Trade kitchen and joinery supplier, Howdens, is one of 10 companies to have been invited to join the National Apprenticeship Week Supporters Club for 2023. National Apprenticeship Week is an initiative organised by the Department for Education’s Education and Skills Funding Agency, held annually to celebrate apprenticeships taking place across England, and to showcase the impact that apprenticeships can make on communities, local businesses and regional economies.
Howdens, which was recently joint winner of the KBBFocus Apprenticeship Programme of the Year Award, currently employs 570 apprentices across the UK, in roles across much of its business including within its depots, and its logistics, manufacturing, engineering, and IT functions.
Emma Leech, early careers manager, Howdens, said: “Without great people, nothing happens, and we are incredibly proud to be a part of the National Apprenticeship Week Supporter Club for 2023. We take our own apprenticeship programme very seriously, as we’re developing people who will be integral to our businesses’ continued success, as well as the success of the communities and regions in which we operate. To be amongst other companies that are leading the way for apprenticeships is a great honour.”
The business recently received the UK Social Mobility Award for Innovation, in recognition of its apprenticeship levy transfer scheme. As a large employer, Howdens pays into an apprenticeship levy, a tax on employers used to fund apprenticeship training. With this, it not only funds its own apprenticeship training but also helps smaller businesses develop theirs. In 2022 Howdens chose to allocate 20% of its levy to fund construction apprenticeships in small businesses within the local communities that it operates. This investment has helped to create jobs and support small businesses in the construction industry, helping with the industry-wide skills shortage.
Howdens and other members of the National Apprenticeship Week Supporters Club will champion apprenticeships in the build-up, during and beyond National Apprenticeship Week, which will be held between 6th-12th February 2023.
