BT to double apprenticeships

Telecoms giant BT is to double the intake of apprentices this autumn after being swamped with thousands of applications.

Around 24,000 candidates registered an interest in 221 positions earlier this year, compared with 9,000 applications last year.

BT will now double the number of places, to help meet the demand to deliver fibre-optic broadband over the next few years. The second wave of recruitment will see BT's Openreach division recruit more than 200 more people by Christmas, the company announced, as it marked the 50th anniversary of its apprenticeship scheme.

BT apprentices start on salaries of between 12,000 and 15,000, with candidates specialising in either IT, telecoms, electrical systems or customer service.