Apprenticeships give young people a chance to shine

I had the privilege of attending an Apprenticeship Dinner organised by Ealing Council recently. The event was attended by a mixture of current and past apprentices and employers who are thinking of taking on apprentices.

Quite simply an apprenticeship gives a young person the chance to shine whilst working for Ealing Council or many other companies based in and around the borough. As part of the apprenticeships, which last two years, training is given ‘on the job’ as well as some employers giving time off so apprentices can take up academic qualifications which will help them in their chosen field.

Lib Dem Gary Malcolm: supporting apprenticeships

The range of jobs that Ealing’s apprenticeships take up is very diverse. Some are office based. Others are in the building sector and some in local engineering firms.

On average, apprentices earn £100,000 more over their career than less qualified workers. They also help businesses. Over 80% of businesses who employ apprentices agree they make their workforce more productive.

Liberal Democrats have been at the fore-front of promoting apprenticeships, locally and nationally. We have helped create 1.8 million apprenticeships since the election in 2010. There are now more apprentices than ever before and 86% more than under Labour.

We are giving 40,000 businesses grants of £1,500 for each young unemployed person they take on as an apprentice and awarding £550m to colleges to improve their facilities for apprentices.

Employers have access to funding to cover training costs for apprentices. This is paid directly to the organisation that provides and supports the apprenticeship - in most cases the learning provider. Employers must make sure they pay apprentices at least the current minimum wage rate.

If an apprentice is 19 or over, and have completed their first year, they are entitled to the worker rate for their age. Over the past few years I have seen a number of apprentices who have gone on to do some wonderful work. Most are very hard working and really put in 100% Listening to their stories is very inspirational.

Ealing Council with the help of the coalition government is making a positive impact on giving young people more opportunities for them to do well in the work place so they can better themselves in life generally.

The Liberal Democrats support getting more apprenticeships started. Lots of employers have already provided apprenticeships. If you are an employer or you would like to become an apprentice see how you can started...

• Ealing Council is looking for business owners and managers who can offer apprenticeships to 16-24 year olds.
• If you are 16-24 years old and you do not have a degree or level 4 qualifications, you can apply to become an apprentice.

I hope you can see that becoming an apprentice would be beneficial to your future prospects as well as the local economy. If you can provide an apprenticeship then please do so. Everyone will benefit!

How Lib Dems in government are helping Ealing

Since the formation of the Coalition a number of policies have led to improvements for those living in Ealing.

The Liberal Democrat part of the coalition government has had an impact by ensuring fairness whilst turning around the economy from what we were left in 2010.

To help redress some of the inequalities in our society the Liberal Democrat idea of a Pupil Premium was introduced. This gives schools extra money if pupils’ families are most in need of assistance. For the 2013/14 year, Ealing benefits by £12.4 million. This will give our local schools a great chance to provide additional educational services for those who are most in need. The Southfield Primary School gained about £145,000 and this was welcomed.

Speaking at a rally about local hospitals

Many residents I have spoken to in Acton have said the last couple of years have been difficult with the state of the economy, but they welcome the raising of the tax threshold so that thousands of residents in Ealing no longer have to pay income tax. This Liberal Democrat policy (from our 2010 manifesto) is something we are very proud of.

This policy puts cash directly into working people's pockets, and benefits all lower income people.

In Acton and Southall we have seen the proliferation of betting shops. Fellow Liberal Democrat Councillor Jon Ball spoke about this problem at the Liberal Democrat Conference in Glasgow recently. He has called for changes in the law to allow the numbers of new betting shops to be better controlled and is hopeful that the coalition government will now legislate to give Councils like Ealing these powers.

Since 2010, over a million people have started apprenticeships, with thousands created in Ealing alone. Not everyone wishes to pursue a university education and so the positive work on increasing apprenticeships since 2010 needs to be continued.

Apprenticeships for those under 25 has given work experience and improves their prospects of getting a job. There will help our younger members of society in Ealing develop their potential.

Although we have fewer MP’s than the Conservatives at Westminster, we are pursuing our liberal beliefs and are able to curb some of the more extreme conservative ideas. It is not easy in a coalition, but it does demonstrate that coalition governments can work and bring real benefits to our area.