There is this upside-down reality at the moment where businesses are hungry for brilliant young people with a variety of experiences and from diverse backgrounds - yet the way opportunities are presented means they’re often not reaching the very people they want.

We need to debunk the myths around apprenticeships by presenting their true value: show they are a genuine alternative to university and a path to a life-long career.  Apprenticeships are not just for the manufacturing or construction industries. The creative industries are growing at three times the rate of the British economy: fashion, film, media or tech - and they all need young talent. These jobs are the future of the British economy - but many of our school leavers aren’t presented an on-ramp to jobs they would love.

Read more: Chancellor ‘brings forward’ £700m apprenticeship package

More news: DfE unlikely to meet apprenticeship target, says NAO

Background: OfS: Lack of diversity among degree apprentices

A long way to go

The government set a target to “increase uptake amongst BAME audiences by 20 per cent by 2020” but there is still along way to go. Apprenticeship starts overall are down by 28 per cent and of those, only 11 per cent are from diverse backgrounds. These figures show how more effort is needed to make those who may not feel inspired, or simply disenfranchised, disrespected and disempowered by the job market, to become aware of apprenticeships. 

As well as the government’s self-imposed targets being missed, it also means not enough businesses are successfully using apprenticeships to diversify their workforces. For the fast changing world of work that is going to need this rich tapestry of talent, interests and backgrounds, business needs to grow its own workforce. Apprenticeships are one of the best ways to do this.

Apprenticeship nation

Apprentice Nation, launched this week, has been established to help to address the shortfall in apprenticeship uptake and inspire young people to take up apprenticeships.

RockCorps and WhiteHat have come together to create this platform to inspire 16- to 23-year-olds start the journey to a career suited to their passions. RockCorps has a 15-year history of youth empowerment; WhiteHat is Euan Blair and Sophie Adelman’s tech start up that helps young people find jobs that they actually WANT. WhiteHat knows how important it is to reach out to a much wider range of people from different backgrounds across the UK.

Now, more than ever, Britain is not future proof if we don’t view all of our young people as this country’s most valuable asset; and invest properly in developing them.

University can’t be the only pipeline. Young people need to be prepared for the future; apprenticeships will have a huge part to play in defining this future so it is essential that we empower young people by giving them more information about their options. Of course, we can’t expect young people to listen to our interruptions and speeches, we need to earn their trust. We have to move beyond the first couple of rows of students in school assemblies - or those that put “find a great apprenticeship” into a search bar. 

The power of music

Apprentice Nation uses the power of music as a gateway to kickstart a conversation about apprenticeships and to shine a light on all that this route has to offer. Far more people woke up this morning thinking of what track of music they heard last night, or who won the match than they did the skills for life and work - that comes later. So, we start a conversation with music and then move on to passion, goals and aspiration.

Apprentice Nation Action Days will be held nationwide and will offer invaluable advice on apprenticeships, interview tips plus two hours dedicated to volunteering. By giving young people a purpose we can help them discover their passion and how to manifest that in their careers. 

Every young person who attends will earn a ticket to an exclusive celebration concert. The first of these concerts features 6lack, the alternative R&B star from Atlanta who is living proof that the right intervention at the right time can help you to turn your life around. His story is inspirational: from living in a recording studio to a Grammy nominee in two years. He talks a lot about his journey in his music, crediting his record company LVRN for turning his talent into the career he wanted.

Stephen Greene is chief executive of RockCorps

To find out more about Apprentice Nation visit www.apprenticenation.co.uk