Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department is taking to ensure that Foundational Apprenticeships support disadvantaged young people into apprenticeship schemes.

This government has a driving mission to break down barriers to opportunity. Too many young people face difficulties progressing beyond secondary education and we want to ensure that more people from disadvantaged backgrounds can undertake apprenticeships.

The department has begun work to develop new foundation apprenticeships, providing high quality entry pathways for young people. We will engage with relevant stakeholders to inform our thinking to maximise its positive impact on young people, including those in disadvantaged areas. More detail on foundation apprenticeships will be set out in due course.

The department continues to pay additional funding to employers and training providers to support them to take on young apprentices, apprentices with learning difficulties and disabilities, and care leavers.