Is Your Son/Daughter Considering an Apprenticeship?
October 2013
Dear Parent/Carer,
Since the start of Key Stage 4 your child has been making plans for what they want to do after leaving school next year. Currently our Year 11 pupils are in the process of writing their Personal Statements in Living Education, attending college open days and evenings, and have already been on a sampling day to Runshaw College. As you may already be aware from the recent media coverage, the government is really keen to raise awareness about apprenticeships to pupils of secondary age. With this in mind, I am writing to you to advise you about this post-16 pathway.
Is your son/daughter considering an Apprenticeship?
An Apprenticeship is a real job with training. Apprenticeships are suitable for the academically able and those who prefer a more practical approach. They are a way of gaining nationally recognised qualifications and workplace experience whilst earning a wage. There are over 250 different types of Apprenticeship available, ranging from engineering to financial services, veterinary nursing to accountancy, horticulture to motor vehicle engineering.
Key benefits
- Earn a salary – Apprentices currently earn at least £2.65 per hour (£2.68 from October 2013) but on average £170.00 per week.
- All the benefits of being an employee – including holiday pay.
- 20 days holiday, including bank holidays.
- Structured training to gain nationally recognized qualifications and learn job specific skills.
- Apprenticeships are available at different levels to enable progression all the way to degree level.
- Advance in a chosen career by getting promoted in the workplace.
The core components are:
- A nationally recognised vocational qualification.
- Functional skills, such as working in teams, problem solving, literacy and numeracy, communication and using new technology.
- A technical certificate such as a BTEC or City & Guilds (relevant to your specific Apprenticeship).
- Other professional qualifications or requirements as specified by the particular job.
How can I support my son/daughter to look for vacancies?
You can look up the current Apprenticeship vacancies by going to apprenticeships.org.uk and clicking ‘Search for vacancies’ link to register your details. You will be given a step by step guide of what to do. Once you have registered, you can enter your house postcode and search for vacancies in your local area or further afield. Think of employers that you may like to work for, search their website to see what apprenticeship opportunities they have available go to for employer website addresses.
To find out more:
- can provide all the information you need to access Apprenticeships. You can also access live Apprenticeship vacancies in your area. (Year 11 leavers can start full-time employment as an apprentice after the official school leaving date – last Friday in June).
- For any technical problems while using Apprenticeship vacancies, contact National helpdesk 02476 826482 or email: .
- For help to find an Apprenticeship and support with the application contact the National Careers Service www.nationalcareersservice.direct.gov.uk or telephone 0800 100 900.
- For information on Apprenticeships, minimum wage etc., and whether an apprenticeship might affect benefits please go to
I do hope that your child will make full use of our careers guidance in school over the coming months as they prepare for their next steps after leaving St Michael’s. Mrs Claire Easterbrook is our Independent Careers Advisor who is available should your child require a one-to-one interview and tutors are currently delivering careers lessons within Living Education during this half term. We also have a well-resourced careers library, located in the school library, as well as access to a very informative online careers package ( which your child will have registered on. Up to date information with links to useful websites can also be found in the Careers section of Moodle.
If you have any questions regarding your child’s next steps or would like further information, advice or guidance, please do not hesitate to contact me in school.
Yours sincerely,
Miss A Brown
Curriculum Leader – Living Education