Apprenticeship scheme guide
3. Recruit an apprentice
There are rules governing what an apprenticeship is. The main ones are:
- an apprentice must be employed in a real job, they may be an existing employee or a new hire
- the apprentice must work towards achieving an approved apprenticeship standard
- the apprenticeship training must last at least 12 months
- the apprentice must spend at least 20% of their time on off-the-job training
Apprenticeship levy
In April 2017 an apprenticeship levy was introduced so apprenticeship funding is the responsibility employers and to encourage them to invest in and create apprenticeships for new and existing staff.
The Government has been very specific about what levy funds can and cannot be spent on.
Funds can be used for:
- apprenticeship training and assessment (with an approved training provider and assessment organisation up to its funding band maximum).
Funds cannot be used for:
- wages
- statutory licenses to practice
- travel and subsidiary costs
- managerial costs
- traineeships
- work placement programmes
- the costs of setting up an apprenticeship programme
Levy funds can be used to offer apprenticeships to existing staff as long as the training is different from any prior training and will help them gain new skills. The levy is an opportunity for service areas within Cheshire East Council to identify skills gaps in their organisation and use levy funds to help fill them, either through existing members of staff or new recruits.
The Digital Apprenticeship Service (DAS)
The Digital Apprenticeship Service allows employers to advertise new apprenticeship opportunities within their organisation.
Cheshire East Council has one Digital Apprenticeship Service account which is managed corporately within Human Resources and will continue to run a corporate apprenticeship scheme.
For more information please see the resources below.