Call to restore medieval titles for apprentices

APPRENTICESHIPS should bring back the medieval terminology of “master craftsman” to boost their status, a think tank has said.

Using different titles for the varying types of apprenticeships would help to boost the prestige of the higher-level qualifications, according to a new report published by the Social Market Foundation (SMF).

“When apprenticeships were first introduced in England in the middle ages, apprentices trained to become a Journeyman under the supervision of a Master Craftsman,” the report said.

“Many European countries have successfully incorporated more gradation into the terminology of their apprenticeship structure to distinguish the most accomplished apprentices from entry-level apprentices.”

People who complete apprenticeships in Austria and Germany can obtain a master craftsperson qualification. Meanwhile, in Luxenbourg, some trades offer a master craftsperson certificate that enables self-employment in the craft industry.

The report’s authors say that similar terminology should be adopted to describe apprenticeships in Britain as it would act as a “signal” in the labour market to distinguish those who obtained a higher level apprenticeship.

James Kirkup, director of the SMF, said: “These are challenging qualifications, they deserve more recognition and higher status.”

Adopting medieval terminology would help to boost the status of the higher level apprenticeships, he said. For example, an employee with a Level 7 apprenticeship could be renamed as a Master Craftsman.

Apprenticeships range from Level 2, which is equivalent to GCSES, to Level 7 which is equates to a BA or MA and takes between three and five years to complete.

The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education, which was set up by the Department for Education, currently categorises apprenticeships as either Technical, Higher Technical or Professional. But the SMF said these terms are unlikely to “gain popular currency”.

Apprenticeship numbers have been falling. There were 375,800 new apprentices in 2017-18, 26 per cent fewer than the 509,400 starters in 2015-16.