ETHNIC minority people are far less likely than white people to have done an apprenticeship, a new report has found.
But it added the lower participation in apprenticeships is not due to lack of interest.
In the BTEG 2021 Survey of Ethnic Minority Young People, 75 per cent considered that an apprenticeship was a good route to the career they want, but not all were aware of where to find information about apprenticeships and most are not engaged by government awareness campaigns or agencies.
According to the survey, the reasons for ethnic minority under-representation on apprenticeships do not primarily lie with lack of awareness among young people, or reluctance from parents for their children to take the vocational rather than academic route to employment.
There is a mis-match between the geographic regions where black, Asian and mixed ethnicity young people live, and the regions where apprenticeship places are available. Moreover, apprenticeship places are lowest in the geographic areas such as London, where young ethnic minority populations are highest.
Jeremy Crook OBE, chief executive of BTEG says: "The government needs to explain why ethnic minorities are over-represented in apprenticeships such as ICT and health but disturbingly and persistently under-represented in sectors such construction and engineering? Leaving ethnic minority access to apprenticeships solely to employers has not worked. Concerted action is necessary to remove the systemic ethnic bias in the labour market."
