A matchmaking service has been launched by Greater Manchester Combined Authority (GMCA) to reverse the decline in apprenticeships.
The Greater Manchester Levy Matchmaking Service works by linking up large employers with apprenticeship levy underspend to smaller businesses looking to hire apprentices but are short of necessary capital.
The service will be enabled through an online portal, which goes live next Monday (August 5), where larger firms can connect with smaller firms looking for funding, while smaller employers can look for a match to cover the costs of training.
Speaking at the service’s launch event today, Mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham told the M.E.N: “We’ve been hearing from a huge number of businesses about the levy, with the big ones saying they can’t spend it and the smaller ones saying they need it.
“The service came as a response to what we kept on hearing, so it’s innovative response to an issue that’s currently out there.”
The aim of the service is to help buck the decline in the number of people starting apprenticeships in Greater Manchester, which has dipped from 30,000 in 2016 to 22,500 in 2018, which GMCA said is “largely” as a result of reforms to the system at a national level.
Mr Burnham said: “In some ways devolution helps us work around government policies and correct faults in them and I would say this is a classic example of that.”
He said response from both larger organisations and SMEs has been “huge”.
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“It’s one of those things that hits bit of a sweet spot and we need it, because we’ve got apprenticeships in reverse, which is mad but they are.
“It can’t make sense right now, particularly in this city where we’ve got such a burgeoning economy, we need talent. Every business I go and speak to says talent and talent development is what they want.
“For the city region as a whole, we will leave ourselves a little exposed if we don’t crack on with these kind of initiatives.”
Under apprenticeship funding rules, levy-paying organisations can transfer up to 25 per cent of their funds to another organisation, which may itself be non-levy paying or might have already spent all its own levy funding.
The service will be delivered by The Growth Company, which built the website on behalf of GMCA and is the first of its kind in the 海角视频, it’s CEO said.
The Growth Company CEO Mark Hughes said: “It will help Greater Manchester’s small and medium enterprises to recruit new talent and develop their staff in ways which may not otherwise have been feasible.”
“This new service is a prime example of how we do things differently in Greater Manchester. I have no doubt it will benefit the local economy, while helping to address skills gaps in key sectors.”
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Lloyds Banking Group, The Co-op, Timpson and Sodexo are among the larger employers that have already committed to the service.
Elyn Corfield, Lloyds Banking Group’s ambassador for the North, said: “We’re proud to be partnering with the GMCA to help Greater Manchester’s businesses, large and small, to find and train the talent they need to thrive.
“As part of our commitment to helping the city-region prosper, we’re providing £1 million in levy funding to support apprenticeships across the region in the digital, technology and manufacturing sectors which we believe will help to boost productivity and help create long-term prosperity for the region.”