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Video: Target of 100
apprentices in 100 days is reached

by Adam Williams

awilliams@thekmgroup.co.uk

A landmark scheme to find 100
apprentices in 100 days has smashed its target.

The Canterbury 100 in 100 partnership
between the National Apprenticeship Service, Kent County Council
and the Kent Association of Training Organisations (KATO) launched
last November.

Tommy Dellar signed up as the first
within days and last week, Brad Kohler became the 100th. On
Thursday, Lord Mayor of Canterbury, Cllr Pat Todd, joined some of
the apprentices and their employers in a celebration at the
Canterbury Innovation Centre.

Congratulating the young people and
their new bosses, the Lord Mayor was delighted to see the vision
become reality.

He said: “When I came here in
November, I was truly excited about the potential of it all and I
left with a lot of enthusiasm.

“What has to be applauded is not
only that the scheme has reached its target, but there’s also been
80 different employers involved. The courage that’s been shown to
take on these apprentices in uncertain times has to be recognised.
On top of that, there’s tremendous commitment from the young people
who are now on board and benefiting from the support.”

Apprentices have been recruited in
an array of sectors from animal care to trainee electricians, right
through to the public sector.

Sarah Colclough, from Kent
Apprenticeships, is proud to have reached the magic number ahead of
time.

She said: “At the start, it looked
like it would be really tough, especially as we had all the snow in
December followed by Christmas and New Year. But, I’m really proud
of all the training providers and the apprentices that have come on
board."

See more reaction and
pictures in next week's Kentish Gazette.