CIEH welcomes Government announcement on apprenticeships but wants greater focus on environmental health

The Chartered Institute of Environmental Health (CIEH) has called on the Government to ensure environmental health is a priority area as it reveals plans to offer more training for people aged 21 and under.

The Government has revealed that 120,000 new training opportunities will be created, with ‘landmark reforms’ which will ‘refocus the skills landscape towards young, domestic talent’.

This shift in focus will see only 16 to 21-year-olds being able to qualify for funding for level 7 apprenticeships – the highest level, considered equivalent to a master’s degree. The highest CIEH accredited apprenticeships are level 6, so are not impacted by this change.

The measures, backed by a £3 billion apprenticeship budget, will open up opportunities for young people to succeed in careers the country vitally needs to prosper, according to the Government.

However, environmental health does not appear to be currently considered one of the ‘priority sectors’ for Skills England, the body created by this government to address the current UK skills shortage and which will eventually replace the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education.

CIEH believes this is a real missed opportunity and is calling on the Government to ensure environmental health is given the focus it deserves as a critical area of work helping to keep communities safe and well, particularly at a time when there are shortages in skilled Environmental Health Practitioners (EHPs).

Mark Elliott, President of CIEH, said: “CIEH works tirelessly with employers and learning providers to develop and promote apprenticeships which have demonstrably helped boost environmental health workforces during the recruitment challenges of recent years and nurtured exceptional talent.

“We regret, however, that environmental health doesn’t appear to be seen as a priority sector in this new government strategy. Environmental health professionals make a huge difference to the public’s health and wellbeing, and their work is only getting more important.”