In an open letter to Proskills, former PrintIT! chairman Elmy, who was instrumental in the birth of the scheme, said he could no longer be associated with the project after a number of departures in the past six months, culminating in Evans' redundancy.

"This decision was made with a heavy heart," he said. "While I appreciate the financial constraints on Proskills, I was disappointed last year when Mary Buck and Victoria Smith, who did so much good work building the ‘twinning’ between printers and schools were not retained.

"Following the news that Paul will be leaving Proskills, Steve Wicks who organised all aspects of the print production for the project decided not to continue with the project. Without this team in place, I feel I can no longer be associated with the project."

Proskills has not officially confirmed Evans departure, although it has confirmed that redundancies have taken place because of a "significant impact on income" in the recession.

A statement from the organisation said: "As part of the restructuring process there will be an impact on the 'Schools and Students into Industry' team. It would be inappropriate to comment on individual employees as this stage of discussions are still ongoing, but we can confirm that we will be reducing headcount by one person in this area of the business."

The statement confirmed that Proskills' Schools and Students into Industry programme would continue, with the awards ceremony scheduled for Ipex going ahead as planned.

Terry Watts, chief executive of Proskills, added: "There have been a lot of difficult decisions to make in the face of huge budget cuts in government spending and anticipated lean times ahead.

"I am confident, however, that we will be able to complete and deliver the ambitious targets we have set for ourselves to develop qualifications, promote up-skilling and encourage young people to pursue careers in the industry, and look forward to the continued support from printers, which will be essential to continue the work."