This week Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced that the apprenticeship incentive will now run until the end of January 2022. All employers hiring apprentices during this period will receive an incentive of £3,000 per apprentice in England, regardless of the apprentice’s age. An additional £1,000 is available for apprentices aged 16 to 18 years old, or under 25 with an Education, Health and Care Plan. Previously the scheme was due to finish at the end of September 2021.
News of the extension was announced at the Conservative Party Conference this week. The Kickstart scheme, extra support through the youth offer, the job entry targeted support scheme, and their apprenticeship incentive, will all be extended into 2022.
How does the apprenticeship incentive work?
Employers can apply for a payment of £3,000 for new apprentices of any age as long as the apprenticeship start date is after 1 April 2021. Payments are made in 2 equal instalments for each apprentice. The first payment is due after an apprentice completes 90 days of their apprenticeship and the second is due after 365 days.
How can QA help?
QA has an established and proven track record of recruiting tech apprentices for our clients. Working with specialist partners, QA is able to help clients access a wider and more diverse pool of talent. It has launched the careers of over 30,000 apprentices and offers programmes in the most in-demand tech disciplines including data, digital marketing, cloud, cyber and software engineering.
With apprenticeship programmes from A-Level to MSc level, QA helps apprentices develop further and faster, shaping the next generation of technologists, leaders and innovators and providing the sought-after tech skills employers need.
QA works with employers ranging from global brands through to local authorities and SMEs, helping organisations develop their apprentices’ tech skills through an award-winning approach to apprenticeship delivery, as well as providing exceptional support to manage safeguarding, learner services and line manager support with dashboard reporting. The QA apprenticeship team is also on hand to help employers navigate the apprenticeship levy.
Further information about QA’s apprenticeship programme can be found here.
To find out how your organisation can benefit from the government incentive, please book a 30-minute consultation here.