping up to be a terrific event, so please don’t miss out.
