I WRITE in response to your report about modern apprenticeships (July 21).

I sympathise greatly with the frustration of the apprentices in the article. However, if my experience of the skills council is an example of their normal commitment level then the applicants may be being badly represented.

I am a director of an independent financial advisory company. We are a small company but me and my fellow directors identified in January 2004 that we had a need for an extra member of staff who would have training and advancement opportunities.

Coincidentally we received the upbeat brochure from the Learning And Skills Council. We felt this could be the perfect solution, particularly in light of the fact that two members of staff started straight from school and are now highly trained, well respected professionals in their mid twenties.

I had a lengthy meeting with the representative of the skills council discussing applicants' needs and the career and training we could offer.

The training options would include business administration, customer services, information technology, secretarial skills and many more which would seem to fit the profile of a number of potential candidates.

Nine months passed, not a word. Instead we received a questionnaire about service levels which at best could only be described as literary gobbledygook.

I rang the department and expressed my frustration, with a promise of at least confirmation of whether or not there were any applicants. Not a word!

At the time we solved our staffing need. However, since reading Stephen Lewis's article I feel obliged to highlight our experience and that we need another member of staff.

Therefore, if any aspiring apprentices wish to discuss the opportunities available in financial services please contact me or ask for any of the directors on (01904) 562562.

Mark Pepper,

Director,

Grosvenor Financial Consultants Ltd,

Swinegate,

York.

Updated: 10:38 Tuesday, July 26, 2005