Final building blocks in place for Institute for Apprenticeships

The main building blocks for the Institute for Apprenticeships have been put in place with the announcement of Antony Jenkins as the Chair.

Appointed as Shadow Chair in June 2016, Antony Jenkins has been an ambassador for the institute and has played a key role in designing its structure and providing strategic leadership and direction to the organisation during the critical phase of its development.

Antony Jenkins will operate alongside the eight members of the board primarily made up of employers appointed to run the institute in January.

Apprenticeships and Skills Minister Robert Halfon said: “Our reforms to apprenticeships are all about quality, quality, quality. We do not just want 3 million apprenticeships by 2020, we want 3 million quality apprenticeships.

“The Institute for Apprenticeships is a key part of this – we have put employers at the heart of apprenticeships because it is employers who know the skills, training and experience their future workforce needs to succeed. This is essential to ensuring social mobility and that people can get their foot on the ladder of opportunity.

“Antony has done a brilliant job as Shadow Chair of the institute and will continue bringing his expertise and knowledge to the role of Chair.”

Launching in April this year, the Institute for Apprenticeships will support the government’s agenda on social mobility by helping to create a ladder of opportunity based on quality apprenticeships for people across the country.

The primary responsibility of the new organisation will be to act as decision maker on approving apprenticeship standards and assessment plans to ensure they are of high quality. Its ultimate goal being to ensure employees get the skills they need to succeed from the apprenticeship system.

Mr Jenkins said: “I am delighted to be appointed on a permanent basis to this important role. I have enjoyed working with ministers and the shadow institute to get ready for our launch in April and am pleased with the progress we have made. The institute, supported by an able board, has a crucial role to play in helping develop the skills that employers need and supporting social mobility by ensuring people have the right skills to succeed.

“It’s vital that we prepare people for the changes technology is having on the way we live and work. I believe businesses have an interest in and an obligation to create opportunities for people to acquire the skills needed to cope in a fast-changing working environment.”

Full details of how the Institute for Apprenticeships will operate have also been set out in an operational plan which is currently out for consultation.

Following consultation, the plan will set out how the Institute for Apprenticeships will deliver its functions to:

• improve the quality of apprenticeships
• regulate the quality of apprenticeship standards and assessment plans
• provide advice to government on the pricing of apprenticeship standards
• establish how the Institute will collaborate with partners to drive quality across the apprenticeships system
• gain more information and insight on how we will lead the reforms to technical education

The government is committed to creating three million high-quality apprenticeships by 2020 as part of its drive to help people fulfil their potential and boost business productivity.

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