Apprenticeships

Find out more about apprenticeships for your business

Apprenticeships are a fantastic way to grow new talent and fill skill shortages, helping your business develop a proficient, skilled, and loyal workforce.

Taking on a keen individual who wants to learn a new trade means you get an extra pair of hands from day one. But apprenticeships go much, much further. They introduce new ideas, new skills and new energy to your business, creating long-term employee loyalty and growing tomorrow’s managers. For any business of any size that wants to attract and keep the best new talent there is, apprenticeships are a great option.

Apprenticeships are available at all levels across a huge variety of industries and sectors. Apprenticeships are structured slightly differently in Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland and we work closely with the devolved governments to support their programmes in different ways. For example, we support Modern Apprenticeships in Scotland and carry out apprenticeship assessments in England.

Lantra has developed Employer Toolkits to encourage small farm businesses to take on apprentices, helping to bring new entrants into an industry that is challenged by labour shortages. You can download the online version of the toolkit for England and Scotland below.

Employer Apprenticeship Toolkit England Employer Apprenticeship Toolkit Scotland

Benefits of taking on an Apprentice

With training and financial support available from UK and devolved Governments, Apprentices make a sensible addition to any team. The training they get is ‘on the job’ so they can make a meaningful contribution to your business, by both improving productivity and gaining invaluable skills and experience directly from those around them.

As an employer in England, Wales or NI, financial and training support is available to help you take on an apprentice. The amount you receive will depend on whether or not you pay into the Apprenticeship Levy. In Scotland funding is also available but varies dependant on the type of apprenticeship being undertaken.

Top level criteria

  • Apprentices must be aged 16 or over and combine working with studying to gain skills and knowledge in a specific job, resulting in a qualification.
  • They can be new or existing employees and must work with experienced staff, learning job-specific skills and earning at least the minimum wage.
  • Apprentices must also be allocated time to study or train during their working week, making up at least 20% of their normal working hours.
  • Apprenticeships must last for at least a year and up to 5 years depending on the level the Apprentice is studying.

Basic steps for taking on an Apprentice

1) First you choose an apprenticeship for your business or organisation

2) Find an organisation/Training Provider that offers training for the apprenticeship you’ve chosen.

3) Check what funding is available for training and other costs to your organisation

4) Advertise your apprenticeship or give your Training Provider permission to do this for you.

5) Finally, select your apprentice and make an apprenticeship agreement and commitment statement with them.

Find the information you’ll need

Given the variations in how employers take on apprenticeships across all the home nations, the following signposting is designed to help get you to the information you need quickly and easily.

England

Scotland

Wales

Northern Ireland

Republic of Ireland

End Point Assessments