ACTIVA Contracts is launching a new apprenticeship programme targeted at school-leavers.

The 12 to 18 month programme follows the Government’s recent introduction of the apprenticeship levy, which aims to get three million apprentices in training by 2020. The levy is paid by all employers with a minimum pay bill above £3 million a year, with the levy charged at 0.5% of an organisation’s annual pay bill.

Milton Keynes-based Activa Contracts will offer apprenticeships in business services covering courses focused on business administration and customer service.

The courses will lead to apprentices gaining National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs), competency-based qualifications that reflect the skills and knowledge needed to undertake a specific job.

Training will be undertaken on the job and by attending courses at GTG West Midlands in Wolverhampton, which is equipped with technical classrooms, IT rooms and a purpose-built driver training centre.

Additionally, GTG (Glasgow Training Group), which has training centres in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Wolverhampton and like Activa Contracts is a member of the Arnold Clark group of companies, is on the Register of Apprenticeship Training Providers approved to provide apprenticeships to levy-paying employers.

Activa Contracts’ customer services director Karen McCarthy said: “The jobs market in Milton Keynes is hugely competitive and the city has a very low unemployment rate. We believe that offering a comprehensive apprenticeship and significant career prospects to school leavers will be hugely attractive to 16-year-olds.”

With GCSEs the minimum entry requirement, Ms McCarthy continued: “As a major employer, the Arnold Clark business as a whole is subject to the Apprenticeship Levy and Activa Contracts has to pay its share.

“Therefore, with an in-house training facility approved to deliver levy-funded courses, the company can benefit from the levy and its investment in apprenticeships.”