Source · Select Committees · Education Committee
Recommendation 51
51
Rejected
Paragraph: 121
Just 2% of care leavers go on to do an apprenticeship.
Conclusion
Just 2% of care leavers go on to do an apprenticeship. To address this, the Department must strategically weigh the apprenticeship levy in favour of care-experienced young apprentices under age 25. Too much of the levy is going unspent, the Department reports that £250 million was unspent in 2020/21. Unspent levy funds should be used for an uplift to the apprentice minimum wage for care leavers, enabling them to receive the National Living Wage in recognition of the financial barriers young care leavers face.
Government Response Summary
The government acknowledges the barriers faced by care leavers in apprenticeships and describes existing bursaries and employer incentives. However, it rejects weighing the apprenticeship levy in favor of care-experienced young apprentices and increasing the apprentice minimum wage, stating that employers should pay wages and the Low Pay Commission sets minimum wages.
Paragraph Reference:
121
Government Response
Rejected
HM Government
Rejected
121. We recognise that care leavers aged 19–21 are over three times more likely than their peers in the general population to be Not in Education, Employment, or Training (NEET) and can often face additional barriers to undertaking apprenticeships. It is for this reason we introduced the £1,000 bursary for care leavers; and why we provide £1,000 to both employers and training providers so they can give additional support to enable the young person to complete their apprenticeship. 122. Apprenticeships are jobs with training, and as apprentices make a productive contribution to an employer’s business from day one, the government believes it is employers who must pay apprentices’ wages. The Low Pay Commission are responsible for setting and reviewing minimum wages including the Apprentice Minimum Wage, and employers must follow these regulations. Most employers pay their apprentices more than the minimum. The Apprenticeship Evaluation Learner Survey (AEvS) 2021 data shows that the median basic hourly pay for apprentices in 2021 was £8.23 for Intermediate (Level 2) and £9.09 for Advanced (Level 3) apprentices, £12.51 for Level 4 & 5 apprentices and £14.48 for Level 6 & 7 apprentices. 123. We recognise that unlike other young people who may still live at home with their parents, care leavers live independently from age 18 and often struggle to pay rent and other bills if they are on lower incomes. That is why the Department for Education and the Department for Work and Pensions have published a factsheet to illustrate the support that is available through Universal Credit for care leavers in this situation. 124. The apprenticeship levy is set at a level that allows us to fund apprenticeships training and assessment in all employers. While employers who pay the apprenticeship levy may not spend all the funds in their digital accounts, these funds are not wasted and are used to pay for apprenticeships in smaller employers, support apprentices to secure English and Maths qualifications, and to make additional payments to employers, training providers and care leavers. 125. As with all departments, the Department for Education receives a budget from HM Treasury and any underspend in overall departmental budget at the end of the financial year is returned to HM Treasury as per the Consolidated Budgeting Guidance. In 2020/21 the uptake and completion of apprenticeships was significantly impacted by the covid-19 pandemic, and £250 million was returned to HM Treasury. During 2021–22 we have seen a strong recovery in apprenticeship starts as employers’ demand for skills training has increased.