More than 2,331 potential apprentices have applied to ConstructionSkills for places in Yorkshire and hundreds more are expected.

But, so far, only 348 vacancies have been offered by employers.

"There are a quarter of a million construction firms in England but only a fraction of these are taking on apprentices," says ConstructionSkills Yorkshire and Humber apprenticeship manager Sarah Fenton.

"The small businesses that thrive from generation to generation are those that appreciate the value of training and bringing young people into the business from day one. Unfortunately many firms still think that taking on an apprentice is costly or time consuming, or that drop-out rates are high.

What do you think? Post your comment below.

"In fact with over 75 per cent completion rates ConstructionSkills apprentices are among the best in the industry and we are committed to finding the right apprentice to suit each construction business."

ConstructionSkills is appealing to employers to take on more apprentices with the aim of placing 7,500 apprentices across England in construction firms by the end of the year.

Meanwhile, a report by the TUC says that some regions of the UK have almost four times as many new apprenticeships per worker as other areas, leading to a north-south divide.

The TUC called for action to bridge the gap after finding that the 9,000 new apprenticeships in Greater London in 2006/07 represented just 0.25 per cent of employment in the region.

This compared with 0.91 per cent in the North West and 0.86 per cent in the North East, meaning that those areas had almost four times as many new apprenticeships per employee than in London.

The TUC called for action to reach the Government's target of 400,000 new apprenticeships by 2020.


READ MORE
Your letters.
Today's features.
Latest sport.
Main news index.