Scottish Apprenticeship Week 2025 ➕ Sarah-Jane Urquhart
To kick off Scottish Apprenticeship Week 2025, we chatted to Sarah-Jane Urquhart from the UHI Perth Business Engagement Team about the benefits of Modern Apprentices to employers.
What are apprenticeships?
Scottish Apprenticeships 👇
are made with employers, for employers.
make a workforce that can thrive.
are made for Scotland’s employers, economy and people.
are #MadeforBusiness
Apprentices are key to bridging the skills gap that is present within industry, and they are the future workforce and important to business growth. Apprenticeships offer a structured learning experience where an apprentice can earn while they learn and gain real life industry skills.
Previously, apprenticeships have been associated only with ‘trades’ (construction, plumbing, decorating etc), but apprenticeships are now available in the majority of industry sectors.
Apprenticeships can start from the age of 16 and, once employed, will be mentored for the duration of the programme by the employer and training provider - along with learning relevant industry skills, gaining confidence, and being encouraged by the employer to move up the career ladder.
”We’ve been working with UHI Perth for a number of years now. It’s a great system - they've helped us bring on a lot of young apprentices and it’s a great way of working. The help we get from UHI Perth, it’s great.” - Colin Herd, Managing Director of W A McGarrie & Son Ltd
How do apprentices fit into the business?
Scottish Apprenticeships are designed and developed with employers to meet business needs. Employers of all sizes across Scotland are investing in apprenticeships as a solution to finding the skills and talent they need to support and sustain their businesses.
It’s important to build up a good working relationship between the workforce and the apprentice, ensuring they are treated equally and as part of the team 👇
By involving mentors from the start of the process so they are aware of the importance of training requirements.
Making sure the qualification fits the job is as important as making sure all staff have time to support the apprentice in their learning journey.
Apprenticeships are made to help employers develop a diverse workforce to support their business and communities.
Key Facts
There are around 12,000 apprentice employers in Scotland
Over 90% of apprentice employers are small to medium enterprises
Over 90% of apprentice employers pay the real living wage as minimum
83% of employers report improved productivity through apprentices
“It’s proved a massive asset to my business. It brings a different dynamic, a different outlook on life, and it helps grow my business as well.” - Roddy Davie, General Manager at Auto Services Perth Ltd
What advice would you give to employers?
Look at the end result – you are developing your future workforce. Scotland’s Modern Apprentices are thriving, with high achievement rates and nearly all remaining with their employer on completion. Did you know that there are nearly 40,000 apprentices in training across Scotland? Nine out of ten Modern Apprentices highly rate their training from learning providers and employers. In addition, research shows that their wellbeing is higher than the general population.
Giving someone the ability to learn while earning is one of the best opportunities out there and extremely rewarding for you as an employer. Did you know that Modern Apprentices earn up to 52% more than the non-completer?
Working with an experienced training provider is key, they can guide you and the apprentice on the right path and ensure funding is in place, goals are met, and regular meetings are held between all parties to ensure a smooth process from start to finish.
Be patient - it’s not always easy and everyone has to learn and start somewhere. Apprentices are loyal and motivated to learn new skills, so if you take the time to train them, they can help diversify and refresh your workplace.
“We get to train someone to fit our business model, which is great. It’s helped with flexibility and it’s nice to actually mentor someone into knowing what we do. Glenshee Glamping as a business finds it really important to take on board things like apprenticeships. Tourism is huge in rural Scotland, and we need to retain staff and people here, so working with them to meet their needs as well. What do they want to be doing in their jobs? What skills do they want to be learning? Can we help them with that? This means that we retain young people working in the Scottish economy.” - Helena Cole, Owner and Director of Glenshee Glamping.
How can I find out more about Foundation, Modern and Graduate apprenticeships?
Attend one of our information sessions this week 👇
Face-to-Face – Wednesday 5 March 5.30-7pm at the Academy of Sport and Wellbeing, UHI Perth, Crieff Road, PH1 2NX. Book a place >>
Online – Thursday 6 March 6-7pm. Book a place >>
Or contact the UHI Perth Business Team 👇
📞 Sarah-Jane Urquhart on 07826 917805
📞 Aimee Leith on 07385 945721
