By Jamie Hepburn, Minister for Employability and Training

THIS is a landmark year for Scotland’s apprentices.

We have surpassed 200,000 Modern Apprenticeships since this government came into office and we are now delivering more new starts per year than ever before.

That’s why Apprenticeship Week, which starts today, is one of the highlights of my year. It’s a fantastic opportunity to promote apprenticeships to a wider audience, highlighting the positive impact they have on businesses, individuals and the economy.

The Scottish Government’s skills agency, Skills Development Scotland, has been working hard to make sure this week’s celebrations are bigger and better than ever. To support their efforts, I, and my ministerial colleagues will be out and about over the course of the week to witness apprentices working across quite a vast array of sectors.

We are on schedule to meet the challenging target of 26,000 new starts this year and work towards our commitment of at least 30,000 new Modern Apprenticeship starts per year by 2020.

The further development of Foundation Apprenticeships for senior phase pupils will also mean more young people are getting to start their work based learning journey while still at school.

And the introduction of Graduate Level Apprenticeships is providing opportunities for individuals up to Master’s level.

However, there have also been challenges, not least of which was the imposition of the Apprenticeship Levy by the UK Government, which will come into effect next month. Although this one-size-fits-all tax was imposed on us without consultation and without any regard for devolved powers, we are determined to make it work for Scotland.

To ensure this happens, the Scottish Government has consulted with stakeholders to create a uniquely Scottish response. I have called on employers to engage with us over how we can make this system work for them and the Scottish Government will continue to listen to anyone who wants to know how they can make the best of this situation and work with Modern Apprentices.

One example of how we are achieving this tailored response is the new £10 million Flexible Workforce Development Fund, which we announced in December to help employers work in partnership with colleges to up-skill or re-skill staff for the modern workplace.

And we continue our focus on the benefits that apprenticeships bring our economy.

The most recent employment stats show significant and sustained progress with youth unemployment now at the lowest rate since the series began. Scotland has the second lowest youth unemployment in the EU, sitting just after Germany. We do need to go further though, and our commitment to reduce youth unemployment is set out in our Youth Employment Strategy – Developing the Young Workforce, with a strong commitment to grow and enhance the apprenticeship family.

Employers across the country, in all sectors and of all sizes, have embraced this approach, putting apprenticeships and investing in the development of their younger employees at the core of their workforce development, now and for the future.

We must continue to take decisive action to create a fairer and more prosperous nation, and I believe work based learning and apprenticeships play a central role in helping to achieve this.

The majority of women with science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) subject qualifications do not go on to work in related areas. Seventy-three per cent of female STEM graduates are lost from the workforce, compared to only 48 per cent of men.

Statistics from Skills Development Scotland show that the proportion of young people declaring themselves from minority ethnic backgrounds in apprenticeships lags behind the average for the working age population.

Other sections of society, such as young people leaving care and those with disabilities, are also historically under-represented, and face wider challenges getting into jobs-market.

During the past year we have been taking action to address these issues, and apprenticeships are now changing to deliver wider benefits.

Through their Equalities Action Plan for Modern Apprenticeships, Skills Development Scotland has outlined how they are working with industry, employers and training providers to address the imbalances within our workforce and take a bold step towards improving equality and diversity within our society.

This coming year, not only will be pay a supplement to rural training providers of apprentices, but there will be enhanced contributions for those who take on apprentices with a disability or who are care leavers.

So not only are we delivering more Modern Apprenticeships than ever, we are making sure they support our vision for a fairer and equal society.