The apprenticeships tipped for a rate rise

Business administration, accountancy and carpentry could be among apprenticeships in scope for funding band uplifts, FE Week analysis suggests.

Skills minister Jacqui Smith this week commissioned Skills England to provide urgent advice on which apprenticeship standards most used by under-25s are not funded at a “sufficient” level to incentivise take-up among training providers and employers.

And she admitted that six of the top 20 standards used by young people had never received a funding increase since their launch.

The stagnant six

Funding bands determine the maximum amount that can be drawn down from the apprenticeship budget for training and assessment per apprentice. There are 30 bands, which range from £1,500 to £27,000.

Providers have long argued that funding bands have failed to keep pace with inflation and course delivery costs, and employers fear it is financially risky to put young people onto such apprenticeships.

Smith said: “The government is determined to boost apprenticeship starts for young people and it is imperative that our funding rates incentivise this rather than hold it back.”

FE Week analysis of 2024-25 data (table below) shows the six apprenticeships the minister was likely referring to include the level 3 business administrator, which had 8,250 starts for under-25s and a funding rate of £5,000 since it launched in 2017, and the level 7 accountancy and taxation professional, with 7,650 starts for the same age bracket and funded at £21,000 since its approval in 2017. The accountancy standard is, however, now only available for people aged 21 and under, following the government’s crackdown on level 7 apprenticeships.

The pair were the second and third most popular apprenticeships for young people in 2024-25, behind the level 3 early years educator on 12,540 starts for under-25s, which itself was launched in 2019 with a £6,000 funding band before receiving an uplift to £7,000 two years ago.

Also in the group of six are the level 3 engineering technician and level 3 maintenance and operations engineering technician standards with 3,460 and 1,860 under-25 starts in 2024-25, respectively. Both were funded at the maximum band of £27,000 when approved a decade ago before receiving rate cuts to £26,000.

The level 3 maintenance and operations engineering technician was, however, replaced by two new standards at the end of 2025, both of which are funded at the maximum band of £27,000.

The level 3 information communications technician standard, which had 1,860 starts for young people, hasn’t had its £15,000 funding band change since its launch in 2021, nor has the level 3 dental nurse apprenticeship, also receiving 1,860 under-25 starts, which has been funded at £8,000 since it began in 2024.

Growth priorities

Smith said funding reviews should also be prioritised for apprenticeships that make a “strong contribution to growth and the priority skills to 2030 identified by Skills England across ten critical sectors, aligned with the government’s industrial strategy”.

The ten critical sectors are: creative industries, digital and technologies, housebuilding, clean energy, adult social care, professional and business services, life sciences, financial services, defence, and advanced manufacturing.

Popular apprenticeships among young people that fit into those sectors and could therefore be in line for funding band uplifts include the level 3 installation and maintenance electrician, with 6,390 starts in 2024-25 and a current funding band of £23,000, as well as the level 2 carpentry and joinery standard, which had 3,780 starts for the age group in the same year with a funding rate of £13,000.

The level 3 motor vehicle service and maintenance technician (light vehicle) apprenticeship, with 3,050 starts and a £16,000 funding band, could also fall into scope of an uplift, as could the level 3 assistant accountant, funded at £12,000 which had 2,560 starts, and the level 3 plumbing and domestic heating technician, funded at £22,000 with 2,350 starts.

Level 3 lead adult care worker, which had 1,970 starts for under-25s and a funding band of £4,000, is also in a priority sector and is among the 20 most popular standards for young people, as is the level 2 bricklayer with 1,850 starts and a £13,000 funding band.

Smith told Skills England to produce guidance on which standards should have their funding reviewed by July, and advise on potential rate changes by October.

The agency announced today that it will adopt a temporary model to decide funding bands in the coming months. Rather than asking occupational groups to supply quotes for costings, the agency will now use “actual assessment cost data to help set our estimate”.