Our skills manifesto for employers, published earlier this year, highlights the need to enhance support and incentives for SMEs to boost their engagement in apprenticeship programmes.   

Today’s announcement means: 

• From April 1, the 5 per cent co-investment payments for apprentices under the age of 22 will be scrapped – meaning the government will fully fund training costs for apprentices.
• From April 6, the levy transfer allowance will be increased from 25 per cent to 50 per cent –doubling the amount of funding which employers who pay the apprenticeship levy can pass on to other businesses.

Cogent Skills CEO, Justine Fosh, said:

“We’ve long called for support for SMEs to boost apprenticeship numbers – including calling for an end to the co-investment payments – so we’re pleased to see this change and look forward to seeing the positive impact it could have for employers.
 
SMEs have a crucial role to play in our sector but apprenticeships have declined in recent years – so this is a welcome step in the right direction.

For more details on today’s announcement.