‘It is now as good as going to college or doing a degree’

Nearly treble the number of people are becoming apprentices in the county compared to a decade ago.

The number of apprenticeships started in Kent swelled to 13,940 in the 2015/ 16 academic year, compared to 4,710 in 2006/07.

The figure increased by 170 on the year before, giving it the second highest population of new apprentices in the South East. Only Hampshire has more with 18,210.

Essex, which is not technically counted as part of the South East, also beats Kent with 14,580. Both Hampshire and Essex have a smaller population than Kent.

“We are really encouraged that the growth in apprenticeships has nearly trebled in Kent,” said Lindsay Collins, director of operations at the Kent Association of Training Organisations.

“I’m sure this is partly due to the fact that employers now have a really clear understanding of the benefits of employing apprentices and the value they can bring to a business.

“In addition, the breadth of the Kent apprenticeship offer has become much wider to cover a lot more job roles and sectors over the past 10 years.

“The potential to progress through to higher and degree apprenticeships has been a great incentive for young people to choose this route.

“We are looking forward to even higher uptake as the standards continue to develop to meet employer’s needs.”

The constituency of Rochester and Strood has by far the largest number of new apprentices in Kent.

Its total of 1,460 is 440 ahead of