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  • PRESS RELEASE : Winners unveiled for the 2022 National Apprenticeship Awards [November 2022]

    PRESS RELEASE : Winners unveiled for the 2022 National Apprenticeship Awards [November 2022]

    The press release issued by the Department for Education on 30 November 2022.

    • Talented apprentices from across the country awarded for championing apprenticeships
    • Employers of all sizes recognised for demonstrating best practise and inspiring other businesses to get involved
    • Apprenticeships are a vital part of the government’s ambitious skills agenda, levelling up opportunities across the country

    The 19th National Apprenticeship Awards were held in London last night (Wednesday 30th November) celebrating the outstanding apprentices and employers who are at the heart of the government’s mission to boost skills and extend the ladder of opportunity to all.

    Exceptional apprentices working in a range of sectors including digital, hospitality, manufacturing and engineering were recognised for their fantastic work helping and inspiring others to embark on their own apprenticeship journey.

    Umayr Tanveer, a Software Engineering Apprentice at BT, was presented with this year’s Special Recognition Award for his work promoting apprenticeships to school leavers from BAME and disadvantaged backgrounds, sending an inspiring message to all young people that they can excel on an apprenticeship whatever their background.

    Other apprentices recognised include Thomas Bartlett from the West Midlands who was awarded the Rising Star Award. Thomas is completing a Senior Leader apprenticeship with an integrated master’s degree through Crosby Management Training and has risen from an HR apprentice to a Chief Operating Officer in just five years and now leads his own team of three apprentices.

    Meanwhile, Kimmy Kimani Hobbs, who completed a Business Administration apprenticeship was awarded the Apprenticeship Champion Award. Kimmy now works at Milton Keynes College where she continues to advocate for apprenticeships among BAME communities.

    Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships and Higher Education Robert Halfon said:

    Huge congratulations to all the winners and finalists from this year’s National Apprenticeship Awards.  I’m passionate about apprenticeships and the benefits they bring to individuals, businesses and communities up and down the country. These outstanding apprentices and their employers are leading the way, demonstrating just how rewarding apprenticeships can be.

    Apprenticeships are an essential rung on the ladder of opportunity, offering people of all ages and backgrounds, the chance to earn while they learn the skills they need to build successful careers while delivering the workforce employers need to flourish.

    Employers of all sizes were honoured for their commitment to delivering high-quality apprenticeships, helping their apprentices reach their potential, and taking full advantage of the wealth of benefits apprentices offer to their business, including boosted productivity and employee retention.

    KMF Group Limited won Large Employer of the Year and the BBC won Macro Employer of the Year for their work delivering high-quality apprenticeships. Ahead of Small Business Saturday on 3rd December, smaller businesses were also celebrated with Troup Bywaters & Anders being awarded Small Employer of the Year.

    The awards ceremony was hosted by journalist and TV presenter, Steph McGovern, who started her own career as an apprentice engineer at Black & Decker in Middlesborough. Steph’s success demonstrates the variety of exciting career paths a technical education can open up and serves as an inspiration for current and future apprentices from all walks of life.

  • Chi Onwurah – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Chi Onwurah – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chi Onwurah on 2014-02-27.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the Answer of 24 February 2014, Official Report, column 200W, on IT: education, with which groups and organisations his Department has engaged to support the Year of the Code; and what support his Department has so provided.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    Cabinet Office is engaging with groups including e-skills UK, the Sector Skills Council for Business and Information Technology. This builds on ongoing work across Government to build links with schools, universities and employers.

  • Sheila Gilmore – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Sheila Gilmore – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Sheila Gilmore on 2014-02-27.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many pagers have been provided to staff by his Department since May 2010; and what the cost to the Department was of providing those pagers.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    As was the case prior to the last General Election various officials are provided with pagers when there is a business case to do so. We do not hold details centrally of when pagers were purchased but currently spend £360 a month on the services.

  • Zac Goldsmith – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Zac Goldsmith – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Zac Goldsmith on 2014-02-27.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how many deaths of (a) infants, (b) children, (c) adults and (d) elderly people have been recorded in the UK from antibiotic-resistant bacterial meningitis infection by age group in each year since 1990.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Kate Green – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Kate Green – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Kate Green on 2014-02-27.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what proportion of the people who moved from employment to unemployment or inactivity in the last year had a household income (a) below £15,000, (b) below £25,000, (c) below £50,000 and (d) £50,000 or above at the point before they left employment.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Tom Blenkinsop – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Tom Blenkinsop – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Tom Blenkinsop on 2014-02-26.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what recent estimate the Office for National Statistics has made of the proportion of manufacturing jobs held by women in (a) each English region, (b) Scotland, (c) Wales and (d) Northern Ireland.

    Mr Nick Hurd

    The information requested falls within the responsibility of the UK Statistics Authority. I have asked the Authority to reply.

  • Pete Wishart – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Pete Wishart – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Pete Wishart on 2014-02-26.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, how much in public duty costs allowance has been paid to each former Prime Minister in each year since 2010; what the limit is of the public duty costs allowance for former Prime Ministers; when that limit was last reviewed; whether the public duty costs allowance is payable in addition to their parliamentary allowances to former Prime Ministers who remain Members of Parliament; what audit is undertaken of claims made under the public duty costs allowance by former Prime Ministers; what checks are made to ensure that claims against the allowance meet the criteria for funding from the allowance; what guidance is provided to former Prime Ministers on claiming from the public duty costs allowance; and if he will place in the Library a copy of that guidance.

    Mr Francis Maude

    The amounts paid in 2011-12 and 2012-13 are as follows:

    2011/12

    Gordon Brown

    £114,998.17

    Baroness Thatcher

    £109,191.00

    John Major

    £115,000.00

    Tony Blair

    £115,000.00

    2012/13

    John Major

    £114,996.00

    Gordon Brown

    £100,315.68

    Baroness Thatcher

    £74,087.76

    Tony Blair

    £115,000.00

    The current limit for the PDCA is £115,000. The limit is reviewed on an annual basis.

    Former Prime Ministers will continue to receive the PDCA if they are a sitting MP, provided they are not serving as Leader of the Opposition.

    Claims are processed by the Cabinet Office and form part of the annual audit of Cabinet Office expenditure.

    All former Prime Ministers are provided with guidance on the PDCA. A copy of this has been placed in the Library of the House.

  • Heidi Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Heidi Alexander – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Heidi Alexander on 2014-02-26.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, pursuant to the oral Answer to the hon. Member for Vale of Glamorgan on 11 December 2013, column 224, on Civil Service (union facility time), in which Departments the trade union officers who were promoted in post while doing no work as a civil servant were employed; and in which Department the officer who was promoted twice was employed.

    Mr Francis Maude

    There are no plans to provide further details to protect the identities of the individuals involved.

  • Dr Julian Lewis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    Dr Julian Lewis – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Cabinet Office

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Dr Julian Lewis on 2014-02-26.

    To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, whether any records relating to the loss of the escort aircraft carrier HMS Dasher in March 1943 have (a) been retained from transfer to and (b) remain closed in the National Archives; and if he will make a statement.

    Mr Francis Maude

    Cabinet Office holds no records relating to HMS Dasher.

  • Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    Chris Ruane – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the Deputy Prime Minister

    The below Parliamentary question was asked by Chris Ruane on 2013-05-08.

    To ask the Deputy Prime Minister, what assessment he has made of the outcome of his Department’s matching of the electoral register with Department for Work and Pensions data in communities with (a) seaside towns and (b) towns with high student populations; and what effect this work will have on the size of electorates in these constituencies.

    Chloe Smith

    As part of the transition to Individual Electoral Registration (IER), entries on the electoral register will be matched against data held by Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) for the purposes of confirming existing electors, a process which will simplify the transition for the majority of existing electors. Last year the Cabinet Office undertook pilots to test this process and we published our evaluation of these pilots earlier this year which is available to download from:

    https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/simplifying-the-transition-to-individual-electoral-registration

    The evaluation report includes an analysis of match rates by population groups and while no specific analysis was undertaken of seaside towns, the results did suggest that match rates were lower in areas with high student populations. However, anyone who cannot be confirmed will still be invited to register individually and will retain their ability to vote in the 2015 general election. By using confirmation to simplify the process for the majority of electors it means resources can be focused on maximising registration among those people who cannot be confirmed, including individuals who are not currently registered. We are also currently running a separate set of pilots exploring whether data matching against DWP and other trusted national data sets can be used to find potential electors who are not currently registered but may be eligible to do so, in order to invite them to register. The results of the pilots, which are specifically targeted at boosting registrations among students, attainers and home-movers, will be published in the summer.