NT technical head: Labour's apprenticeships could plug skills gap

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The National Theatre, London. Photo: David Samuels

National Theatre head of technical qualifications Kath Geraghty has praised Labour’s ongoing overhaul of apprenticeships, which she said could be the solution to plugging skills gaps in the arts.

Kath Geraghty told The Stage that finding enough people with sufficient experience to fill niche tech roles continued to be a sector-wide "stumbling block", but said the proposed apprenticeships reforms could boost recruitment and support diversity in the sector.

Last autumn, prime minister Keir Starmer, along with education secretary Bridget Phillipson, unveiled plans for a number of reforms to apprenticeships in a bid to tackle nationwide skills gaps.

Chief among the proposed changes to the existing system are the introduction of new foundation apprenticeships that students can take while still at school, and funding for shorter apprenticeships to allow for greater flexibility – previously, apprenticeships were required to run for at least 12 months.

In addition, last month the government revealed it was scrapping the requirement for apprentices to have maths and English qualifications, leaving it up to businesses to decide whether the skills were necessary.

According to the Department for Education, it could mean 10,000 more apprenticeships per year would be able to complete their courses.
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Speaking to The Stage about the most recent change ahead of last month’s National Apprenticeship Week (February 10-16), Geraghty called the changes "a great example" of the government’s commitment to boosting career opportunities for young people, "which can only be a good thing".

Geraghty continued: "We welcome the proposed changes in assessment of apprentices, as it is vital that the quality of apprenticeships is maintained.

"The creative sector has many highly specialist and niche occupations, such as scenic artist and scenic automation technician, but finding enough people with relevant experience in these areas to both deliver training and assess competency has been a stumbling block to apprenticeship take-up across the sector."

She went on to offer particular praise for the recent decision to adjust skills requirements, explaining: "While practical maths and English skills are an important part of all apprenticeships, the requirement to pass a formal Level 2 exam has at times been stressful and time consuming for some of our apprentices in the past.

"What’s encouraging is that removing these requirements will enable us to recruit from a wider and more diverse pool of candidates."

Since 2011, the National Theatre has taken on more than 50 entry-level apprenticeships across 17 departments.

Geraghty told The Stage that the majority of them said that, without the apprenticeship, they would not have pursued a career in the industry via college or university – and 90% of them have now gone directly in to paid professional work in the area they were trained in.

Geraghty acknowledged the costs of hosting apprentices, who are paid London Living Wage and taught by staff who also must be paid sufficiently.

"However, this is offset by the benefits that come with offering apprenticeships," she said, arguing that apprenticeships can "without a doubt help plug skills gaps in the arts".

In addition, Geraghty claimed: "Apprenticeships and other technical education routes are fundamental to ensuring we have a diverse mix of talent within the arts industry."

In her inaugural Jennie Lee lecture last month, culture secretary Lisa Nandy described a lack of skills as "the single biggest brake" on the arts sector.