Asked by: Lord Reid of Cardowan (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to improve apprenticeship retention and completion rates, particularly in sectors with high drop-out levels.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
To ensure quality apprenticeships provision, the department holds all providers to account through its apprenticeship accountability framework which encompasses a wide range of quality indicators including achievement and retention.
The support and guidance available to employers and apprentices has also been enhanced and the department has worked with the Learning and Work Institute to produce a number of guides to support apprentices’ on-programme experience, including a line manager’s guide to apprenticeships.
The department is continuing to support employers and providers to focus on quality by making systems and processes simpler whilst introducing flexibilities that will improve outcomes and maintain rigour. Improvements include the introduction of a one-click employer on-boarding process, changes to the English and maths requirements for adult apprentices, and new more efficient end-point assessment plans.
The department has also introduced tools to provide timely feedback on quality and reasons for withdrawal so that we can continue to drive forward progress in the coming years.
Asked by: Lord Reid of Cardowan (Labour - Life peer)
Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:
To ask His Majesty's Government what steps they are taking to ensure that apprenticeship opportunities are fully accessible to individuals with disabilities, learning difficulties, or additional support needs.
Answered by Baroness Smith of Malvern - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
The government is working to ensure that a learning difficulty or disability is not a barrier to people who want to realise the benefits of an apprenticeship.
The Find an Apprenticeship service allows people to identify Disability Confident Employers offering opportunities and Additional Learning Support funding is available to training providers to make reasonable adjustments which support apprentices who have learning difficulties and disabilities.
The government also provides £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 (EHC) or have been in care.