Ruth Davidson has today called for every school to offer real-world work experience by 2020, as she marks National Apprenticeship Week.
The Scottish Conservative leader made the call as she visited Company Net to meet apprentices who are getting a leg up into the world of work.
Skills Development Scotland, the country’s national skills agency, has already called for all schools provide foundation apprenticeships. It follows growing evidence that providing school age students with hands-on work experience helps them move straight into a job if they so choose.
Today’s call to increase Foundation Apprenticeships is part of the Scottish Conservatives’ wider plan to boost vocational and technical education.
The Scottish Government currently has made commitments to increase foundation apprenticeships but has yet to back them being made available in every school.
Ruth said:
“Apprenticeships aren’t just for traditional trades – today I saw apprentices in an office environment learning coding and advanced software skills.”
“Being able to gain real-world work experience can transform a pupil’s career prospects. Foundation apprenticeships allow pupils to spend a part of their school week gaining hands-on experience and can lead directly to a full time job.”
“I have long argued for the need to rebalance our educational system, with greater emphasis on vocational education and more choice for pupils.”
“We support the plans to expand foundation apprenticeships, but we need to make sure these opportunities are available to pupils in all corners of Scotland.
“That’s why we will press the Scottish Government to ensure that foundation apprenticeships are a part of every single Scottish school’s offer by 2020.”