The government has announced plans to create thousands more apprenticeships. We want to hear from employers about their experiences of recruiting apprentices
Guardian community teamMon 21 Sep 2026 06.51 EDTFirst published on Wed 5 Aug 2026 08.18 EDTSharePrefer the Guardian on GoogleOnly 160 young people have enrolled on the government’s flagship foundation apprenticeship scheme in its first eight months, despite an ambition to reach 30,000 starts by the end of this parliament.
The figures come amid growing concern about youth unemployment. Research by the Fabian Society also found that many employers had limited knowledge of some technical qualifications and called for changes to make the apprenticeship system easier to navigate.
We’d like to hear from employers who have taken on apprentices. What has your experience been like? Have apprentices benefited your organisation? What have been the biggest challenges? What changes or government support would encourage you to offer more apprenticeship opportunities?
If you’ve decided not to recruit apprentices or would like to take on more than you currently do, we’d also like to hear why. What barriers have you faced? Are funding, costs, administration, training requirements or finding suitable candidates making it difficult?
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