Yes. If your company employs less than 50 members of staff, the government will cover 100% of the training costs towards an apprentice that is aged 16-18, or aged 19-24 who have previously been in care or who have a Local Authority Education, Health and Care plan. However, as with all government investment into apprenticeship training, they will only cover the costs up to the funding band maximum for that apprenticeship standard.
For those who are not eligible to be fully funded by the government, there is the option for a Levy Transfer. This is where companies who pay the Apprenticeship Levy have an excess that they won’t be able to spend before the 24 month limit runs out, in which they will lose the money in their Levy accounts. Rather than lose their Levy, they can transfer it to another company who is taking on an apprentice.
The only downside to this is it is difficult to find matches for the transferal. Luckily, Employing an Apprentice is currently in the process of developing a nationwide Levy Matching Service. To find out when this service has gone live, sign up to our newsletter below.