Over 50% of engineering firms in the UK have taken on an apprentice in the past two years, a new survey by the Manufacturing Technologies Association (MTA) and Close Brothers Asset Finance has found.

The survey looked across a range of sectors, including food and drink, retail, recruitment and services, discovering that construction was the only other industry employing apprentices at a similar rate to engineering firms.
One of the most interesting points to emerge from the survey was that the biggest barrier to employing an apprentice was not the Apprenticeship Levy, but the lack of suitable candidates, and as well as problems with training providers. Steve Gee, CEO of Close Brothers Asset Finance’s Industrial Equipment Division, says: “Over the past four years Close Brothers Asset Finance, working in partnership with the MTA and the University of Sheffield’s AMRC Training Centre, have funded the training of 60 apprentices. It is very encouraging to see the results of this survey and we’re proud of the part we have played.”
For further information www.mta.org.uk