Skills, training and staff
Looking for recruitment and workforce support in York and North Yorkshire? Find the practical guidance you need to build a skilled, successful team.
Hiring the right people and helping them develop is key to building a successful business. A skilled, motivated team can make a real difference to performance and long-term success. Having effective recruitment and training processes in place helps you attract the right talent, and create a workforce that’s ready to adapt to change. The guidance below will help you put the right policies and practices in place to recruit great people and support them to grow and succeed within your business.
The Interchange is all about connection.
Its purpose is to link individuals and employers to the work, health, and skills support they need—bringing together services and the people who can benefit from them, all under one roof.
The Work and Skills Interchange is led by York and North Yorkshire Combined Authority. It’s part of the Get Britain Working Economic Inactivity Trailblazer, supported by funding from the Department for Work and Pensions.
Support is available through dedicated advisers, place-based navigators and a range of online resources. They work with individuals and businesses to help them access the right support, making it easier to navigate the employment, skills, health and wellbeing landscape.
What support is there for Employers?
The Work & Skills Interchange is your one-stop gateway to practical support, expert guidance, and tailored services that help your business thrive. Whether you’re looking to recruit new staff, upskill your current workforce, improve employee wellbeing, or support colleagues with health-related needs, you’ll find support here.
- Recruit: Linking employers with accessible, inclusive recruitment pathways that benefit both employer and community.
- Upskill Staff: Connect with training and development opportunities that help your staff grow, progress and stay engaged.
- Retain: Strengthen your retention through practical support for employee wellbeing and development.
- Other Employer Support: Support and useful information around subjects such as Apprenticeships, Neurodiversity, Physical and Mental Health.
York & North Yorkshire Careers Hub
The Careers Hub helps businesses connect with local schools and colleges, making it easier to inspire young people and introduce them to careers in your sector.
Through the Portal to Collaboration, you can promote work experience opportunities, advertise careers events and connect with education providers looking to work with local employers. It’s a simple way to raise awareness of your business while helping young people gain valuable experience and insight into the world of work.
The Careers Hub is part of a national network led by The Careers & Enterprise Company.
Discover, share, and advertise career events and opportunities.
Skills Bootcamps
Skills Bootcamps are flexible, part-funded training programmes designed to help employers develop the skills their business needs. Delivered by specialist training providers, they focus on priority sectors across York and North Yorkshire, helping to build a skilled workforce and address local skills shortages.
Courses are available for adults aged 19 and over and are delivered online or in person, depending on the programme. Skills Bootcamps provide practical training that helps employers upskill existing staff or recruit people with the right skills to meet local needs.
Further information, including available courses and how to get involved, will be published here soon.
Apprenticeship support for Employers
Employing an Apprentice: Guidance on employing an apprentice, including funding and employer responsibilities.
Pay and Conditions: Guidance on apprentice pay, working conditions and your responsibilities as an employer.
Make an apprenticeship agreement: Learn how to create an apprenticeship agreement and training plan.
Funding for apprenticeship training: Find out what apprenticeship funding is available and how to access government support for training costs.
Get help employing an apprentice: Get help and support with employing an apprentice.
Apprenticeships Unmasked | Webinar: Designed to clear up the confusion and provide you with the facts.
External Programmes and Support
- Help to Grow: New or experienced business leader? Help to Grow can help you.
- National careers service: Careers information, advice and guidance, helping you make decisions at all stages in your career.
- Ingeus: Recruitment and workforce support, helping businesses attract talent and support employee wellbeing.
- New futures network: Specialist part of HM Prison and Probation Service which supports employers to work with prisons in England and Wales.
- Careers enterprise company: Working with schools, colleges and employers to help every young person find their best next step.
Resources and Webinars
- Adult Skills Fund | Training Courses: Supporting employers and learners, bridging skills gaps, improving career opportunities.
- Making Values Pay | Webinar Series: Strengthen your procurement strategy, enhance your marketing, or boost employee engagement.
- Employing People | Blog: As an employer in the UK, you have a number of legal and ethical responsibilities.
Mentorship
Mentoring brings together experienced business leaders and those looking for support to overcome challenges and achieve their goals. It creates opportunities to share knowledge and build confidence, helping businesses across York and North Yorkshire to grow.
For business owners and leaders seeking a mentor, it’s a chance to learn from someone with real business experience. A trusted mentor can offer a fresh perspective, act as a sounding board and help you make informed decisions as your business develops.
Becoming a mentor is also a rewarding way to give back. By sharing your experience, you can support the next generation of business leaders while strengthening your own leadership skills, expanding your professional network and gaining fresh insights from other businesses.
Fully Funded Training for Tourism and Hospitality Businesses - Level 2 Food Hygiene and Safety for Catering
The York and North Yorkshire Growth Hub are pleased to be partnering with North Yorkshire Council and the City of York Council on an initiative to support hospitality businesses from across the area to benefit from fully funded Food Safety and Hygiene Level 2 training and certification courses
260,000 workers to get a pay rise across Yorkshire as new wage rates take effect
60,000 hard-working people across Yorkshire and the Humber will see their pay increase from today [1 April 2026], as the Government raises the National Minimum Wage (NMW) and National Living Wage (NLW) rates.
Expression of Interest: Mentoring for Growth Programme
We’re launching a new mentoring programme designed to support small businesses across York and North Yorkshire who are ready to grow, scale and move confidently into their next stage. This programme connects local business leaders with experienced mentors from different sectors, creating space for honest conversations, fresh thinking and practical support.
Rachel Derry's Journey to management with the Seventh Wave Programme
OT4me founders, Louise Newton and Lizzie Huxford, made the decision to step back from daily management to focus on expanding their business. During an annual appraisal, Rachel Derry was identified as a strong candidate for the clinical lead role. This created a promising opportunity for development, supported by the York and North Yorkshire Growth Hub.
Making Values Pay: Webinar Series
Join us for our latest online workshop series Making Values Pay to see how embracing purpose-driven practices can help your business thrive. Explore how embedding good business practices can help you win work, tell your story, and build an engaged workforce.
Growth Hub Welcomes New Business Advisors for North Yorkshire
We are delighted to announce the addition of three new team members who will play a crucial role in supporting local businesses and entrepreneurs as business advisors for North Yorkshire.
Leadership Coaching: Becoming The Leader You Want To Be
In this article, Halina will explore the challenges facing leaders and how leadership coaching can help.
Understanding What Makes Employees Tick and Building a Thriving Business
In this article, we will explore the importance of understanding what makes employees tick and how it contributes to building a thriving business.
Engineering recruitment boosted at ISF
With the help of The Apprenticeship Hub, the team has broadened their offer of engineering recruitment and established new career paths for apprentices.
Four issues key to social enterprise survival
Social enterprises face a unique and complex series of issues. To ensure the long-term health and survival of your social enterprise, an understanding of these issues is vital. In this article, I will summarise four key areas you need to consider: sources of funding, governance considerations, the power of people, and sustainable growth.
Horizon Scanning: Four questions social enterprises need to answer
With so much going on in the present, it’s not always easy to look to the future. However, the identification of potential risks and opportunities is vital to the long-term health of any business, and social enterprises are no different. Horizon scanning helps in assessing whether you are adequately prepared for future changes or threats.
The Benefits of Local Business Networking
Building relationships with other businesses through local business networking can be incredibly rewarding on a personal level as well as a shrewd business decision. Forging friendships with other people, many
Webinar Recording: Apprenticeships Unmasked, are they right for my business?
Are you a business owner, or part of a business team looking to boost your workforce? Apprenticeships might be the answer, but there are many myths and misconceptions out there. Our webinar, "Apprenticeships Unmasked - are they right for my business?" is designed to clear up the confusion and provide you with the facts.
2022 Seminar Recordings
We have recently hosted a programme of in-person seminars and other events, some of which were professionally recorded and can now be viewed on our website.
Free Webinar :People risk and succession planning
This webinar will educate you about the people risk within business, and how to implement a strategy to minimise or remove the risk from your business.
The Mental Health & Wellbeing Toolkit
Download the Mental Health & Wellbeing Toolkit and answer your questions about workplace wellbeing and access practical resources that you can use for yourself and your employees.
Made Smarter Yorkshire & Humber
If you’re a manufacturer looking to grow through the use of technology, the Made Smarter programme could help you access advice, support and grant funding.
Help to Grow: boost your business with government-backed management programme
Help to Grow support senior managers of small and medium sized businesses to boost their business’s performance, resilience, and long-term growth.