Question to the Department for Education:

To ask the Secretary of State for Education, how many apprenticeships in each NUTS 1 region her Department envisages will be created as a result of the apprenticeship levy in 2017-18.

The Apprenticeships Levy comes into effect from April 2017, as part of a wider suite of reforms to improve the quality and sustainability of the apprenticeship system in England.

Future availability and location of apprenticeships is dependent on employers recruiting apprentices and offering opportunities. We want to encourage more employers to offer more apprenticeships and our reforms provide them with the opportunity to do so. The apprenticeship service helps employers to select the appropriate apprenticeship for their needs; choose the training they want to purchase; choose an assessment organisation and advertise and recruit to their vacancies.

As part of the reforms, employers across the country are designing new apprenticeships that meet their business and skills needs; the quality of apprenticeships is increasing through more rigorous end-point assessment and grading; and new funding policy will make it easier for employers so they can invest in apprentices and offer more opportunities.