PARLIAMENTARY WRITTEN QUESTION
Apprentices: Coronavirus (23 June 2020)

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what discussions he has had with the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy on providing additional (a) support and (b) incentives to SMEs to (i) retain and (ii) take on apprentices while dealing with the economic challenges resulting from the covid-19 outbreak.

Asked by:
Karin Smyth (Labour)

Apprenticeships will have an important role to play in creating employment opportunities, particularly for young people, and supporting employers in all sectors to access the skilled workforce they need to recover and grow post COVID-19.

The flexibilities we have introduced, including remote learning, are enabling apprenticeships to continue. We are looking to support employers of all sizes, and particularly smaller businesses, to take on new apprentices this year. We will set out further details in due course.

We will ensure that there is sufficient funding to support small businesses wanting to take on an apprentice this year and have extended the transition period of transferring onto the apprenticeship service from 1 November 2020 to 1 April 2021. This will enable smaller employers to have more control over the funding they use to create new apprenticeship opportunities and allow them to reserve funds before choosing the provider that best meets their needs.

As the Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Apprenticeships and Skills, I hosted a series of round tables in June 2020 with employers, business representative groups and the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy to discuss what further support employers may need in continuing to access apprenticeships.

Answered by:
Gillian Keegan (Conservative)
30 June 2020