Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what steps his Department is taking to increase the number of apprenticeships in the hair and beauty sector for young people aged 16 to 24.

There are a number of apprenticeship standards available to support the hair and beauty sector, including the Level 2 Hairdressing Professional standard and the Level 2 Barbering Professional standard.

We are investing an additional £2.5 billion in the Youth Guarantee and the Growth and Skills Levy over the next three years. This investment will support almost one million young people and create up to 500,000 opportunities to earn and learn.

To support non-levy paying employers (typically SMEs) to meet the additional costs associated with employing young people, we are introducing a new apprenticeship hiring payment of £2,000 when they take on 16–24-year-old apprentices as new employees. 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.

We also provide £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 EHCP or have been, or are, in care.

These payments can be stacked together where the employer and/or apprentice are eligible.

Additionally, the government will fully fund apprenticeship training for non-levy paying employers for all eligible young people aged under 25 from the next academic year, to boost small business starts. At the moment, this only happens for apprentices aged 16 to 21 and apprentices aged 22-24 who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or have been, or are, in local authority care.

The government also facilitates and funds the Apprenticeship Ambassador Network (AAN) which comprises around 3,000 employers and apprentices who volunteer to promote the benefits of apprenticeships. It operates across all parts of England through nine regional networks which provide buddying and mentoring support to small businesses to help them recruit and retain apprentices.