Information for employers

Between August 2019 and July 2020 over 700,000 people in England were learning new skills and knowledge through an apprenticeship

Even though apprenticeships are the flagship government funded skills and training programme in England, there are still many myths surrounding what an apprenticeship is and how they help individuals and organisations to grow and develop together:

• Apprenticeships are available for first roles for people just starting on their career or for people who are changing occupations, but they are also available for very senior and experienced professional roles for those who are experienced but now need to specialise or who are joining a profession requiring a degree.  
• Over 40% of apprentices currently are over 25 years old, and individuals can, and do start an apprenticeship at any age.
• Apprenticeships exist for every sector, covering over 600 occupations from entry to senior levels with more in development and being approved every month

Apprenticeships are a job with a structured training programme providing the knowledge, skills, experience and behaviours to develop full competence in an occupation. Apprenticeships are also a partnership between an employer, their staff member apprentice and the training provider delivering the skills required by the apprenticeship.

Facts & Figures

Employers pay the wages for their staff member as usual and training providers draw down funding for the costs of training and the end point assessment that checks competency from a combination of employer and government funding.

Funding for apprenticeships depends on the size of the employer, and their payroll value but government funds 95 – 100% of the cost of apprenticeship training and assessment for the majority of small employers in addition to the incentives available as part of the apprenticeship programme – most recently, in the March 2021 Budget, the Government announced that it will pay employers in England £3,000 for every new apprentice they hire between 1 April 2021 and 30 September 2021.

For large employers with over £3,000,000 annual paybill, you will already be paying the Apprenticeship Levy which your chosen provider can draw down to pay for your apprenticeship. For Levy paying employers with excess levy, you can join our levy transfer programme, using your unspent levy to support a local small employer or an employer in your supply chain to train an apprentice.

Whatever the route for funding, apprenticeships are a proven route to recruiting, retaining and where needed, retraining to secure the skills needed for the future and to build careers and progression for individuals.

Robert Welch - Apprenticeship employer

Channel 4 - Apprenticeship Employer