Skills for Life: Why Apprenticeships Matter More Than Ever

As the workplace continues to evolve at pace, one thing is clear: our skills system needs to keep up. The government’s recent announcement of V Levels, a new vocational route designed to prepare young people for technical and professional careers, helps address this and is a welcome step towards strengthening the UK’s post-16 education landscape.

However, apprenticeships will continue to play a crucial role. They are already well established with industry, built around the real needs of employers and give people the chance to gain valuable experience directly in the workplace. In a labour market that is changing so quickly, that blend of learning and hands-on experience has never been more important.

Apprenticeships are also unique in combining education with employment. By including structured learning with hands-on experience, they help people develop the skills they’ll need to perform their role while gaining industry recognised qualifications along the way. In a labour market where roles and technologies are constantly evolving, that mix of theory and practice is more important than ever.

But apprenticeships allow people to develop more than just technical capability and go beyond doing any one single job. They develop broader, transferable skills like communication, collaboration, problem-solving and adaptability, all of which support long-term employability. These are the skills for life that don’t just prepare people for a job, but are the springboard of a successful long-term career.

For employers, apprenticeships help address skills gaps while bringing fresh thinking and talent into organisations. At Virgin Media O2, we see first-hand how apprentices challenge assumptions, introduce new ideas and strengthen our talent pipeline across both technical and non-technical roles.

Apprenticeships are powerful because they open doors to everyone and help boost social mobility, yet there are still barriers to firms taking people on. Cost remains a major barrier, especially for smaller organisations, who may not pay enough into the levy to cover training costs.

That’s why last year Virgin Media O2 launched a £1 million Apprenticeship Talent Fund, which made our levy fund available to support small businesses, charities, social enterprises and local authorities to recruit apprentices and cover the cost of their training. The fund has a particular focus on increasing access to STEM roles, supporting women and people from global majority backgrounds to access opportunities that might otherwise be out of reach. We received many applications showing there is healthy demand to train and take on apprentices.

Importantly, apprenticeships also play a key role in continuous learning regardless of where you are in your career. Higher and degree-level apprenticeships allow people to upskill or retrain while staying in work, a crucial option as job roles continue to evolve. In fast-moving sectors like technology and digital infrastructure, this flexibility helps individuals and employers keep pace with change.

For the further education sector, apprenticeships sit at the heart of economic growth and workforce development. For individuals, they offer confidence, opportunities and real career progression. And for employers, they help build diverse, resilient teams with the skills needed for the future.

By Karen Handley, Head of Future Careers at Virgin Media