Work experience placements

Work Experience placements are run through Jobcentre Plus and will enable young, unemployed people to volunteer for placements lasting between 2 and 8 weeks. These volunteers will be matched with suitable host employers and complete a light touch selection process. During the placement, JCP continue to pay participants’ benefits and also cover the costs of travel and childcare. Young people who have spent up to 8 weeks in a Work Experience opportunity can have their placement extended by up to 4 weeks where an employer makes an offer to take them on under an apprenticeship. http://www.dwp.gov.uk/docs/work-experience-guide.pdf

Apprenticeships

Apprenticeships are work-based training programmes designed around the needs of employers, which lead to national recognised qualifications. They can be used to train both new and existing employees. The National Minimum Wage for apprentices is £2.60 per hour. Many employers prefer to pay more however, and research shows that the average salary is approx £170 per week. Below are some of the funding options available to Essex –based businesses but for further information see http://www.apprenticeships.org.uk

Apprenticeship wage subsidies for Care Leavers

Wage subsidies of £2500 to firms recruiting a young person from a care background as an apprentice. There is no restriction on employer location, size, industry sector and apprentice history, instead ECC are looking to work with employers wishing to provide good opportunities for this historically disadvantaged group. Referrals are being received from ECC’s Leaving and Aftercare Service, of young people interested in securing an apprenticeship and would welcome interest from businesses in the hope that we can give a young person an opportunity.

Engineering and Manufacturing

As ever, ECC continue to look to support this sector through a variety of means. Most notably is the offer of wage subsidies to firms looking to recruit young apprentices in skilled posts, however we are also employing young people ourselves as engineering apprentices on a year’s placement, and would welcome offers to host short work experience placements for these young people through the course of their studies. Put simply, we would be keen to speak to any firms in the engineering and manufacturing sector, who are considering recruiting younger staff or whom might support the engineering programme across the county.

At the same time, we are particularly keen to work with companies in the energy sector along the same lines, and even with logistics-led companies either supporting this sector or with aspirations to do so.

Health & Social Care

On the basis that it is predicted that the East of England alone will require 104,000 new staff in care services within the next 3 years, we are providing wage subsidies to organisations in the sector who are looking to recruit young people as apprentices in care roles.

STEM Programme

We are piloting a scheme in 3 Basildon-based schools and one Harwich school that aims to increase interest and participation in STEM subjects by pupils, and to increase joint-working between schools and the private sector.

Limited District-based wage subsidy offer

As with previous schemes, we are providing limited numbers of wage subsidies of £2500 to firms in the Colchester and Tendring districts who recruit young people as apprentices. There are restrictions on size of firm, apprentice history and of course their location.

And finally, there are a limited number of subsidies (£2000 each) to firms in the south of the county (Basildon, Castle Point and Rochford districts, recruiting an apprentice. This scheme is administered by an organisation in Benfleet but we can put interested firms in touch with them.

For further information contact Jim Wilkinson, Employability & Skills Unit, Essex County Council on  01245 433029 ext: 52029 or mobile: 07584 262943 or at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it

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