Wirral Council
The Government has made a revival of apprenticeships a key priority after admitting unemployment – plus cuts in university places – have made 18-year-olds the biggest victims of the recession.
This week, Mr Denham topped up funding for trainees, with £700,000 for horticulture apprenticeships, including in Liverpool, St Helens, Wirral and Halton.
He said: “Councils should be making use of the Government funding available to help people now – when they need it.
“Our snapshot findings shows top councils are creating one apprenticeship for every 65 employees and the average is one per 248 employees.
“But almost 60% of councils are doing worse than this – and just under a quarter are doing nothing to up their numbers at all.”
Liverpool Council was asked to comment on Mr Denham’s criticisms, but did not respond.
