Funding

The Education and Skills Funding Agency produce a list of rules for employer providers, training providers and performance management.

Resources: 

Education and Skills Funding Agency

• The Levy
• Funding rules
• Funding rules – August 2023 to July 2024 (Version 1) Summary of Changes
• Apprenticeships funding eligible costs consultation – Response

Apprenticeships are funded either via the levy (for employers with a payroll of over £3million) or via co-investment for smaller employers. Each standard is assigned one of 30 Funding Bands which range from £1,500 to £27,000. You can read full details about how funding works on the Education and Skills Funding Agency pages.

NHS Employers has some excellent resources available, including how to use the levy, how to access the Digital Account Service, how to transfer funds and more.

All funding enquiries must be directed to nationalhelpdesk@apprenticeships.gov.uk

Resources:

• The NHS Apprenticeship Levy Study: The 2022 edition (February 2023)
• The Apprenticeship Levy Study: NHS Trusts (March 2018)
• Department for Education: How to register and use the apprenticeship service as an employer
• How the levy is spent
• How the levy works

Did you know that if you’re not a levy-paying organisation you can receive funds from one that is? Or if you are, that you can transfer some of your funds to help others?

Transfer funds can pay for the costs of training and assessment and can be accessed quickly and efficiently with the support from HEE. Those making a transfer support other employers in their local health and social care systems and support the skills base within the wider economy.

We have recently added some additional resources to the Levy transfer section of the toolkit. These include:

• A recording of a webinar given by HEE staff on the whole process
• Updated FAQs
• EOI forms for receiving and transferring organisations
• 25% Levy Transfer Procurement and Contracting Guidance
• NHS 25% levy transfer process guide
• NHS Employers Apprenticeship levy transfer
• Find a business to fund apprenticeship training here. As a business of any size, you can use this service to apply for funding from large businesses that want to fund 100% of your apprenticeship training and assessment costs.

For further support, speak to your regional apprenticeship relationship manager.

As a smaller employer, who does not pay the apprenticeship levy, you can reserve funds in the ‘finance’ section of your apprenticeship service account. You can also give your training provider permission to reserve them on your behalf.

Resources:

• How to set up a digital service account & reserve apprenticeship funding
• ESFA “How to reserving apprenticeship funding”
• ESFA reservation of funds guidance

The Department for Education produces regular statistics on apprenticeships and the levy.

Resources: 

• Department For Education Levy Statistics

For non-levied employers, such as most Primary Care providers, both the employer and the government pay the training provider for apprenticeship training – 5% from the employer and 95% from the Government from April 2019.

All apprenticeships that started before 1 April 2019 will continue at the previous co-investment rate of 10%.

Providers without a non-levy contract can continue to provide training directly to levy-paying employers and to non-levy payers if the employer is receiving transferred funds or they are providing training as a sub-contractor.

Non-levy paying employers receiving transfers from larger levy paying employers, can use these transferred funds to cover 100% of apprenticeship costs.

NHS employers are advised to use a formal procurement process to ensure compliance with NHS Procurement Rules. Health Education England have designed a toolkit to help you navigate the procurement process.

Resources: 

• Government Information for employers who don’t pay the levy