Two in five manufacturing businesses say colleges and training providers are “unable or unwilling” to provide the apprenticeships they want, according to manufacturers’ organisation EEF.

In a survey by the representative body, published today, 41 per cent of employers said colleges and providers were “not willing to deliver the apprenticeship standard they wanted”. Getting colleges and providers to deliver high-cost apprenticeships was a challenge for over one in 10 businesses, because of the way payments were taken.

The survey also shows that 95 per cent of manufacturers want changes to the apprenticeship levy. Only 7 per cent of companies said they have had no challenges with the levy, which was introduced over a year ago. However, 52 per cent would like to keep the levy.

Call for fundamental reforms

According to the survey of 100 levy-paying manufacturers, one in 10 companies looking to start an engineering apprenticeship for an existing employee have cancelled or delayed it specifically because of the levy, and over half of companies said apprenticeship standards are not ready for delivery.

The industry body is now calling for a summit with government to discuss fundamental reforms to make the apprenticeship levy work, and to ensure the creation of additional high-value manufacturing and engineering apprenticeships.

According to the most recent government figures, there were 206,100 apprenticeship starts between August 2017 and January 2018, compared with 269,600 starts by the same point last year. This represents a decrease of 24 per cent.

Levy ‘highly damaging’

EEF is also urging government to move the funds raised through the levy from Department Expenditure Limit (DEL) to Annually Managed Expenditure (AME). This would mean that the budget for apprenticeships was based on demand and would allow the government to spend more on high-quality apprenticeships where there was demand from employers to deliver them.

The lifetime of funds within which employers have to spend their levy should be extended to at least 48 months, and the funding band structure should be reviewed by removing the upper limit of a maximum of £27,000. This would honour one of the key pledges government made to employers on the introduction of the levy to cover the true cost of training and assessment, said the EEF.

EEF head of education and skills policy Verity Davidge said: “Everyone shares the ambition of creating high-quality apprenticeships, which are essential if industry is going to access the skills it will need in the future.

“But, whilst the apprentice levy had laudable aims, its impact has been highly damaging for employers and apprentices, and what should have been a win-win situation has turned into a lose-lose.

“We have to address the alarming drop in starts initially and then look at positive solutions which are on the table to make the levy work for employers and learners in the long term. Government must now sit down with business and find a way to rescue the levy so that it meets the original pledges made to companies when it was introduced.”

The Department for Education has been approached for comment.