East midlands set to exceed apprentice target

Two years ago, Health Eduaction East Midlands (as we were back then) were set a target of recruiting 2,163 apprentices by the end of March 2016. This was one of many deliverables in the Government's mandate, and forms part of the wider Talent for Care programme.

We are therefore extremely pleased to announce that we are well on the way to not only achieving this, but exceeding this target, as at the end of January we had already reached 98% of this total.

These apprentices work across a number of Trusts and GP practices across the region, all promoted and supported by Health Education England across the East Midlands, and undertake a number of roles. A real emphasis was placed on roles that potential apprentices would not normally associate with the NHS, along with the ethos of, 'It's not just doctors and nurses...'

The success has been put down to three main factors:

• Strong leadership at all levels and clear messages (including what constitutes an apprenticeship framework) and support to and within the LETCs (regionally and locally).
• Dedicated project resource to support the agenda and explore new frameworks not previously identified. Once again at a regional and local level, with financial incentives in some areas.
• Improved data collection systems and processes - moving away from a passive to a proactive approach.