Question to the Department for Work and Pensions:

To ask His Majesty's Government what plans they have to support small and medium-sized enterprises to address the indirect costs of training apprentices in heritage building crafts, such as travel and accommodation for training.

This Government will not leave an entire generation of young people behind. We are investing an additional £2.5 billion into the Youth Guarantee and the Growth and Skills Levy to support nearly one million 16–24-year-olds into work, education or training. Over the next three years, this investment will deliver up to 300,000 opportunities for workplace experience and training, and unlock up to 200,000 jobs, including through the £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant and guaranteeing jobs for long-term unemployed young people on Universal Credit.

The government provides a wide range of financial support to help employers to take on apprentices including in the heritage building crafts.

We are introducing a new employer hiring payment of £2,000 for non-levy paying employers, typically SMEs, that take on 16–24-year-old apprentices as new employees. It will apply to apprenticeship starts from October, as long as they have joined their employer within the past 3 months. Employers hiring apprentices aged 18-24 who have been on Universal Credit for over six months will also be eligible for the new £3,000 Youth Jobs Grant from June 2026.

The government also pays £1,000 to both employers, of all sizes, and providers for apprentices aged 16-18, and for apprentices aged 19-24 who have an EHCP or have been, or are, in local authority care. This payment can be used to cover any costs related to their employment, for example work equipment, travel costs or uniform.

Additionally, from August 2026, we will fully fund apprenticeship training for non-levy paying employers for eligible people aged 16-24. At the moment, this only happens for apprentices aged 16-21 and apprentices aged 22-24 who have an Education, Health and Care Plan (EHCP) or have been, or are, in local authority care.