Apprenticeships, Budget 2025

Reeves puts the ‘squeeze’ on big employers with budget levy tweaks 

Chancellor warned that trio of reforms 'risks dampening appetite among levy-paying organisations already dealing with rising hiring, pension and...

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Apprenticeships, Awarding

‘We’re not diluting apprenticeships’: Skills England deputy hits back at assessment reform backlash

'It’s not about reducing competency. It’s not about dumbing down – you have my word on that.'

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Apprenticeships

The apprenticeships boost is not the game-changer SMEs need

The Chancellor’s funding pledge for under-25 apprenticeships is welcome, but rising labour costs and missing incentives still leave small...

Jessica Hill
Tina McKenzie
Apprenticeships, Training Providers

Analysis: Multiverse closes in on Lifetime’s apprenticeship lead

New figures show level 7 apprenticeships drove most of this year’s growth as under-19 starts fell to their lowest...

Shane Chowen
Shane Chowen
Apprenticeships

Treasury is still skimming the levy while NEET numbers surge

A narrow NEET policy won’t shift the dial – we need to go beyond providing a safety net for...

Jessica Hill
Ben Rowland
Apprenticeships

Are assessment reforms a safety risk we can’t afford?

The government’s drive to streamline apprenticeship assessment may look efficient on paper, but employers warn it risks dismantling the...

Jessica Hill
Justine Fosh and Ann Watson
Apprenticeships, Skills reform

Business backlash builds over ‘dumbed down’ apprenticeships

More employer groups gear up to fight assessment shake-up that 'risks damaging the brand and driving employers away'

Billy Camden
Billy Camden
Apprenticeships

Let’s stop treating school apprenticeships as second-class training routes

Apprenticeships have been overlooked in the education world, yet they’re quietly transforming how we recruit, train and retain talent

Jessica Hill
Monique Macauley
Apprenticeships

Accounting needs to modernise so we can tackle the skills gap

Our skills report reveals businesses increasingly need strategic input from accountancy teams but are struggling to train staff for...

Jessica Hill
Sarah Beale