Jamie Oliver: Give us apprentices, not more graduates

The Mail on Sunday today features a report on Jamie Oliver's new programme.

I loved watching Jamie's School Dinners. I thought it was brilliant that someone was actually kicking up a huge fuss about the state of our school dinners. Of course, I'm sure some schools really tried hard to provide decent home made meals for the children before his programme. But he made a real difference and, I guess, embarrassed counties to improve their services.

I cannot help but agree with the chef once again, today, as he has apparently called on the Government to cut the number of teenagers going to university and demanded the return of apprenticeships.

Now I look back at my own time at university I realise that I was very lucky. I left Chester College of Higher Education in 2001 being qualified to teach. I had a profession and I would be able to build a career for myself. I was fortunate enough to have already to have found a job.

When my youngest brother left university in 2004 he had a degree in business management. But could he get a job that deserved his extra three years of studying? Well it proved very difficult. He spent some time in jobs that he could have done without his degree. After 18 months or so he eventually found himself in a job that would set him up for a career in business management.

What concerned me was that he left university without a profession. He wasn't trained to do a job. Now I know other people that this happened to. There must be thousands of graduates who leave university with a degree, but no actual training in a particular profession.

I think that Jamie is talking a lot of sense. If school leavers had more apprenticeships offered to them perhaps there wouldn't be the trade shortage that we have now. Unemployment might fall. Perhaps there would be other gains too. As Jamie says, these days, 'They haven't been taught to have pride in what they do.'

At an INSET day in November, we learned from Richard Gerver, the Head of Grange Primary School, Nottingham. When he arrived at the school it was failing. He turned it around by revolutionising the curriculum and basing it completely around learning life skills, giving children the chance to develop interests and skills that they might never normally have. One way the children do this is through the Grangeton University.

In the summer term we plan to trial our own University idea where we will offer 'vocational' courses to everyone in school. More details on this to follow.