Apprenticeship targets on track with ScotRail

Young people in Renfrewshire will soon be able to pursue a career with ScotRail as the rail giant unveils ambitious plans to swell the number of apprenticeships they offer over the next five years.

The financial impact of the coronavirus pandemic means apprenticeships in Scotland are down 75 per cent year on year, and, according to the Scottish Government, the unemployment rate of 16-to-24-year olds could increase to more than 20 per cent because of the impact of Covid-19.

To help combat this, ScotRail is setting ambitious targets in its Early Careers strategy. Currently, the rail franchise employs 22 apprentices, but the objective is to increase this tenfold by 2025.

ScotRail is also to offer a clear career pathway with opportunities for existing staff to take advantage of new and innovative early careers programmes and the company will engage more extensively with Scottish schools in each of the mainland local authority areas.

This includes plans for enhanced placement partnerships and graduate and intern programmes.

Neil Archibald, ScotRail head of Strategic Workforce Planning, said:“We need to increase the numbers and broaden the scale of apprenticeships that we offer.

“And, the skills aren’t just about working on trains.

“Often the apprentices go off into a number of roles that could be very different to the programme that they went through.

“Past apprentices are now working in our social media team, in our HR department and in management roles across the organisation.

“I want ScotRail to be seen as an employer of choice for young people and to change the perception of the company when young folk are looking for employment.”

ScotRail is also supporting the Young Persons Guarantee, which was launched in November 2020 to help protect young people from the economic impacts of Covid-19.

Its aim is that all 16-24 year-olds in Scotland will be either in paid employment, education, an apprenticeship or training programme, or engaged on a formal volunteering or supported activity programme within two years.