Asked by: Baroness Freeman of Steventon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to support adult retraining in heritage building crafts through extending National Insurance relief or similar schemes to ensure such career paths are accessible to all demographics.
Answered by Lord Livermore - Financial Secretary (HM Treasury)
The Government has no current plans to extend National Insurance relief, or introduce similar schemes, specifically to support adult retraining in heritage building crafts. The Government keeps all taxes under review as part of the policy making process and considers a wide range of factors when introducing or expanding a tax relief. This includes how effective the relief would be at achieving the policy intent, how targeted support would be, whether it adds complexity to the tax system, and the cost.
The Government recognises the importance of heritage building crafts both to the conservation of our historic environment and to the development of skilled employment opportunities across the country. Our £230 million investment in heritage projects over this parliament will create new opportunities for the heritage craftspeople of the future.
This Government is also reforming the skills and apprenticeship system to ensure it meets the needs of the country and provides people with a foundation for a fulfilling career. The Government provides a range of financial support to help employers to take on apprentices and reach a range of individuals. This includes introducing a new employer hiring payment of £2,000 for non-levy paying employers, typically SMEs, that take on 16–24-year-old apprentices as new employees.
Asked by: Baroness Freeman of Steventon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to support small and medium-sized enterprises to address the indirect costs of training apprentices in heritage building crafts, such as travel and accommodation for training.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
This Government will not leave an entire generation of young people behind. We are investing an additional £2.5 billion into the Youth Guarantee and the Growth and Skills Levy to support nearly one million 16–24-year-olds into work, education or training. Over the next three years, this investment will deliver up to 300,000 opportunities for workplace experience and training, and unlock up to 200,000 jobs, including through the £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant and guaranteeing jobs for long-term unemployed young people on Universal Credit.
The government provides a wide range of financial support to help employers to take on apprentices including in the heritage building crafts.
We are introducing a new employer hiring payment of £2,000 for non-levy paying employers, typically SMEs, that take on 16–24-year-old apprentices as new employees. It will apply to apprenticeship starts from October, as long as they have joined their employer within the past 3 months. Employers hiring apprentices aged 18-24 who have been on Universal Credit for over six months will also be eligible for the new £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant from June 2026.
The government also pays £1,000 to both employers, of all sizes, and providers for apprentices aged 16-18, and for apprentices aged 19-24 who have an EHCP or have been, or are, in local authority care. This payment can be used to cover any costs related to their employment, for example work equipment, travel costs or uniform.
Additionally, from August 2026, we will fully fund apprenticeship training for non-levy paying employers for eligible people aged 16-24. At the moment, this only happens for apprentices aged 16-21 and apprentices aged 22-24 who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or have been, or are, in local authority care.
Asked by: Baroness Freeman of Steventon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what support they provide to stonemasonry trainees at level 3 to help them to progress and demonstrate progression in their careers.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We have a current level 2 apprenticeship standard Stonemason which has 247 starts on programme. York college and the Building Crafts College, London, are the main providers of the apprenticeship and they have close links to York Minster and many historical buildings around London. We are working with the sector to explore the potential for a L3 Stonemason apprenticeship.
Asked by: Baroness Freeman of Steventon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government how many training providers are currently able to run level 2 apprenticeships in stonemasonry; and what plans they have to support further providers to offer that course.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Information regarding the training providers which deliver the Level 2 Stonemason apprenticeship standard is published here https://findapprenticeshiptraining.apprenticeships.education.gov.uk/courses/637/providers.
There are four providers: York College, Bath College, Building Crafts College and Moulton College.
Asked by: Baroness Freeman of Steventon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what diploma qualifications they will fund for trainee stonemasons from September 2026.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
On 20 October 2025, alongside the publication of the Post-16 Education and Skills White Paper, the department published a consultation on post-16 level 3 and below pathways, which closed on 12 January 2026. As part of our consultation, we have been engaging with the sector on transition arrangements. We will set out our response to the consultation in due course.
We will update the information on qualifications funded in the 2026/27 academic year as soon as possible.
Asked by: Baroness Freeman of Steventon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what support they are giving to nursery providers to help to support children to stop using nappies at an appropriate age.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The department is committed to giving every child the best start in life, and we are investing in Best Start Family Hubs across the country. These will offer parenting and home learning environment support and are well placed to provide parents toilet training advice.
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) statutory framework sets the standards and requirements that early years providers must meet to ensure that children have the best start in life and are kept healthy and safe.
Within the EYFS, children’s personal, social and emotional development is a prime area of learning. Children are expected to learn how to manage personal needs independently, including going to the toilet.
The department has published toilet training guidance, which can be accessed here: https://help-for-early-years-providers.education.gov.uk/health-and-wellbeing/toilet-training. This will help educators to support babies and young children with toilet training in early years settings and signposts the Potty Training Guide. The department will continue to promote this guidance through its online platforms and engagement with the sector. Parents can access the Potty Training Guide from the Best Start in Life website at: https://beststartinlife.gov.uk/.
Asked by: Baroness Freeman of Steventon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Education:
To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to promote the Potty Training Guide, published on 9 December 2025.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The department is committed to giving every child the best start in life, and we are investing in Best Start Family Hubs across the country. These will offer parenting and home learning environment support and are well placed to provide parents toilet training advice.
The Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) statutory framework sets the standards and requirements that early years providers must meet to ensure that children have the best start in life and are kept healthy and safe.
Within the EYFS, children’s personal, social and emotional development is a prime area of learning. Children are expected to learn how to manage personal needs independently, including going to the toilet.
The department has published toilet training guidance, which can be accessed here: https://help-for-early-years-providers.education.gov.uk/health-and-wellbeing/toilet-training. This will help educators to support babies and young children with toilet training in early years settings and signposts the Potty Training Guide. The department will continue to promote this guidance through its online platforms and engagement with the sector. Parents can access the Potty Training Guide from the Best Start in Life website at: https://beststartinlife.gov.uk/.
Asked by: Baroness Freeman of Steventon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether apprenticeships within priority heritage building crafts will include funding for the apprentice's salary and a compensation grant to SME employers to address reduced productivity linked to the apprenticeship.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Employer satisfaction with apprenticeships is very high: 83% of employers are satisfied with their apprenticeship programme; and 77% report improved productivity.
The government is investing an additional £725m to transform the apprenticeship levy into a growth and skills levy, and provides a range of financial support to small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) in all sectors to take on apprentices.
We pay £1,000 to both employers and training providers when they take on apprentices aged under 19, or 19-to-24-year-old apprentices who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or have been, or are, in care. Employers are also not required to pay anything towards employees’ National Insurance for all apprentices aged up to age 25 (when the employee’s wage is below £50,270 a year).
Additionally, the government will fully fund apprenticeship training for non-levy paying employers (essentially SMEs) for all eligible people aged under 25 from the start of the next academic year in August. At the moment, this only happens for apprentices aged 16 to 21 and apprentices aged 22-24 who have an EHCP or have been, or are, in local authority care.
To help prospective apprentices find apprenticeship opportunities, they can search and apply for apprenticeships on our Find an apprenticeship service which is used by thousands of employers.
Asked by: Baroness Freeman of Steventon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to provide funding for (1) a scheme based on the expansion of the National Saturday Club provided by the National Trust at Coleshill, and/or, (2) a scheme based on the expansion of the summer school provided by the King’s Foundation, to provide taster experiences in heritage building crafts for school-age children across the county to tackle inequalities of access to those careers.
Answered by Baroness Twycross - Baroness in Waiting (HM Household) (Whip)
Whilst we do not have specific plans relating to those schemes, the Government is committed to supporting young people in accessing the skills they need to thrive, including in heritage skills. The Department for Education, which is responsible for skills and education, is working with secondary schools and colleges to develop their careers programmes, with the input of over 3,500 business volunteers. This provides young people with insights into a range of jobs and careers across all sectors, including heritage crafts and skills.
DCMS, working with our arms length bodies and wider government are introducing school aged children to future heritage careers. Through Government funding, Historic England delivers the Heritage Schools Programme which brings local heritage to schools across England, broadening access to local history and raising awareness of the many future job opportunities in the heritage sector. The National Lottery Heritage Fund (NLHF) funds a range of programmes that support heritage crafts, high-quality training and paid training placements in heritage careers. This includes the Future Heritage Leadership programme, launched in November 2025 to help young adults (18 - 30 year olds) get into the heritage sector with a strong focus on those from diverse backgrounds.
Asked by: Baroness Freeman of Steventon (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government whether they plan to provide funding to scale up the apprenticeship website matchMAKER by Heritage Crafts to allow it to include profiles of apprentices looking for apprenticeships as well as a list of available apprenticeships.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
Employer satisfaction with apprenticeships is very high: 83% of employers are satisfied with their apprenticeship programme; and 77% report improved productivity.
The government is investing an additional £725m to transform the apprenticeship levy into a growth and skills levy, and provides a range of financial support to small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) in all sectors to take on apprentices.
We pay £1,000 to both employers and training providers when they take on apprentices aged under 19, or 19-to-24-year-old apprentices who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or have been, or are, in care. Employers are also not required to pay anything towards employees’ National Insurance for all apprentices aged up to age 25 (when the employee’s wage is below £50,270 a year).
Additionally, the government will fully fund apprenticeship training for non-levy paying employers (essentially SMEs) for all eligible people aged under 25 from the start of the next academic year in August. At the moment, this only happens for apprentices aged 16 to 21 and apprentices aged 22-24 who have an EHCP or have been, or are, in local authority care.
To help prospective apprentices find apprenticeship opportunities, they can search and apply for apprenticeships on our Find an apprenticeship service which is used by thousands of employers.