Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what the apprenticeship levy fund is being spent on, other than supporting apprentice training instigated by (1) companies, (2) levy payers, and (3) non-levy payers.

The apprenticeship levy underpins our reforms to raise apprenticeship quality and supports employers to make long-term, sustainable investments in the skills that they need to grow.

The levy is collected by Her Majesty’s Revenue and Customs from all UK employers with a pay bill above £3 million. Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland receive a share of levy funding, which increased to £459 million in 2019-20. It is for the devolved administrations to decide how funds raised from the levy should be used.

The funds available to levy-paying employers through their apprenticeship service accounts are not the same as the Department for Education’s annual apprenticeships budget, which is set to fund apprenticeships in England only, and is set irrespective of actual of levy receipts. We do not anticipate that all employers who pay the levy will need or want to use all the funds available to them, but they are able to if they wish. In the 2019-20 year, over £2.5 billion is available for investment in apprenticeships in England. This is double what was spent in 2010.

The apprenticeship budget is used to fund training for new apprenticeship starts in levy and non-levy paying employers and to cover the ongoing costs of apprentices already in training. It is also used to cover the cost of end-point assessment and any additional payments made to employers and/or providers, including for apprentices who are 16 to 18, 19 to 24 and have previously been in care, or who need additional support to achieve the English and maths requirements.