SMALL businesses are getting a helping hand to boost apprenticeship opportunities.

Greater Manchester leaders have announced a £1.9m support package, launched as part of National Apprenticeship Week, March 4-8.

The #SeeDifferent Small-to-Medium Enterprise (SME) Apprenticeship Support will help smaller employers around Bolton and offer additional incentives, including access to grants, help with training and recruitment and advice on creating quality opportunities to boost the number of high quality apprenticeship opportunities across the city-region.

Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham said: “Small businesses are the backbone of our local economy, representing two-thirds of Greater Manchester’s business community. By doing things differently we can help smaller employers breakdown the barriers to providing high-quality apprentices and unlock hundreds more opportunities for our young people and those who want to reskill and retrain.

“In Greater Manchester we do not underestimate the value of apprenticeships in bridging the skills gap, providing quality employment and boosting productivity. We are leading the way in developing our apprenticeship offer, putting it at the heart of our plans to making this city-region the best place to grow up, get on and grow old – this new support package will enhance our work.”

Funding for the package has been made available after another Greater Manchester apprenticeship scheme came in under budget. Levy transfers from large employers, including the public sector, will also be used to support training costs.

The GMCA has worked with the ten Greater Manchester local authorities, where they have been working to improve the quality and grow the numbers of apprenticeships in Greater Manchester, which saw 22,591 apprenticeship starts in 2017/18.