Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps the Government is taking to increase the number of apprenticeships across a range of traditional craft skills broken down by craft.

We have introduced new high-quality apprenticeship standards which are developed and designed by employers to meet the skills needs of their sectors. There are currently 600 high-quality standards available to employers and apprentices, at a range of levels and across a broad range of industries.

Groups of employers can propose apprenticeship standards for development to the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (the Institute), which will fall into one of 15 occupational routes for technical education, based on the Sainsbury Panel recommendations. We do not hold a definitive list of craft occupations but within the Creative and Design route, where occupations considered to be traditional crafts are likely to feature, apprenticeship standards include Bookbinder and Leather Craftsperson at level 2 and Bespoke Furniture at level 3. We continue to work closely with the Institute to ensure there are sufficient standards to meet employer demand. A full list of available standards can be found here: https://www.instituteforapprenticeships.org/apprenticeship-standards/.

To help employers in all sectors offer new apprenticeships, they will be able to claim a higher payment of £3,000 for every new apprentice they hire between 1 April and 30 September 2021 as part of the government's Plan for Jobs. The increased payment makes it a great time for employers to offer new apprenticeship opportunities and to take advantage of existing flexibilities to train apprentices in a way that suits their needs.

We are committed to supporting employers of all sizes to offer apprenticeships. In the 2021-22 financial year, we are making available £2.5 billion to support apprenticeships in all employers, irrespective of their size.

From 1 April 2021, all small to medium-sized enterprises arranging new apprenticeship starts will do so through the apprenticeship service, as levy payers do now. This will give them more control over their apprenticeship choices and the ability to reserve funds before choosing the provider that best meets their needs. We continue to work with smaller employers to give them the confidence and support to take on new apprentices.