More people support apprenticeships than university degrees as giving the best start in life.

That's according to a new survey by YouGov for The Times Education Commission and reported by The Times.

It found that 45 per cent of people thought apprenticeships offered the best preparation, compared to just four per cent for degrees.

Of parents with school-age children who were asked what they wanted for their children in the future, 35 per cent said a degree and 44 per cent chose an apprenticeship.

Degrees were most popular in Scotland and London, and among under-24s and over-65s.

Just over half of respondents (51 per cent) thought children should study maths and English at school until 18, while 33 per cent thought this would be the wrong thing to do.

Sir Roger Carr, chairman of BAE Systems, is quoted in the report. The company is one of the UK's biggest apprenticeship providers and currently has around 2,400 apprentices in training, more than a quarter from underprivileged backgrounds.

He said that apprenticeships were respected as a way into work 50 years ago, but then there was a big shift towards a university education and apprenticeships were seen as second rate.

But the survey shows that perception is now changing, and Britain is becoming less obsessed with a university education.