Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Transport:
To ask the Secretary of State for Transport, what steps she is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in her Department.
Answered by Mike Kane
We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all government departments to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government's commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.
Additionally, a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, the ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA), will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.
Following the introduction of Skills England and a recent review of DfT’s Talent & Apprenticeship Strategy, we have refined our focus on providing apprenticeships within priority skills areas that are better aligned to Government Missions and the skills we are looking to grow within the department.
HR are working to provide a wider range of apprenticeships in our Department in key fields, particularly STEM, Digital, Data, and AI, where demand is highest and in using apprenticeships as a route for individuals to obtain essential learning such as HR and Finance qualifications.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Northern Ireland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, what steps he is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in his Department.
Answered by Hilary Benn - Secretary of State for Northern Ireland
The Northern Ireland Office remains committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all government departments to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government’s commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.
Additionally, a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, The ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA), will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.
As a department, the Northern Ireland Office annually recruits a Communication Apprentice through the Government Communications Service.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Home Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for the Home Department, what steps she is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in her Department.
Answered by Diana Johnson - Minister of State (Department for Work and Pensions)
We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all government departments to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government's commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.
Additionally, a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, The ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA), will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.
In addition, in the Home Department we have recently launched a new Apprenticeship Strategy designed to accelerate progress in embedding apprenticeships across the department. This strategy is aimed at significantly expanding access to high-quality apprenticeship opportunities across all areas of our workforce, with a ‘think apprenticeship first’ approach.
As part of this strategy, we have set an ambitious target: at least 5% of our staff will be undertaking an apprenticeship at any given time. This target reflects our strong commitment to developing talent, supporting career progression, and addressing skills gaps within the Department.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Cabinet Office:
To ask the Minister for the Cabinet Office, what steps he is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in his Department.
Answered by Georgia Gould - Minister of State (Education)
We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all government departments to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government's commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.
Within the Cabinet Office, we are looking at every opportunity to increase apprenticeships. For example, last week we announced that this summer we will launch a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration. The ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA) will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026. In its first year, the CLA will offer roles in three city locations: Birmingham, London, and Manchester. By expanding into Birmingham and Manchester, the Civil Service is strengthening its presence in these growth areas, while still providing opportunities in London to meet workforce needs and priorities.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department of Health and Social Care:
To ask the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care, what steps he is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in his Department.
Answered by Karin Smyth - Minister of State (Department of Health and Social Care)
We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all Government departments, to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government's commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030, to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.
Additionally, a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, via the Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship, will see new apprentices kickstart their careers across various departments, starting from January 2026.
In addition, in the Department we are committed to increasing the number of apprenticeship starts by working closely with our professions, promoting insight sessions, and sharing testimonials from current apprentices to highlight how apprenticeships support staff development. This promotes the value of apprenticeships, and how they support personal development and capability, to encourage uptake across the Department.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Wales Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Wales, what steps she is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in her Department.
Answered by Jo Stevens - Secretary of State for Wales
We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all government departments to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government's commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.
Additionally, a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, The ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA), will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.
Apprenticeships are available to new and existing Wales Office staff and my Department promotes these opportunities through Ministry of Justice (MoJ) intranet bulletins and Wales Office staff newsletters. When vacancies arise, the Department also considers if posts may be advertised as apprenticeships.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Scotland Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps he is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in his Department.
Answered by Ian Murray - Minister of State (Department for Science, Innovation and Technology)
We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across the civil service to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes initiatives like supporting the Government’s commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.
Additionally, there is a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, the ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA), which will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what steps he is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in his Department.
Answered by Catherine West
We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all Government Departments to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government's commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.
Additionally, a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, the 'Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship' (CLA), will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.
Moreover, the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office are working on aligning our apprenticeship approach with our capability framework. For example, we are exploring new apprenticeship opportunities to scale our approach and build internal capability on Data and AI.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Science, Innovation & Technology:
To ask the Secretary of State for Science, Innovation and Technology, what steps he is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in his Department.
Answered by Feryal Clark
We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all government departments to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government's commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.
Additionally, a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, The ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA), will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.
In DSIT, we are also taking active steps to increase apprenticeship starts through our Apprenticeship Blueprint, which focuses on four key areas: digital, cyber security, line manager capability, and science & engineering. The department is also expanding its offer to include skills in policy, systems thinking, and profession-specific apprenticeship programmes.
DSIT will also be embedding apprenticeships into recruitment processes, giving managers the option to fill vacancies with apprentices.
Asked by: John Hayes (Conservative - South Holland and The Deepings)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, what steps he is taking to increase the number of apprenticeship starts in his Department.
Answered by Justin Madders
We remain committed to supporting the use of apprenticeships across all government departments to break down barriers to opportunity. This includes supporting the Government's commitment to 2,000 digital apprenticeships through its TechTrack scheme by 2030 to improve digital skills and drive improvements and efficiency in public services.
Additionally, a new cross-Government Level 3 apprenticeship programme in Business Administration, The ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA), will see new apprentices kickstart their careers, across various departments, starting from January 2026.
In addition, in DBT we are also committed to providing all employees with varied opportunities for learning and development, apprenticeships are a core part of this offer. As of End Quarter 4 2024/2025 3.8% of DBT’s domestic workforce were on an apprenticeship. We are taking active steps to continue to build on this by offering all new Executive Officer (EO) vacancies as apprenticeships, encouraging those at the start of their careers to consider an apprenticeship route as default. DBT are committed to support the ‘Civil Service Career Launch Apprenticeship’ (CLA) Programme. As the Department for Business and Trade we understand the importance of skills to drive growth and of providing good quality roles which support fulfilling and long-term careers.