Times letters: Apprenticeship scams and training the young

Writing in The Times, CLLS Chair Colin Passmore responded to recent suggestions that employers are "abusing" apprenticeship funding schemes, and defended the significant value and social impact of Level 7 apprenticeships in the legal sector:

"There is one sector where the apprenticeship scheme is absolutely not cheating 'our young'. Research by the Bridge Group, commissioned by leading City law firms who take school leaver apprentices through to qualification as a solicitor under the City Century scheme, demonstrates that more than 98 per cent of our apprentices come from those aged 18 to 24. In addition, this scheme has had the most positive impact in terms of attracting diversity into the legal profession that I have seen in 40 years of practice."