National Apprenticeship Week 2023

Funding for apprenticeships

There are two direct costs associated with employing apprentices: their wages and the cost of their training.

Training costs

The government provides funding to cover all or part of the training costs, depending on whether your business pays the apprenticeship levy.

If your business pays the apprenticeship levy:

• you can use the levy funds to cover most of the costs of training apprentices, who may be either new or existing staff members
• the government can provide extra funding if your levy funds run out

If your business is not a levy payer:

• you can reserve government funding for up to 10 apprentices; for each apprentice, you’ll pay 5% of the cost of training and the government will pay the remaining 95%
• you may be able to get extra funding for younger apprentices (aged 16-18) and apprentices who have been in care

Incentive scheme

Employers and training providers could get £1,000 each for taking on an apprentice who is either:

• aged 16 to 18 years old, or
• aged 19 to 25 years old and has an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan or has been in the care of their local authority

Employers can use the incentive funding to help meet any of the costs associated with supporting a new apprentice in their workplace including their wages.

All other wage costs must be met by the employer.

Read more and apply for the incentive payment.

Using the levy

If you don’t spend your Apprenticeship Levy funds on apprentice training, they could be lost, not only to your business but also from the local area. Any unspent funding may be allocated to non-levy paying employers anywhere in the country.

As an employer, you can support your local economy by using your levy funding to recruit and train local people as apprentices, or you can opt to transfer up to 25% of your levy funding to another local employer to keep funding in the area.

More information and contact details

Find more information about government funding for apprenticeships

If you have any questions regarding employing apprentices, email localeconomy@southwark.gov.uk. 

Page last updated: 18 April 2024