Mon, 10 Jan 2011
Liverpool’s creative industries have launched a new apprenticeship scheme, which offers young people the chance to gain an NVQ in business administration.
The Creative Break scheme is being supported by the National Apprenticeship Service and will provide local youngsters with an opportunity to break into the notoriously competitive creative sector.
Successful candidates will be placed in administrative roles and will study towards an NVQ qualification. During their apprenticeship they will also gain valuable experience working in an in-house marketing department or within a creative agency.
The scheme follows the launch of a sister scheme in the nearby city of Manchester. Sandy Lindsay, the Group Managing Director at Tangerine Public Relations, is leading the Creative Break scheme. She explained, "It has always been our aim to roll the programme out across the UK, following the initial pilot in Manchester, and with the creative sector growing across Merseyside year on year, it seemed like the perfect location to extend the programme."
The businesses that get involved pay the trainees up to £5,000 a year and are asked to commit to employing the candidates for at least 12 months. However, as a result of this investment, the businesses are able to 'create' employees that have the appropriate vocational skills to do a good job in the creative sector.
Matt Johnson, the chief executive of Mando Group, one of the agencies that is investing in the scheme, explained why the scheme was so attractive to the agency: "It’s a well known fact that a great administrator is an essential part of any creative team. So to be given access to a bright, qualified and specifically trained individual for less than £5,000 per year who could fulfil that role, is an exciting prospect."
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