Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask the Secretary of State for Work and Pensions, with reference to the Professional and Business Services Jobs Plan, published on 19 October 2026, what assessment he has made of the current capacity of colleges and training providers to deliver the apprenticeship training required to support the plan.

Through the Professional and Business Services Jobs Plan, employers are committing to recruit 22,400 under-25 apprentices each year for five years, this represents a 20% increase in current uptake.

We have a broad and established apprenticeship provider market, with more than 1,400 active providers, supporting a system in which more than 761,000 learners participated in 2024/25. The market is responsive to employer demand, with established arrangements to address specific gaps in provision or capacity as they arise. The Apprenticeship Provider and Assessment Register is open by exception to new providers, named as a preferred provider by an Employer, that can fulfil a gap in provision.