There is a drive to promote apprenticeships in key areas in healthcare and science – such as decontamination, pathology and nursing – with the aim of filling critical skills gaps.
The Government is introducing an apprenticeship levy, which will require all employers operating in the UK, with a pay bill over £3 million each year, to invest in apprenticeships. Healthcare providers will be among those targeted, providing a significant incentive to invest in the training of apprentices who wish to follow scientific and healthcare careers. The Government has pledged to create 100,000 apprenticeships within the NHS by 2020 to ensure it has a workforce with “the right support, skills and numbers to provide safe, high quality care”. The perceived benefits to the public sector of employing apprentices include:
As part of the Government’s strategy on apprenticeships, a range of roles are now being created, from nursing associates, healthcare science assistants and associates, pharmacy services assistants, to associate ambulance practitioners. Opportunities will also be provided in areas such as IT, hospitality and facilities.
The aim of the programme is to broaden the routes into training and employment in the NHS and improve diversity within the workforce. In 2012, an independent report on apprenticeships (the Richard Review), found that there were key areas where significant improvements could be made to make apprenticeship schemes more responsive to the needs of employers.
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