LMH says "You're Hired" to apprentices

Published by Jean Clarke for Liverpool Mutual Homes in Housing and also in Communities, Education, Local Government

A housing association and some of the biggest building contractors in the UK have joined forces to say “You’re hired” to young tenants as part of an apprentice scheme.

Liverpool Mutual Homes (LMH) launched its Shared Apprenticeship Scheme to help young tenants aged 16 to 24 to gain skills for the job market.

The apprentices will be employed by a third sector holding company called the Neighbourhood Services Company and the scheme sees seven people year-on-year given training and work.

Funding for the scheme comes from contractors who are offering the placements via their work with LMH through its £400 million improvement programme.

The Neighbourhood Services Company will act as the employer on behalf of LMH and its framework contractors for all apprentices employed on the scheme. 

The first group will be trained as plumbers, electricians and joiners.

Those chosen for the apprenticeships will work for a range of contractors on different construction and regeneration schemes for LMH including Seddon, Kinetics Group, Bramall Construction, Mitie, PH Jones, Enterprise, Lovell and Wates.

Contractors will collaborate with the Neighbourhood Services Company for suitable placements and liaise on all matters concerning progress, performance and the well-being of the apprentice while providing supervision, training and work.

Once they have completed their placements, the apprentices will be qualified to NVQ Level 2 and 3 standards and will be either taken on full-time by the companies or given help to find work using their newly-acquired and transferrable skills.

Chief Executive of LMH, Steve Coffey, said: “The apprentices chosen will learn the skills and gain the experience needed to help set them up for life with trades whereby they can forge fruitful and sustainable careers.

“The flexibility of the scheme means they can receive all the work experience they need.  For example, a joiner may have to construct a roof to qualify but the contractor they are working with might not have this type of work but the Neighbourhood Services Company can place them with another company that does or mock it up at its workshop headquarters.

“The current economic climate means the job market is becoming more competitive all the time so we are doing all we can to offer our tenants the opportunities to gain the skills needed to help them into work.”

Supporting the scheme is Liverpool City Council’s Cabinet member for Employment and Skills, Cllr Nick Small.

He said: "I’m really pleased LMH are supporting our drive to increase the number of apprenticeships across the city. This is a big priority for the city council.

"I hope many more employers follow LMH’s lead.  The drastic spending cuts announced by the government are going to hit young people hard. It’s really important that we support them in gaining the skills they need to obtain employment.

“We want to have a highly-skilled and motivated workforce ready to take advantage of any improvement in the economy in future years.

“The city council is supporting local businesses with new grants to help them increase the number of apprentices employed in Liverpool."

Seddon’s Training and Education Executive, Roy Cavanagh MBE, said: “We are very committed to the training and development of young people and already have a hugely successful apprenticeship programme in place at Seddon. 

“However, we are always looking for new and alternative ways to encourage people into the industry and this initiative was something we were keen to be involved with.  It provides young people with a great opportunity to acquire valuable skills which will put them in a great position when looking for employment.”

Birkenhead-based Lovell is carrying out a £13.8 million scheme for LMH to install new kitchens and bathrooms for 2,000 homes in west and south Liverpool.

Initially, the company will take on two trainee joiners through the Shared Apprenticeship Scheme who will work on the refurbishment programme alongside experienced Lovell trades people to gain practical carpentry skills. In addition, the apprentices will attend local colleges on a day release basis to complete the theoretical side of their qualifications.

“Creating training opportunities in the areas that we work in is one of our top priorities, so we’re delighted to be lending our support to the Shared Apprenticeship Scheme,” says Lovell regional director Nigel Yates.

“We have a strong track record of training apprentices to the highest standard. We are looking forward to helping the trainees we take on through the scheme learn the skills they will need for long and successful careers in the construction industry.”

The Shared Apprenticeship Scheme follows on from LMH’s success in the Future Jobs Fund that saw it fill 120 posts through procurement and training specialist Fusion 21, of which nearly a fifth were converted into full-time posts.

Photograph: LMH Chief Executive Steve Coffey and Cllr Nick Small (centre holding board) with apprentices and partners at the launch of the Shared Apprenticeship Scheme.