The Government has today, 3 August 2021, announced that sectors including the creative, agriculture and construction industries can now bid for a share of a £7 million fund to support the creation of new flexible apprenticeships.
The Government has highlighted that the flexible employment patterns and short-term roles common in many sectors, including digital, have historically made it challenging for employers to benefit from the apprenticeship opportunities currently available.
The fund aims to establish a small number of agencies that will set up new flexi-job apprenticeships. Through this system, an apprentice can work across a range of projects and with different employers to gain the skills they need to be occupationally competent.
The first apprenticeships organised through flexi-job apprenticeship agencies are expected to start in early 2022.
These improvements build on the reforms set out in the Skills for Jobs White Paper, which aims to place employers at the heart of skills plans in an effort to ensure more people have the skills they need to progress within their careers.
The announcement comes ahead of the start of the ScreenSkills pilot for apprenticeships in the film and TV industry, with Netflix and WarnerMedia. Supported by a £100,000 investment from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport, this programme has been designed to support apprenticeships in the UK’s screen industries.
Through the ScreenSkills pilot, apprentices will get hands-on experience as members of the production crew on the sets of big-budget films, high-end TV shows and documentaries from Netflix and WarnerMedia. By undertaking multiple placements over 13 months, the apprentices will gain a breadth of experience which will serve as the foundation for their future freelance careers in the sector.