What is the Apprenticeship Levy?
The Apprenticeship Levy was initiated by the UK government in April 2017, for all employers paying a wage bill of more than £3 million per year. Employers that meet this criterion are now required to pay 0.5% of their payroll each month as a levy tax. This levy can then be reinvested back into their workforce in the form of Apprenticeship training.
Since then, the entire apprenticeship landscape has changed, with new workforce development programmes being created by employer groups known as Trailblazers.
The new apprenticeship standards are being developed from level 2 up to Level 7, which is the equivalent to a Masters degree. Many of them also include valuable professional qualifications like CIPS, AAT, ARLA or IRPM.
What does the Apprenticeship Levy mean for SMEs?
Employers with a wage bill less than £3 million will not be subject to the Apprenticeship Levy. However, these organisations will be able to access funding for up to 10 employees with the government contributing 95% towards the cost of Apprenticeship training.
This is an exciting time for Apprenticeships and these radical changes will help to significantly raise the profile of Apprenticeships, develop the UK workforce, increase productivity and drive growth of the UK economy.
The Apprentice Academy have a dedicated team focused on helping organisations to understand and make the best use of the apprenticeship funding available to them. For information on programmes due to start over the next couple of months please visit our timetables page.