‘We’d love an apprentice – but the government has made it too expensive’

Small British manufacturing firms, like Bowers & Jones, are struggling due to a cost of business crisis, according to the company's managing director, Jane Somerville. The firm, which specializes in precision equipment for the steel industry, has seen its operating costs increase dramatically since Somerville led a management buyout post-pandemic.

The rise in energy, labor, and transport costs has been significant, with energy costs doubling and labor costs up due to minimum wage hikes and inflation. Somerville, who had hoped the move would be the end of upheaval, is now pricing herself out of employing apprentices due to the prohibitive costs involved. She estimates the cost of training an apprentice for four to five years before they can become productive to be close to, if not over, £100,000.

This cost is a barrier for Bowers & Jones, who prefer to hire fully qualified workers instead of apprentices. Somerville's concerns highlight how the UK government's policy decisions since 2024, including Reeves' Budget, have made it increasingly difficult for small firms to take on apprentices, thus undermining the government's efforts to increase the number of young people in the workforce.