smallbusiness.co.uk: Helping your business think big

Businesses are set to increase their staff levels by hiring more apprentices.

Some 60 per cent of employers intend to recruit apprentices this year, with 72 per cent who have already done so believing have helped their businesses during the recession.

Simon Swords, owner of Atlas Computing Systems, says: ‘As a small business, we have built the success of our company on recruiting apprentices. When we started out we simply couldn’t afford to hire someone with a lot of experience. Our apprentices have also brought a flexibility to the job that people who have been in the industry for a long time don’t always have.’

Pat McFadden, business minister, says: ‘For so many businesses to be planning to recruit in 2010 is good news for the whole economy. In 1997 apprenticeships had dwindled as a route for people to gain new skills, [while] today we have 239,900 starting apprenticeships and businesses of all sizes are reaping the rewards of having a highly skilled workforce.’

Of the 1,000 business owners surveyed, 88 per cent say drive and enthusiasm are the most important traits in an apprentice, according to the survey from the National Apprenticeship Service.

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