Apprenticeship numbers have risen by 50 per cent on last year’s figures, largely driven by a huge increase in adult trainees, according to provisional data published by the government.

The figures show that there were 442,700 apprenticeship starts in the full 2010/11 academic year, compared to 279,700 starts for 2009/10.

The numbers of young people (aged under 16 to 24) starting a programme grew by 15.9 per cent (36,600), from 230,600 to 267,200, but this was dwarfed by the increase in trainees aged 25 and above, which went up by a huge 257.4 per cent (126,400) from 49,100 to 175,500.

Sectors with the biggest growth in trainees were health, public services and care (which was up by 48.7 per cent), business, administration and law (41.2 per cent) and retail and commercial enterprise (38.8 per cent). Meanwhile, growth in sectors traditionally associated with vocational training, such as engineering and construction, continued despite the tough economic conditions.

Advanced apprenticeship schemes showed the biggest rise, up 40.7 per cent from last year, intermediate scheme places saw an increase of 34.9 per cent and higher apprenticeships rose by 28.6 per cent.

Graham Hoyle, chief executive of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers, said the increase showed the commitment of training providers to helping young people find high quality training and a job. He emphasised the UK’s high programme completion rate (75 per cent), which “compares favourably with the best in Europe.”

However, Hoyle acknowledged that the high increase in adult apprenticeships had driven up participation figures.

“Apprenticeships were never designed to be exclusively about the recruitment of young people into new jobs and adult apprenticeships must also follow the officially approved standards laid down by the sector skills councils and the National Apprenticeship Service. And the number of starts in Advanced Apprenticeships has actually increased at a faster rate than starts in Intermediate Apprenticeships, so we are not seeing any ‘dilution’ in the level or quality of training that providers are offering.”

However, some media reports have cast doubt on the legitimacy of some of the ‘new’ places. A leaked document seen by the Guardian said that many reported apprentices are existing employees and questioned the quality of certain schemes.

Business Secretary Vince Cable said that the government would continue to improve and strengthen the apprenticeships by driving up standards, cutting red tape for smaller firms and delivering more advanced level and high tech training.