COMPANIES in Ludlow and south Shropshire struggling to recruit staff in the challenging economic climate are being urged to look at apprenticeships as the potential answer.

The county’s chamber of commerce has warned that the serious recruitment struggles facing local businesses have created a ‘dangerous ticking timebomb’ for the economy.

Telford College currently offers apprenticeships in a wide range of subject areas including accounting, automotive, business, HR, computing, construction, engineering, early years and education.

There are apprenticeship programmes from level two all the way up to degree-level, open to people of all ages.

Beckie Bosworth, the college’s head of employer engagement, said: “Companies across all sectors say they are struggling to attract candidates for a diverse range of positions.

“They are either getting no applications at all, or attracting people who lack the required skillsets.

“The beauty of an apprenticeship is that you can mould a candidate to your company’s specific requirements and from their point of view, they will earn and learn at the same time.”

And apprenticeships offer a pathway into permanent jobs and promotions. Annabel Hemingbrough has already become marketing and customer service manager at Purple Frog Systems after impressing on her apprenticeship.

She spent around 18 months as a business administration apprentice with the data analytics company, before passing her exams with across-the-board distinctions.

She was praised by her employers for her mature working attitude and described as a ‘thoughtful and proactive worker always looking for ways to improve.’

In an interview in the summer with ‘the Advertiser’ the now Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said that apprenticeships should enjoy the same status as university degrees and are important ways to open opportunity to more people.