Number of people starting apprenticeships drops by a third

The number of people starting an apprenticeship fell by 34% in first three terms of 2017-18, prompting calls for an “urgent reassessment” of the system.

The number of apprenticeship starters fell to 290,500 since the start of the academic year, compared with 440,300 during the same nine-month period in the previous year and 384,500 in the equivalent period in 2015-16, according to Department of Education data.

Gordon Marsden, the Shadow Minister for higher and further education, has called on the Government to take action. “Labour, businesses, and providers have called for an urgent reassessment of the process, but ministers have buried their heads in the sand,” he said.

“Their refusal to review the levy is now causing major damage to the apprenticeship brand.”