Yup that's right. after 9 years at B-Skill i am moving on. I have enjoyed very much the majority of my time as a Director of B-Skill Ltd, but i suppose there comes a time when we all need to move on. If i am honest i did hope that B-Skill would be where i would retire from but sadly it was not to be.
I have learned a lot at my time at B-Skill and i will hopefully be able to use the skills that i have developed and the experience i have gained to use in my new job. I would like to wish the Board and the staff at B-Skill all the best for the future.
So... where am i off to? I have been lucky enough to be appointed as the new CEO of the North East Apprenticeship Company. Which was officially launched by Iain Wright MP on Monday at the start of Apprenticeship Week.
Time was when you left school on a Friday and started work on an apprenticeship on the Monday. The North East’s traditional industries meant there were plenty of opportunities for all teenage school-leavers. But when the mines closed and shipbuilding ceased, the career path for many was no longer as clear. During the 1990s, apprenticeships lost their popularity, often being seen as the “poor relation” to more academic routes, such as A-levels.
But yesterday saw the launch of a new venture which hopes to change all that. The North East Apprenticeship Company (NEAC) aims to create hundreds of new jobs by making it easier for North East companies to employ apprentices. The launch coincided with the first day of National Apprenticeship Week.
The NEAC, which has been jointly created by Gateshead Council and Gateshead College, will allow more young people to follow in Jack’s footsteps. Its main aims are to reduce youth unemployment, tackle the region’s skills gap and create more than 1,000 new apprenticeships in the next two years, particularly among small and medium enterprises (SMEs).
It was launched by Government Minister for 14-19 reform and apprenticeships, Iain Wright MP. The Hartlepool MP said: “Now more than ever it is important that we give young people the real help they need to get and keep jobs.”
Although based in Gateshead, the NEAC will cover the whole of the region, working with North East companies and training and education providers. It will be NEAC’s role to recruit apprentices and contract them out to employers. The company will handle recruitment, assessment and training as well as organising payroll, insurance and tax.
I will keep you updated as to how it is going and what i am upto so keep your eyes open.
