Entry Deadline: 23 October 2026 23:59
ISE Apprenticeships Conference 2027
Building Tomorrow's Workforce: Unlocking Talent, Skills, and Growth Through Apprenticeships
The 2027 ISE Apprentice Conference will explore how employers can attract, recruit, and develop apprentice talent in world of technological change, policy reform, and economic uncertainty.
We are looking for session content that will examine ways to improve young people’s work readiness and support successful transitions into the workplace; explore the impact of AI on recruitment, skills needs and role design; and showcase approaches to enhancing apprenticeship quality, supporting line managers, and strengthening employer/training provider partnerships. We are looking for content that demonstrates how organisations are maximising the value of their investment in apprenticeships to meet future workforce needs.
Detailed below are the call for content details grouped within three core themes:
- Young People's Employability and Work Readiness
- The Evolution of Recruitment Practices in an AI-Enabled World
- Programme Quality; Value; Retention and the Apprentice Experience
Please read through the session details and the submission guidelines. The deadline for submissions is 23/10/2026.
Call for Content themes
1. Young People's Employability and Work Readiness
Pre-application
- Inspiration and education through social value and talent pipelining: With rising youth unemployment and increasing numbers of NEETs, how can employers reach into their communities to educate, inspire and connect young people with jobs and career opportunities?
- How can we raise the profile of apprenticeships and demonstrate that they can be one of the most rewarding routes into work and career success?
- How can access to meaningful work experience and employability programmes, delivered at scale, help bridge work-readiness gaps?
Post-offer
- Showcasing what ‘good’ looks like in onboarding: During the period between accepting an offer and starting an apprenticeship, how can employers help young people prepare to land effectively in the workplace?
On programme
- What strategies are most effective in helping young people develop the skills needed for a workplace that is rapidly changing as AI reshapes entry-level roles?
- What impact is AI having on role design across different apprenticeship programmes?
- How can employers create the conditions for apprentices to thrive by integrating Gen Z into a multi-generational workforce, developing line managers' support capabilities, and addressing the financial and mental health challenges some apprentices face?
2. The Evolution of Recruitment Practices in an AI-Enabled World
- Demand continues to far outstrip supply. In a world of mass applications increasingly supported by AI, how can employers differentiate effectively between candidates to ensure the right people are recruited to the right programmes?
- As application volumes continue to rise, how can employers maintain fair, inclusive and accessible recruitment processes while widening access to apprenticeship opportunities for all young people?
3. Programme Quality; Value; Retention and the Apprentice Experience
- Showcasing best practice for employer and training provider collaboration: how to build strategies that ensure the right learners are on the right programmes to address skills gaps and build the workforce of the future?
- With changes to apprenticeship assessment and the pace of AI-driven change in the workplace, how can line managers be developed and supported to manage apprentices successfully and enrich the apprentice experience?
- Balancing early careers recruitment with reskilling and upskilling opportunities though full apprenticeships and apprenticeship units: How can employers make the right workforce planning decisions for their talent needs?
- In a challenging economic climate and amid growing budget pressures, how can employers and apprenticeship teams build confidence in apprenticeship hiring, maximise levy opportunities, navigate funding changes, and secure continued investment from senior leaders?
Submission Guidelines
- Real employer experience, challenges and success stories are essential. All submissions must include at least one employer speaker.
- Submissions should demonstrate clear, practical learning and tangible takeaways for delegates.
- We are looking for innovation, fresh thinking and new approaches.
- We want to hear directly from apprentices.
- We are keen to see examples of successful collaboration between employers, training providers, solution providers and education partners.
- We will seek a balance of delivery styles across the programme, including plenary sessions, breakouts, presentations, interactive workshops and panel discussions.
- We have set out three core pillars for content for our conference. Submissions can be made for the subsection elements of theme 1 or for the entirety of theme 1 and we will assess each submission on its merits.
There is no charge for submitting content for the conference.
To submit an entry, you will be asked out outline the key content (500 words max) and the key benefits and takeaways (500 words max).
Those successfully chosen to present will need to buy a ticket for each of the participants attending on the day.
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