Last year saw the launch of the course, which aims to give 16-22 year olds a rare opportunity to break into the media industry, under the auspices of Northwest Vision and Media (NVM), Skillset, the BBC and the Learning and Skills Council.

The success has encouraged more of the biggest names in media and broadcasting to sign up to support the initiative, with the result that in 2008 the following roll call of companies will get involved to offer expertise and work experience; BBC, ITV Granada, Red Production Company, 3sixty Media, Lime Pictures, Channel M, Sumners, October Films North, Flix Facilities, Channel K and Mange2Media.

Speaking about the second year of the scheme, NVM’s David Longworth said: “When we launched the scheme last summer, it was the first time a production apprenticeship programme had been created specifically for the media industry, so we were unsure how it would be received,”

“The response to the Apprenticeships has been phenomenal, and the feedback we’ve received from everyone concerned has been so positive, that we’re delighted to be offering the scheme for a second year.”

The course is only open to students living in the North West and is designed specifically for people who wouldn’t usually get the chance to break into broadcasting. As a result applicants don’t need to have GCSE Maths or English.

The current intake of students will complete their 18-month stint in April 2009, with the second batch beginning in September this year.

Details of how to apply for the scheme have not yet been made available, but are expected to be released by NVM shortly.

www.northwestvision.co.uk

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