Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, what steps she is taking to ensure that the availability of apprenticeships in the education sector meets demand in (a) Nottingham and (b) Nottinghamshire; and whether she is taking steps to (i) increase the range of apprenticeship opportunities in this area, (ii) improve access for young people and (iii) support schools in recruiting apprentices.

There are a number of apprenticeship standards available in the education and early years sector including level 3 Teaching assistant, level 5 Early years lead practitioner and level 6 Teacher.

To support employers to access apprenticeships, the government pays £1,000 to employers when they take on apprentices aged 16 to 18, and for apprentices aged 19 to 24 who have an education, health and care (EHC) plan or have been in local authority care. Non-levy paying employers can also benefit from the government paying the full training costs for young apprentices aged 16 to 21, and for apprentices aged 22 to 24 who have an EHC plan or have been in local authority care.

The department continues to promote apprenticeships to young people, adults and employers through the ‘Skills for Life’ campaign.