During this year's National Apprenticeships Week, local MPs Tim Loughton and Peter Bottomley both paid visits to Northbrook campuses and met with apprentices and some of their employers.
Minister and local MP Tim Loughton met apprentices at Northbrook College’s Business Development Unit on Friday, to mark national Apprenticeship Week.
During his visit, Mr Loughton met West Sussex Apprentice of the Year, Simon Browne and Tim Franklin, Director and Founder of local estate agent Molica Franklin, who employed Simon as an apprentice.
Mr Loughton also took a tour of the Business Development Unit and met two young apprentices who have joined the Business Development Team at Northbrook.
Mr Loughton spoke of the important role that apprenticeships have to play in tackling youth unemployment, helping the economy and in up-skilling the workforce.
The government is aiming to create 100,000 more apprenticeship positions by 2014. Apprentices gain qualifications by attending college one day per week while they work for an employer for the rest of the week. During Apprenticeship Week, Northbrook highlighted the benefits to businesses of employing an apprentice, which can prove a low cost asset to businesses in these difficult times.
West Worthing MP, Sir Peter Bottomley, met a group of young apprentices at Northbrook's Broadwater campus, where they have been employed as trainee electricians working on the re-building of their own campus.
Peter Bottomley met apprentices who work for Simpson Electrical, the company contracted to carry out electrical work on the eagerly awaited rebuilding of Northbrook’s Broadwater campus. During the visit, a plaque was presented to Simpson Electrical in recognition of their support of apprentices at Northbrook College over many years.