The future of informal apprenticeship in the artisanal pottery sector

With the decline of the ceramics industry and colleges in the UK, the formal apprenticeship system and training programs associated with ceramics have disappeared. However, there remain a large number of commercial studio-based potters in the UK, who facilitated and formed informal networks for teaching and learning ceramics. The literature on informal apprenticeship overwhelmingly focuses on forms of apprenticeship in developing countries. However, informal apprenticeships exist in parallel to formal regulated apprenticeships in global northern countries. This paper draws on data from a study of craft potters in the UK to explore what we can learn about informal forms of apprenticeship that emerged in the aftermath of 20th century de-industrialization for thinking about the future of apprenticeships in the 21st century. Our finding shows organizational and pedagogical possibilities for future apprenticeships as well as shifts in thinking about when apprenticeship occurs in the life course.