Apprenticeships: a fusion of factors

David Martin discusses the Oxfordshire Advanced Skills and Apprentice Training Centre at Culham, the site of the UK's nuclear fusion research centre

When I started out as an apprentice with the UK Atomic Energy Authority (UKAEA) in the 1970s, I was just one of 50,000 each year taking this career route into the engineering and manufacturing industries. But, like flared trousers and platform shoes, apprenticeships went out of fashion as more young people opted for university. Now they are making a comeback as organisations like ours seek to plug a skills gap for technicians and engineers – and school leavers realise they can earn while they learn, without being saddled with student loans.

At Culham Science Centre near Oxford, we are building a new £12million base for our Oxfordshire Advanced Skills (OAS) training academy to lead the revival of engineering apprenticeships in the Thames Valley and beyond.