Digital businesses in the North are taking on more apprentices than ever\u00a0in an effort to narrow the widening skills gap, according to Manchester
\nDigital’s annual digital skills audit.<\/p>\n
Of the 250 digital and technology businesses audited, over half had\u00a0taken on an apprentice in the last year, with the majority (80%) meeting\u00a0employer expectations. When asked about the impending apprenticeship levy, four in five digital employers said they believed it would be a\u00a0good thing for their business.<\/p>\n
Businesses in the region are also increasingly recruiting graduates from\u00a0local universities with 55% declaring they had done so in the last year,\u00a0up 11% from the 12 months previous. Additionally, one in four digital\u00a0business said they actively run their own graduate scheme.<\/p>\n
The audit also looked\u00a0at which skills were most in demand from the region’s digital businesses\u00a0– software development, digital marketing, and data \/ insight analysis\u00a0came out top while Javascript, PHP and Python were found to be the most\u00a0used languages.<\/p>\n
Commenting on the findings of the audit, Katie Gallagher, managing\u00a0director at Manchester Digital said:\u00a0“It is great to see so many businesses in the region investing in their\u00a0talent pipeline and taking on more apprentices than before. In time for\u00a0National Apprenticeship Week, our audit has shown apprenticeships
\nprovide value for the vast majority of employers and we are seeing more\u00a0parents and potential candidates view tech apprenticeships as a high\u00a0quality alternative to university. The audit has also revealed the key\u00a0skills employers in the industry are looking for which provides\u00a0invaluable insight for any young person weighing up their options and\u00a0considering a career in digital or tech.<\/p>\n
“With as many as a fifth of the region’s digital businesses turning down\u00a0work due to a talent shortage, and with no immediate solution in sight,
\nit is imperative that employers look further down the talent supply\u00a0chain and structure their recruitment strategies to allow for\u00a0apprenticeships. If we can continue to build on this momentum, we are\u00a0investing not only in the future of our region’s young people but the\u00a0sustainability of the North West’s digital tech industry too.”<\/p>\n