We all know that the manufacturing sector is facing a skills shortage. With the workforce currently ageing and retiring, the next generation are simply not replacing them fast enough. The Manufacturer’s Molly Cooper speaks to several industry bodies about the importance of apprenticeships and T-levels.
Back in September 2024, Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer and Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson announced a new Growth and Skills Levy to replace the existing Apprenticeship Levy and include new foundation apprenticeships.
These new apprenticeships provide young people with a route into careers in critical sectors, enabling them to earn a wage while developing vital skills.
Within the manufacturing and engineering sector, apprenticeships are vital to providing those technical and hand-on skills. Young people can learn, work and earn a wage all while receiving a qualification that can be equivalent to a degree.
The Manufacturer has spoken with four major industry bodies about their work on apprenticeships and T-levels, closing the sector’s skill gap and the important role of employers.
EngineeringUK on apprenticeships
Beatrice Barleon (left) is Head of Policy and Public Affairs at EngineeringUK. She leads strategy, budget and stakeholder engagement while coordinating policy, research and communications to position EngineeringUK as a thought leader in careers and vocational qualifications, including apprenticeships.
“We know that there were 339,580 apprenticeship starts in the UK in 2023/24. These numbers have increased slightly (0.7%) from the previous year (337,140). Twenty-nine per cent (97,120) of the 2023/24 apprenticeship starts were in engineering and technology-related subjects,” she said.
The current situation
Engineering and technology related apprenticeship starts are still lower than pre-pandemic levels, however. “Engineering and manufacturing technologies are seeing a long-standing decline in starts, with a 25% drop since 2017/18,” added Beatrice.
Despite this overall downward trend, EngineeringUK has seen a one-year slight increase (1.6%) in engineering and technology-related apprenticeship starts between 2022/23 and 2023/24. This is driven by information and communication technology, the only engineering and technology related apprenticeship with an increase in starts.
“In 2023, we ran an inquiry in partnership with Lord Willetts and Lord Knight, to understand the reasons behind this decline and to make recommendations on how to address it. These are outlined in our Fit for the Future report,” explained Beatrice. It suggests that many businesses, particularly smaller firms, are struggling to find the capacity and resources to take on young apprentices and are concerned about the quality of training provision and barriers in relation to apprenticeship standards.
“On the other hand, for young people, the impact of the pandemic and years of disruption to their education have taken their toll. Not enough young people are aware of the apprenticeship options open to them or know where to start,” she said.
Government support
Support for apprentices and businesses is something that is continually evolving, as can be seen with developments in the skills space since Labour took office. This includes the establishment of a new body, Skills England, and the proposed initiative of the Growth and Skills Levy (GSL).
“The GSL is part of the new government’s reform of the Apprenticeship Levy and wider skills system. It looks to offer businesses more flexibility in how levy funds can be used, for example, allowing non apprenticeship courses in critical sectors to be funded by the levy,” explained Beatrice.
It will also help to deliver the Labour Party Conference pledge to, ‘rebalance funding in our training system back to young people’ and the Youth Guarantee, promising access to training, an apprenticeship or support to find work for every 18–21-year-old.
“The government also announced a pot of £40m to develop foundation apprenticeships, which will give young people a route into careers in critical sectors, allowing funding for shorter apprenticeships,” she added.
A step in the right direction
These new measures are certainly a much-needed boost for the UK’s industrial skills issue. “Targeted investment in education and skills initiatives, including apprenticeships, will be essential to the government achieving its five missions,” said Beatrice.
However, demand for engineering roles is currently outstripping supply. One in five jobs in the UK are in engineering (19%), yet engineering vacancies account for one in four of all job adverts (25%). “This is why we have recognised the importance of the Industrial Strategy, as well as the establishment of Skills England,” she added.
From the results of the Fit for the Future inquiry, EngineeringUK recommended that government considers how to better support SMEs with the processes surrounding apprenticeships and how to increase help for young people to access the opportunities available.
Role of schools
Schools are responsible for offering support to young people to understand the career pathways available to them. And schools (in line with the Gatsby benchmarks) must offer encounters with industry to pupils and link curriculum content with careers. “Since 2022, the Skills and Post-16 Education Act has also required schools to deliver a minimum of six meetings with providers of technical education or apprenticeships; with two in each key phase – years 8 and 9, years 10 and 11, and years 12 and 13,” said Beatrice.
EngineeringUK’s recent report Advancing STEM careers provision in England, identified the improvements that have been made in this context, but also highlighted ongoing concerns, including lack of staff time, funding and low engagement with employers.
Highlighting the decline
The Fit for the Future inquiry also highlighted a variety of reasons that could be responsible for the decline in apprenticeship uptake. “One example is the need to improve awareness and perceptions of both apprenticeships and engineering, as well as a lack of parity of esteem between apprenticeships and university education. This demonstrates the need for education across society to improve knowledge and opinions of vocational routes and of engineering as a career option,” said Beatrice.
Money featured as another barrier. Examples include the cost of hosting an apprentice for businesses and the cost of living for that apprentice, instead of choosing to take on higher paid work.
The Fit for the Future inquiry outlines a 5-point plan to grow and sustain engineering and technology apprenticeships for young people. This includes: the rebalance of education, support for young people, refocusing of funding, the enabling of businesses to play an active role and encouraging employers to take more action.
Aston University on degree apprenticeships
Professor Goudarz Poursharif is a chartered engineer and Dean of Professional Education at Aston
University. He oversees the skills-based training that the university delivers at different levels, across various sectors and disciplines. This includes degree apprenticeship programmes, skills boot camps and CPD provisions.
“Aston University was the first to start the delivery of degree apprenticeships when the levy funding first came in during 2015. It came naturally due to the university’s technical background and its close work with the industry,” explained Goudarz. The university offers degree apprenticeships in supply chain, procurement, control systems, manufacturing, engineering and process engineering.
Some of the learners on the degree apprenticeship course are school leavers and are employed by manufacturing and engineering companies on four- or five-year degree apprenticeship programmes. The university also has more mature learners – those who have been working within the sector and taking on a degree apprenticeship programme as part of an upskilling and workforce retention strategy from their company. “The students are joining companies at a stage where they are being trained to be the future workforce,” said Goudarz.
Immediate benefits
Each degree apprenticeship course is designed in close consultation with employers, apprentices and students. “This is very different from the traditional academic journey as it is much more applied. The types of assessments student take part in are more relevant to what they do at work,” said Goudarz.
The work-based projects and assignments are closely linked to the skills they would need to develop to be successful in their profession. “For some projects, we get the employers to come in to mark the different assessments. With the final apprenticeship end point assessments, we gather an external or internal set of people that are recognised in their professional practice to score. This places a seal of approval that these apprentices have completed a programme which meets the skills, knowledge and behaviour required in that industry,” he said.
When looking at the degree classifications that students leave with following the apprenticeship degree programmes, they are higher when compared to standard degrees. “It proves that when students are applying what they are learning, it only serves as reinforcement,” said Goudarz. With traditional undergraduate programmes, however, students are taught in class – this may involve a placement – but there is usually a four- or five-year gap until their knowledge is being deployed in industry. “Our programmes are developing professional practice, competence and academic knowledge at the same time,” Goudarz said.
It is noteworthy that Aston University sees a high percentage of students continue to work within the same sector they studied. Programme teams keep in touch with the students and employers through various online communication platforms to see what they are doing after the course. “I’ve seen that many students get promoted in the final year of an undergraduate degree, or quickly after completion,” said Goudarz. Although the students stay within manufacturing and engineering, some change employers due to different areas of focus.
“After working for a few years, many apprentices go on to register with respective professional bodies such as Incorporated Engineer (IEng) and the Chartered Management Institute. We build these foundations early on and promote those memberships and professional registrations as a way of helping to build their careers,” he added.
The next generation
“I am still surprised by the lack of equality, diversity and inclusion within the workforce. The sector needs to work with schools to change students’ perception about manufacturing and promote apprenticeships at school level as a viable choice – currently the main focus is still around the traditional undergraduate route.” said Goudarz.
Areas like supply chain are becoming more diverse, but Goudarz is still seeing a lack of female engineers within manufacturing and engineering courses. Although he has seen successful women who have gone on to have careers with the likes of BMW and Siemens, the current average is sadly around one woman in a cohort of 20.
Students don’t want to hear from the educators, they want to hear from employers and employees about the success stories of apprentices. “Partnerships between employers, providers and schools will allow for those successes and benefits to be promoted and encourage the next generation to join the workforce. Ultimately closing the skills gap,” he continued.
Make UK on T-Levels
Jamie Cater is Senior Policy Manager (Employment) at Make UK and leads policy work and government engagement in anything related to manufacturing workforces and workplaces. This includes the labour market, education, training, health and safety, and supporting manufacturers to recruit and retain.
Since February 2023, Make UK has been working alongside The Gatsby Foundation and other engineering and manufacturing bodies with the goal of improving awareness and understanding among employers about what T-Levels are, how they work as qualifications and where they sit within the educational landscape.
Make UK has been working with its members and developing case studies with those using T-Levels. “We’ve committed to doing this work because we believe they are a positive development in the technical education landscape, providing a high quality qualification,” said Jamie.
One of the main challenges with T-Levels is the fact that they are so new. “The huge change happening now in terms of employment and skills policy creates uncertainty with employers. Many are still at the point where they don’t understand what a T-Level is and how they fit alongside apprenticeships,” he explained.
T-Levels are developed with employers, so those businesses that may be slightly more reluctant to try something new can have the confidence that they’ve been through a rigorous creation and design process.
Make UK believes that T-Levels are an important part of the recruitment and training pipeline for manufacturers, offering a ‘try before you buy’ for both the student and business. With employers taking learners on industry placement for 45 days over a two-year course, it makes it an early investment into the future pipeline of talent.
Money, money, money
The Labour government’s Budget announcement included increased funding for apprenticeships and skills in further education which Make UK views as an important step forward. “In the last few years, we’ve seen a significant decline in the number of apprenticeships in the manufacturing and engineering sector. We hope that the additional funding will help give training providers the capacity to deliver more apprenticeships and then T-Levels,” said Jamie.
Most of Make UK’s member companies choose to pay according to age, job, role, responsibility and experience which can vary among different level apprentices. “We do hear from manufacturers that a low apprentice pay rate can harm perceptions of that route and might make it less attractive to young people who are considering it, so the raise is good. Similarly, given the other measures in the Budget, including National Insurance contributions and the total cost of recruitment and employment increasing significantly, we risk squeezing the budgets that employers have for investment and apprenticeships,” he explained.
The wage rise provides a welcome signal to young people to think about apprenticeships, but we must acknowledge the impact the rising costs may have on manufacturers.
Manufacturing attraction
“There is still a lot of work to do to improve the image and perception of the sector. Make UK has been making inroads with National Manufacturing Day, taking place in September each year. We encourage manufacturers across the country to open their doors to young school groups, teachers, parents and people of working ages,” said Jamie. People who are looking for employment need to see what work in the manufacturing sector looks like and remove embedded and outdated stereotypes.
The reality however, is that manufacturers are competing with others in the sector for the limited number of skilled workers available. Not only that, but manufacturers are also fighting off stiff competition from a variety of other sectors and industries. T-Levels add great value through the industry placements they provide, and it’s an opportunity for employers to get in there early and start shaping those people.
UCAS on apprenticeships
Lindsay Conroy is Head of Apprenticeships at UCAS and as part of the UCAS leadership team, she is
spearheading the work to create parity between traditional undergraduate routes and apprenticeships and technical education.
As a charity, it is important for UCAS that it can provide the right information, advice and guidance to students at those key decision-making points in their journeys. “One in three young people feel the information provided to them is not sufficient enough to help them make informed choices about their futures,” she added.
“UCAS is a trusted brand when looking at education insight. For us to be able to talk to students about apprenticeships, it helps if they can understand there is an alternative to the traditional route to work through academia,” explained Lindsay. UCAS has made the information easily accessible in a variety of new ways. Firstly, it has created a search tool for apprenticeship opportunities that employers and providers can engage with. Businesses can list their opportunities online, displayed side by-side with traditional undergraduate learning. Students can compare those different routes in the same place.
Alongside the search tool, UCAS has also begun to showcase employers to students. On the UCAS website, employers can have a profile to help show students what it’s like to work and learn with them as an apprentice. “Young people going to university have a good idea of what it’s going to be like, but with apprenticeships, there is far more uncertainty. This tool gives employers a place to show what it could really be like,” she said. On the UCAS website, the engineering sector features video content where apprentices are shown talking about the decisions they have made and what stage they are currently at in the apprenticeship process. It allows perspective students to make informed decisions based on real-life experience of people they can relate to.
Interest in the apprenticeship route
Forty per cent of all students who pass through UCAS’s virtual doors are interested in the apprenticeship route and from 5 July to 21 October last year, it had over a million views of its information, advice and guidance on apprenticeship as well as 1.6 million views of its apprenticeships vacancies on its website.
“This reflects the large proportion of students interested in this route – the goal now is to move that interest forward and getting them to begin that application process,” said Lindsay.
On the UCAS hub, students can set up Smart Alerts, which enable them to be matched to specific apprenticeship vacancies. It looks at the characteristics of students versus the skills that employers are looking for in their vacancy. “We know that over 20% of the UCAS hub users who use Smart Alerts are interested in engineering and manufacturing sectors. Not only that but engineering and manufacturing is consistently in the top five areas of apprenticeship interest at UCAS,” said Lindsay.
No second choice
There is still a perception that apprenticeships are a secondary, and inferior, choice to university. However, based on what UCAS is hearing from students, this is changing and many more are exploring apprenticeships as a first choice, or alongside their research on universities. “At UCAS we support all the options for students – they are at the heart of what we do, and we want to ensure all pathways are visible to young people,” said Lindsay.
“Recently, we announced the inclusion of apprenticeships in the UCAS tariffs from May 2025. This means that a student who’s completed an apprenticeship at Level 3 will be able to apply for the tariff points in the same way as their peers who have completed A-levels, T-levels, BTEC’s and will have that same parity of access.”
Attractiveness of apprenticeships
UCAS wants to ensure that the door to higher education is open to all students, regardless of background, age and career experience. “UCAS is pleased to see the most recent raise in the national minimum wage for apprenticeships. Our research showed that a quarter of former applicants who were considering applying, or had applied for an apprenticeship, said that costs was one of the top three barriers to entry,” said Lindsay. It’s clear then, that support is needed for employers to make apprenticeships an attractive option as possible, and the wage increase only helps this.
Higher education within the UK is extremely diverse and from past research by UCAS, it has found the biggest benefit for students of opting for an apprenticeship is learning new skills, which is essential to closing the skills gap in the UK.
“We will continue to work with employers, teachers and career advisors to aid them with the correct information for students. We need to help them understand the potential barriers around students taking their next steps, whether that’s with an apprenticeship or traditional higher education. It’s about making informed choices,” said Lindsay.
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