Institute of Student Employers’ Student Development Survey reveals how employers are using the apprenticeship levy in 2024.
The introduction of the apprenticeship levy in 2017 revived school leaver recruitment, evident in surveys by the Institute of Student Employers (ISE) with apprentice hiring increasing gradually over the years.
However, there have been recent reports of plummeting apprenticeship numbers. This year’s ISE Student Development Survey of 139 employers provides insight to how organisations are engaging with apprenticeships in 2024.
Levy spent
This year, respondents reported that they were spending on average 41% of their apprenticeship levy which is a slight decrease on the previous year (45%). This broadly follows government apprenticeship figures which reported a 3.5% reduction in the number of apprentice starts between 2022 and 2023.
However, the percentage of the levy that was spent differed between sectors, reflecting the different sectoral histories of engagement with apprenticeships.
The sector that used most of the apprenticeship levy was the built environment which spent 69% of the levy, whereas the health and pharmaceuticals sector and retail, FMCG and tourism sector spent 25% of the levy respectively.
Using the levy
Respondents to ISE’s Student Development Survey showed a significant proportion (90%) of organisations are offering apprenticeship programmes for school and college leavers.
Additionally, more than half of organisations provide apprenticeship programmes for graduates (54%) and existing hires (60%) but only 38% of organisations extend these programmes to newly recruited experienced hires.
The apprenticeship programmes delivered were at a range of different levels with level 3 and level 4 being the most predominant ones for school and college leavers, whereas level 7 was the most predominant one for graduates and existing hires.
While the data shows there have been larger reductions in hiring lower-level apprentices, degree and level 7 apprenticeships have increased. It may mean that ISE members are placing increasing emphasis on utilising apprenticeships to develop more advanced levels of skills in their early career hires than in previous years.
ISE Insights offers more data and trends on the recruitment and development of apprentices.
