COMMENT: Using corporate responsibility to unlock funded training opportunities
Posted on: 3rd Oct 2024
Apprenticeships 
Neville Algar, Head of Education at Ignite Training, explains how corporate responsibility and apprenticeships go hand in hand for employers wishing to invest in the future
There are 5.6million businesses registered in the UK – 99.9 per cent of which are classified as small to medium-sized enterprises, meaning they employ up to 250 staff at any given time.
On the flip side, large corporations employing over 250 people account for just 0.1 per cent (8,000) of the UK’s business population. Yet it’s the region’s larger employers which support over a third (39 per cent) of jobs and almost half (47 per cent) of national turnover.
When deep diving into enrolment figures, the importance of major employers who contribute towards the apprenticeship levy and their investment in vocational qualifications elsewhere is clear to see.
Latest Government data tells us corporate firms (who remember account for just 0.1 per cent of the UK’s business population) are responsible for 58 per cent of apprenticeship starts.
Furthermore, levy-paying organisations – those with a wage bill of £3m annually – contributed £330m to the apprenticeship levy pot in the most recent financial year.
One major UK employer which is enhancing its investment in apprenticeships is the Co-op after it confirmed this summer more than 600 apprenticeships would be created to support employers across the public, private, voluntary and community sectors.
Branded the Co-op Levy Share Scheme, the move will allow smaller employers to access shared funding via unused levy spend to support hundreds of new apprenticeships.
It’s been made possible since the introduction of new legislation in April this year which allows levy-paying organisations to transfer half their funds to other employers who can use the money to cover the costs associated with apprenticeship training and assessments.
Already, levy donors have pledged over £6.4m to the Co-op’s pot – funds which previously would have simply been returned to HMRC.
So, what does all the above mean to UK employers?
For starters, SMEs are now in a privileged position where they can connect with levy-paying organisations to unlock fully funded apprenticeship training opportunities to help them invest in future talent and build a fit, competent, workforce for the future.
For large scale operators, pledging unused levy funds is a positive way of demonstrating a clear commitment to corporate social responsibility by supporting smaller businesses and investing in teams within supply chains of which major operations are reliant upon.
The Co-op’s model has been prompted by Labour’s proposed new growth and skills levy.
Labour says allowing eligible firms to use up to 50 per cent of unused levy funds to pay for training opportunities will boost the skills of a larger range of people, help the economy respond to changing technologies and address skills shortages.
One thing is for sure, any preexisting barrier which prevented SMEs from considering how they can best utilise apprenticeships and invest in the future has been removed.
It’s now down to employers to recognise the value of vocational qualifications and take the offer of free training with both hands.
Neville Algar, Head of Education at Ignite Training.
