Ofsted criticises quality of apprenticeships

A report by the inspectorate found that too many apprenticeships are not meeting the needs of young people, and many of the apprentice courses on offer are failing to give them the skills and knowledge that employers are looking for.

In August this year the new Conservative government pledged to create three million apprenticeships over the next five years. It also pledged to boost the quality of apprenticeships.
 
But Ofsted said too many low-skilled roles are being classed as apprenticeships and used to accredit the established skills of people who have been in a job for some time. The surge in apprenticeship numbers has been mainly in sectors such as customer service, retail, administration and care. It has not focused enough on the priorities that benefit employers or the economy.

“Inspectors observed apprentices in the food production, retail and care sectors who were simply completing their apprenticeship by having existing low-level skills, such as making coffee, serving sandwiches or cleaning floors, accredited,” the report states.
 
“The quality of apprenticeship provision reviewed during this survey was too variable and often poor,” it added.