National Apprentice Week hears from Former Mayor Ken Livingstone

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The London Borough of Tower Hamlets and Tower Hamlets College joined forces with a celebrity last Wednesday for a special day of events at The Britannia Hotel in Canary Wharf as part of National Apprenticeship Week. The afternoon session was aimed at giving young people the opportunity to find out more and meet apprenticeship providers, while the evening reception aimed to introduce the business benefits of employing apprentices to local employers.

Broadcaster and former Mayor of London, Ken Livingstone, who started his own career as an apprentice technician with the NHS IN 1962, was the Keynote Speaker at the evening event. He highlighted the changing role of an apprentice in today’s economy, especially in the context of the global downturn in the last 18 months and the changing nature of British industry. Mr Livingstone also paid particular attention to the evolution of the British economy and the fact that tomorrow’s workforce will be competing against emerging economic superpowers, such as China, who invest a much greater proportion of their GDP back into infrastructure and training than Britain and the rest of the world.

Andrew Cruickshank, Head of Business Development at Tower Hamlets College, also spoke at the event and felt the evening was a great success.“Obviously it is great that someone as high profile as Ken Livingstone believes so strongly in the value of apprenticeships, it helps to increase awareness of the benefits among both young people and employers. From a business perspective, the decision to take on an apprentice can provide a significant return on investment over time and I think this event has really helped to increase understanding among local businesses of just what apprentices can offer them.”

Other speakers at the event included Sophie Stewart, Young Apprentice of the Year for the Borough of Tower Hamlets, drawing from her own experience as an apprentice she illustrated how apprenticeships offer invaluable experience to young people; “Apprenticeships give people confidence, future job prospects and the motivation to succeed.” “When applying for a job, the first thing an employer wants to know is your previous work experience, I now have that experience.”