Select committee: Transport Committee
Recommendation 16
5th Report - Engine for growth: securing skills for transport manufacturing
Published 28 Jan 2026
Addressed to Department for Transport
Transport Committee Skills for transport manufacturing All items in this report Report on parliament.uk ↗ Inquiry on parliament.uk ↗
Recommendation (the committee's words)
Skills England must undertake a review to ensure that it supports a range of modular or part-time apprenticeships, or other training options in the transport manufacturing sector, to help attract candidates with caring responsibilities or those returning to work from career breaks. Manufacturers receiving levy funding or apprenticeship support should be required to report annually to Skills England on the uptake of those training options by candidates with caring responsibilities or those returning to work from career breaks, to ensure the support is reaching that cohort. Where uptake is low, the options should be revised, or future support should be made contingent on increased levels of uptake. The Government should also consider whether release of levy funding should be made contingent on employers’ delivery against their own diversity targets. (Recommendation, Paragraph 75) 35
From: Transport Committee, 5th Report - Engine for growth: securing skills for transport manufacturing (HC 1223), 28 January 2026
Government response
The government responded to the whole report on 5 May 2026 (deadline 28 March 2026).
Summary written by Accountability Index from the government's response. It is not the government's own words.The government agrees with the Committee on several aims, such as keeping occupational standards current and strengthening careers guidance, but does not accept key funding and reporting recommendations on the levy.
- On levy funding, the government says capital projects are ineligible for apprenticeship funding and "there are no current plans to change this". From August 2026 the expiry window for levy funds reduces from 24 months to 12 months.
- On level 7 apprenticeships, it "has no plans to re-introduce levy funding" in the Industrial Strategy sectors, citing a priority on young people.
- On modular or part-time training and diversity reporting, it agrees on the importance of opportunities for people with caring responsibilities but does "not consider that these specific recommendations are the right way" to achieve this. It has no plans to make levy funding contingent on diversity.
- It agrees it is essential for occupational standards to remain current, but prefers a targeted review model to revisions at fixed intervals. It says Skills England will update standards "as needed".