Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, whether the Education and Skills Funding Agency plans to revise its apprenticeship funding rules for training providers and employers to include training for communication skills development in the list of items that can be funded; and if he will make a statement.

The apprenticeship funding rules set out eligible costs that the government will pay to support the training and assessment required to deliver an apprenticeship.

The funding rules do not set out the different skills required for each apprenticeship as these are different for every standard or framework. The knowledge, skills and behaviours required for each apprenticeship are set out in the standard and its assessment plan or in the framework that the apprentice undertakes. Where these include communication as an essential element of the skills needed for an apprentice to be competent, the costs of this training can be covered.

If an individual requires additional learning support that includes developing communication skills in order to successfully complete an apprenticeship, we will also pay up to £150 per month to support this.

The apprenticeship funding rules are published on GOV.UK: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/apprenticeship-funding-rules.