Leyland Trucks and Preston's College train 24 apprentices

Leyland Trucks and Preston's College have unveiled a cohort of 24 new apprentices.

The group will study Level 2 Manufacturing Engineering over the next 12 to 18 months, with a possibility of extending it to advanced and higher apprenticeship levels.

Leyland Trucks currently employs 900, manufacturing the full range of DAF vehicles. Around 35 per cent of its production is exported.

Ivan Shearer, HR director at Leyland Trucks, said: “We have a long standing partnership with Preston’s College and are pleased to be able to work with them to develop the next generation of engineers, technicians and assembly operators at our facility. Apprenticeships continue to be an important component of our resourcing strategy and we intend to utilise the levy fully to develop further training schemes and entry routes into the business.’

The apprentices are the first to trained by Preston's College following the introduction of the apprenticeship levy earlier this year.

Keith Middlebrough, senior business relationship manager at Preston’s College, said: “The 24 apprenticeships highlight Leyland Trucks’ commitment to training the next generation of Lancashire engineers." “It is great to see that Leyland Trucks have embraced the Apprenticeship levy and are utilising their allocation to its full potential. However, lots of large organisations aren’t yet utilising their levy pots, ultimately missing out on the opportunity to upskill existing members of staff or recruit new apprentices.”