Posted on 4 July
Last week the government announced plans to help young people into work by paying some parents on benefits up to £4,500 a year to encourage their children to start apprenticeships.
Families will be offered this bursary to replace Universal Credit payments lost by starting jobs.
The payment is expected to benefit an estimated few thousand households, who currently face losing between £17 and £330 a week if their children start apprenticeships.
Responding to the news, Chris Tunningley, Assistant Principal at Leeds College of Building (LCB) said:
“At LCB, many of our learners come from households that already face significant financial pressures.
When family incomes are reduced, the impact can be felt directly in education through increased hardship, greater caring responsibilities, challenges with travel costs and pressures on mental wellbeing.
These factors can affect uptake of apprenticeships, attendance, achievement and progression into skilled employment.
At a time when employers across our region continue to face skills shortages, it is vital that talented young people can access and complete high-quality technical and professional education regardless of their background and circumstances.
Supporting learners to overcome financial barriers is not only essential for social mobility, but also for developing the skilled workforce that our local and national economies need.
This is particularly important in Leeds, where too many young people remain disengaged from education, employment or training.
As our CEO and Principal Nikki Davis recently made clear in her response to the Milburn Report:
“The Index of Multiple Deprivation (IMD) is the official measure of relative deprivation in England, nearly half of our students (44%) come from the most deprived communities in the country.
“Over 1,200 of which come from the most deprived category, demonstrating our long-standing commitment to reaching learners who need us most.”
Every additional barrier faced by disadvantaged learner’s risks pushing more young people away from opportunities that could transform their futures.
If we are serious about tackling inequality, improving life chances and addressing skills shortages, we must ensure that financial barriers and hardship does not prevent people from reaching their potential.”
Chris Tunningley is Assistant Principal at LCB, he joined the college in 2008 having started his industry career as a 16-year-old apprentice in Gas Service and Maintenance.
Fancy joining our LCB family? Browse our current job vacancies right here or find a course that works for you right here.
