To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps her Department plans to take to provide (a) educational and (b) training support to apprentices, in the context of of recent trends in the level of Level 7 funding.

This government is committed to spreading opportunities and economic growth with the support of a strong skills system. The government is reforming the current apprenticeship offer to ensure that more young people can benefit from high quality training.

The new growth and skills offer will deliver greater flexibility for both learners and employers in England and will be aligned with the government’s industrial strategy, creating routes into good jobs in growing industries. As a first step, the department will be introducing new foundation apprenticeships for young people, as well as shorter duration apprenticeships, in targeted sectors. These flexibilities will provide high quality entry pathways for young people, help more people learn new high quality skills at work and fuel innovation in businesses across the country. The department will set out more detail in due course.

This government has an extremely challenging fiscal inheritance. There are tough choices that need to be taken on how funding should be prioritised in order to generate opportunities for young people that enable them to make a start in good, fulfilling careers. The government will therefore be asking more employers to step forward and fund a significant number of level 7 apprenticeships themselves. The department is taking advice from Skills England, who engaged with employers on funding for level 7 apprenticeships over the autumn, and the department expects to make a final decision on affected apprenticeships shortly. Learners who have started these apprenticeships will be funded through to completion.