Business-backed blueprint for next stage of apprenticeship reform

The need for high-quality apprenticeships in every sector of the economy is clear. They offer a valuable combination of academic and vocational learning, with clear links to profession and employment.

This week, the CBI published the first of a 2019 series of CBI apprenticeship and skills reports, Getting Apprenticeships Right: Next Steps. Together, these reports will build on the Apprenticeships Levy wins in the Budget and set out a vision for what an effective and flexible apprenticeship system should look like.

The report looks at the apprenticeship system and the Institute for Apprenticeships, the UK public body responsible for maintaining and monitoring standards for general and vocational qualifications, and focuses on experiences of CBI members and how the Levy can be improved.

Key recommendations include giving the Institute for Apprenticeships (IfA) the independence and clout it needs to build and regulate a world class skills system. Further recommendations include giving the IfA measures to speed up the process for approving new apprenticeship programmes, and an appeals system that gives employers longer to spend their money where there are blockages to getting these programmes approved.

The CBI will highlight the report’s findings in a planned programme of stakeholder engagement in the coming weeks, including with Education Secretary, Damian Hinds.

Going forward, the CBI will work with members to develop proposals for the future direction of the levy system in its next report, which will launch later in the year. The skills team will also continue to reach out to political stakeholders across Whitehall in order to ensure the levy become more flexible.