Parents / Guardians

If your child is moving on from school, college, or sixth form and wondering what to do next, an apprenticeship could be the perfect opportunity for them. It is now a government requirement that all young people from 16 to 18 stay in education, an apprenticeship counts as education, whilst also being a full-time paid job. Whilst working the apprentice will undertake studying and gain a nationally recognised qualification. Anyone that is over the age of 16 and not in full-time education is eligible for an apprenticeship. Optimum Skills provides high-quality apprenticeships to the North-East and Yorkshire areas, we can assist your child in finding the right apprenticeship for them, leading them to a successful and rewarding career.

Apprenticeships have great benefits for young people, they give them a foot in the door, gaining real work experience which could potentially lead to a career in their chosen sector. Apprentices are entitled to holiday pay, sick pay, and all other benefits employees get.

A lot of companies which employ apprentice’s will keep on successful apprentices at the end of their qualification as full-time permanent staff, there can even be the opportunity to progress onto higher level apprenticeships.

Apprenticeships with Optimum Skills offer bespoke training and study programmes, we ensure each apprenticeship is an individual experience for each and every apprentice, regardless of how many apprentices an employer takes on board.

An apprentice will only be required to do their studying during working hours, this is called off-the-job training. At Optimum Skills we provide training in the workplace, meaning no need for an apprentice to have to attend college (Bricklaying/Joinery/Property Maintenance apprenticeships have day release to our construction academy). This off the job training could be tasks set out by tutors, visits, shadowing.

Applying for an apprenticeship is a different process to applying for college, sixth form, or university.  It is best to apply for several apprenticeships to have a better chance of securing one, much like applying for a job most vacancies will require a CV, and there will be an interview process.