The government will fund all of the apprenticeship training and assessment costs, up to the funding band maximum of the apprenticeship:

• Employers who do not pay the levy: if at the start of their apprenticeship training the apprentice is aged between 16 and 21 years old (or 15 years of age if the apprentice’s 16th
  birthday is between the last Friday of June and 31 August).
• Employers who do not pay the levy: if at the start of their apprenticeship training the apprentice is aged between 22 and 24 years old and has either an Education, Health and Care (EHC) plan provided by local authority and / or has been in the care of their local authority.

Apprenticeships are funded either via the levy (for employers with a payroll of over £3million) or via co-investment for smaller employers.

You can read full details about how funding works on the Education and Skills Funding Agency pages

Each apprenticeship standard is in a funding band. These funding bands range from £1,500 to £27,000.

Apprenticeship standards are allocated a funding band based on recommendations from the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE). IfATE also reviews existing standards’ funding bands on a regular basis.

Employers with a payroll of over £3 million pay the apprenticeship levy. Employers can use their apprenticeship levy to:
• Fund their own apprenticeship training and assessment costs
• Transfer them to another employer
After 24 months, funds become unavailable to use and are removed from accounts. This is so levy paying employers cannot accrue large balances, with the potential to create financial commitments that the government has not planned to meet. The oldest funds remaining in an account will be removed each month on a ‘first-in, first-out basis’.

Employers who have a wage bill under £3million can still benefit from significant government funding to support their commitment to apprenticeships. This is called ‘co-investment’, where the employer pays 5% of the total price of the apprentice’s training and assessment costs and the government covers the remaining 95% of the cost.

Find out how to access co-investment here – How to set up a digital service account & reserve apprenticeship funding

Employers can use apprenticeship levy to train any eligible individual to undertake an apprenticeship. The apprenticeship can be at a higher, equal or lower level than a qualification they already hold, including a previous apprenticeship if: It allows the individual to acquire substantive new skills

The content of the training is materially different from any prior training or previous
apprenticeship Education providers must consider all relevant prior learning and experience when assessing learner eligibility. They should adjust the content, duration and price of the apprenticeship
where applicable.

Payments are made to education providers when they have evidenced delivery of training and assessment activities through their monthly individualised learner record (ILR).

Government then makes monthly payments totalling 80% of the negotiated price of the apprenticeship. These payments are spread here evenly across the duration of the apprenticeship. The remaining 20% is paid at the end of the apprenticeship upon the apprentice’s completion of the end-point assessment.

All apprenticeship standards include end-point assessment, which must be delivered by an independent end-point assessor. The funding band allocated to an individual standard includes the cost of endpoint assessment, as well as the cost of the training.

The cost for assessment will vary between standards. The cost of endpoint assessment should not exceed 20% of the funding band maximum.

Employers can transfer unused funds in their account to any number of other employers, for any number of apprenticeships. They can transfer up to the annual maximum transfer allowance of 50%.
For example, employers could transfer funds to other employers in their supply chains or work with regional, local or sector partners. The transfer amount covers 100% of the eligible training and assessment costs of the apprenticeship.

Employers can apply for a 100% Levy Transfer. Employers have the option to apply for a levy transfer (levy gifted from another organisation) to cover 100% of the training and assessment.

In Lancashire and South Cumbria this is facilitated by the NHSE North West Levy Team who require as much notice as possible, but no less than 2 months. Funds must be in place prior to the apprenticeship programme start date. This is usually very successful.

To apply please complete the EOI or email Dawn Werra Social Care Apprenticeship Lead, so Dawn can request instructions on your behalf. 

L&SC Apprenticeship Tuition and DAS Account Guide (lscthub.co.uk)