ARTS COUNCIL OF ENGLAND'S APPRENTICESHIP SCHEME

Early day motion 1622, tabled 28 July 1998 by Martin Smyth (UUP). Signed by 12 members.

That this House recognises that the Arts Council of England's pilot apprenticeship scheme has created new employment opportunities in the arts for disabled people, and that the scheme is a partnership between the apprentice, the host arts organisation and the Arts Council of England, with the Arts Council providing a grant to cover the apprentice's wages during the apprenticeship; further recognises that by matching hard-working, committed people with organisations offering training and the prospect of long-term employment, this pilot scheme has successfully demonstrated that disabled people can find long-term employment in a variety of roles within the arts - administrative, technical, managerial, educational and creative; and calls on the Government to consider ways of supporting the apprenticeship scheme to make it more widely available to disabled people nationally.

Signatures by party: UUP 6, Labour 5, Liberal Democrat 1.