Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what plans his Department has to increase the number of approved apprenticeship providers for (a) stone masonry, (b) quarrying (c) and heritage restoration skills.

As of 15 October 2025, there are 1450 active providers on the Apprenticeship Provider and Assessment Register (APAR).

New training providers can enter the apprenticeship training market under one of the three entry routes in place. These are either where there is a legitimate gap in provision that is generated by unmet employer demand, where a levy paying employer wants to become an employer-provider to train its own workforce, or where the provider is in an area we want to grow or where we identify a capacity issue.

The government continues to monitor the suitability of entry routes onto APAR as the government develops the Growth and Skills offer.