Question to the Department for Education:

To ask Her Majesty's Government, following the release of figures by the Department for Education on 23 November showing that the number of people starting apprenticeships has dropped by 59 per cent in the last year, what assessment they have made of the reasons for that decrease; and how they plan to reverse that trend.

There has been 1.1 million apprenticeship starts in England since May 2015.

The 59% drop in starts only covers the period from May to July 2017, and followed a sharp rise in the preceding months, meaning that overall apprenticeship starts in 2016/17 are only down by 2.8% overall.

In April 2017, the government introduced changes to the apprenticeship system including the introduction of the apprenticeship levy and the new digital Apprenticeship Service. It is too early to draw conclusions on the impact of these reforms before employers have had time to adjust.

The government will continue to monitor the number of apprenticeship starts and work closely with employers to ensure the success of these reforms.