We stand by our written evidence. There are a number of concerns in the construction industry about foundation apprenticeships, which we can perhaps deal with in more detail.
I have had some exposure to the programme that Grahame Barn operates, and I think that it is excellent. To date, it has been successful, but it is aimed mainly at those seeking more academic and perhaps white-collar-type occupations such as technicians rather than at guys or operatives who will end up on the tools.
In the written evidence, I listed some issues to do with foundation apprenticeships that we are concerned about. They are broadly shaped into three categories.
There are practical issues around timetabling and, principally, resources. Looking to get more vocational training into schools is not necessarily a new idea. The main reason why that has not happened in the past is that it is resource intensive. Low pupil-to-instructor ratios, materials and a lot of space are needed, and people often need transport to get to colleges. That is often an expensive route to look at. There are academic alternatives that are maybe not quite as expensive. That is one of the main reasons why vocational training has not really got off the ground in schools to date.
I went on to look at training issues with foundation apprenticeships. Candidates would not have daily experience of being involved in the construction industry. Currently, the opportunity to go to college for a couple of weeks, go back to the site, practise skills on site, go to college again and practise on site again is embedded in the apprenticeship framework. There is an interrelationship between on-site and off-site training.
There are also progression issues. Where does the candidate go if they do not manage to get an apprenticeship at the end of their school term? Where do they go if they undertake a foundation apprenticeship and start to work towards some of their Scottish vocational qualification? Where is their progression route after they have finished school? We are not quite sure about that just yet.
Most important, we outlined a positive alternative to foundation apprenticeships at the end of the paper. Skills for work and the national progression award in construction offer candidates employability skills and a taster of a variety of different occupations in the construction sector. The opportunity for candidates to make more informed career decisions is very beneficial at that stage in their development.