Thousands of apprenticeships and training places for youngsters in Caerphilly County Borough could be created, according to a senior Plaid Cymru councillor.
Councillor James Fussell, cabinet member for human resources, said the success of Caerphilly County Borough Council’s own training scheme could act as a means to enable thousands more to train with private firms.
In April 2011, the council announced plans to create 150 training places for youngsters over three years. However, there are already 162 people on the scheme.
Cllr Fussell said: “Plaid launched this scheme because, as a council, we felt it was crucial to provide training opportunities for our young people. Unemployment among young people is too high and they must not be left on the scrapheap with no hope.
“We wanted to provide training places to improve their opportunities of finding employment and that is why we invested almost £500,000.
“This scheme has grown rapidly and exceeded all our expectations. At this rate of uptake the three-year programme of 150 placements could well be doubled if not more. If that happens we will need additional finance to support and this is something this Plaid council is looking at.
“We are looking at the way the council delivers additional placements given the interest shown from the business fraternity. If the council sets its self up as the main hub and allows access to placements into the private sector, then I believe this could run into thousands of opportunities for our young unemployed.
“Council tenants have handed the authority the challenge of meeting the Welsh Housing Quality Standard. And this will mean more trade apprentices within the Housing departments as over the next seven years at least.
“If Plaid is re-elected then I’m confident that all the stops will be pulled out to ensure the apprenticeship and training scheme develops further into a borough-wide scheme with the ultimate aim of getting as many unemployed into work.”
This does APPEAR to be good news indeed.
But they should be proper apprenticeships, like the ones around when I was young, which gave, then, boys, a thorugh grounding in practical and technical skills that could be applied anywhere in the world.For example a large number of ex Sheds apprentices went to sea and made good careers in other countries. Though, speaking as a retired Chartered Engineer, I fail to see a Local Authority being able to provide the mechanical, electrical, electronic and IT skills needed by industry, like I dont see any rolling mills in Caerphilly.
John Owen is correct, my own apprenticeship was for four and a half years and included six months special training and trade tests in the North East of England. In financial terms this apprenticeship cost nearly £100,000 in today's money.
I cannot see the council being able to fund anything like this and John is right to highlight the difference between what is called an 'apprenticeship' now and what the word used to mean.
And that cost, is why the private sector hailed by the millionaire cabinet, who think manual labour is a Spanish peasant, as our industrial savours in "the march of the makers", have stopped providing apprenticeships.
Correct me if I am wrong, but did`nt Mr Fussell, the elected Councillor in charge of Human Resources of Caerphilly Council say:-
“Thousands of youngsters could train with Caerphilly Council"
and:-
"Thousands of apprenticeships and training places for youngsters in Caerphilly County Borough could be created, according to a senior Plaid Cymru Councillor".( Councillor Fussell )
Are Richard Williams and John Owen, who seem to know more about how these things than I do, saying that Councillor fussell is wrong, and his claims are not possible????. That is quite a serious omission if that is indeed the case.
As a retired Mechanical Engineer, with a long term interest in training, I find it hard to see how a Local Authority could give the old type of four or five year apprentice training that was common in my youth, for example at Hoover in Merthyr, I dont see an equivalent to the excellent tool room in the Council, and most wouldnt know what it is, or Switchgear in Blackwood, because the days of manufacturing in the valleys are over not that it was that good anyway, we existed on primary extractive industries and when they went we lost the skills. We lack the modern skill base and the required infrastructure and supply chains needed in the 21st century. On the other hand I think it could be possible to give apprenticeships to produce tradesmen like plumbers, bricklayers, electricians, IT technicians and office skills,but they should be proper apprenticeships with a recognised qualification in the end, not a six month con job. This would give some youngsters the chance to work any where, because those trades are transferable.
Blatant electioneering spin on the part of Plaid yet again. Do we have a council or a tax funded propaganda machine?
Why does Helen always think that Plaid is a clone of the Labour Party. I am fed up with the negative comments on this subject, I done a 5year apprenticeship as a gas engineer and when I retired 17 years ago this had already been reduced to 3years, this is the way of the world. There is no such thing as a 5year apprenticeship these days in fact most young gas service engineers are no more than glorified plumbers. Praise should be given to the Council for offering any type of training to youngsters these days, its far better than them staying in bed or playing computer games for years on end.