Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, what assessment he has made of regional trends in the levels of access to apprenticeships for people aged 16 to 24.

The Government is investing £2.5 billion by 2029 through the Youth Guarantee and the additional funding for the Growth and Skills Levy, creating opportunities for young people to access work, training and apprenticeships.

We are now fully funding apprenticeships for all eligible young people aged under 25. and introducing a £2,000 hiring payment for non-levy paying employers (typically SMEs) that recruit apprentices under 25 from October, as we support up to 50,000 more young people into apprenticeships.

Apprenticeship starts by region and age group, including 16-24 year olds, are published in the Apprenticeships statistics publication on a quarterly basis, which can be accessed at: Release home - Apprenticeships - Explore education statistics - GOV.UK