Nearly half drop out of apprentice courses

Many apprenticeship training courses have a drop-out rate of more than 50 per cent, according to a report published today. It shows that on some courses as many as three-quarters of trainees fail to finish.

The worst areas are hospitality, which has a completion rate of just 26 per cent, and retailing, with a 28 per cent completion rate.

The figures are in the annual report of the Adult Learning Inspectorate, which shows only 51 per cent of young people complete their apprenticeships.

The findings are a setback for ministers who have long complained that UK industry lacks key skills. David Sherlock, the chief inspector, warned that young people who dropped out of their apprenticeships were "storing up trouble for the future".

He described the figures as "not good enough", and called for the speedy introduction of a national apprenticeship diploma to give more credibility to qualifications. Overall, however, the report showed a substantial rise in the number of "outstanding" learners.

Mr Sherlock said he was worried that a new regime of "lighter touch" inspections - together with the introduction of self-assessment - would threaten the advances made.