Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that apprenticeship opportunities are made more widely available for those from disadvantaged backgrounds.

This government has a driving mission to break down barriers to opportunity. As part of this, we want to ensure that more people from disadvantaged backgrounds can undertake apprenticeships.

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.

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 the positive impact on young people, including those in disadvantaged areas. More detail on foundation apprenticeships will be set out in due course.