Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what assessment he has made of the effect of the 2017 changes to apprenticeship funding on the (a) number of employees and (b) level of funding of further education colleges with a role as partner providers for apprenticeships.

No specific assessment has been made of the impact of the apprenticeship reforms upon individual further education (FE) colleges, or other providers. However, we are actively considering the efficiency and resilience of the FE sector, and will be assessing how far current funding and regulatory structures meet the costs of high quality, world-class provision. Funding to FE colleges to deliver apprenticeships and the key role they play in the wider further education system will be considered as part of this assessment.