Today thousands of Oxfordshire students are opening their A-level results and deciding what comes next. A growing number are choosing an apprenticeship over university. If your business is thinking about taking on new talent this year, the Growth & Skills Levy could help you fund it. Here’s how Enterprise Oxfordshire can connect you with the right funding.
Today, thousands of Oxfordshire students are opening their A-level results and weighing up what happens next. For many, that will mean Clearing, a gap year, or heading off to university – but a growing number will be looking at an apprenticeship instead, combining paid work with a recognised qualification.
If your business is thinking about bringing in new talent this year, results day is a timely moment to look at how the Growth and Skills Levy could make that easier, and in many cases, free.
What’s changed
On 1st April, the government replaced the Apprenticeship Levy with the new Growth and Skills Levy, giving employers more flexibility over how levy funds are used to develop relevant, high-quality skills and support business growth.
Share funds, or receive them
Enterprise Oxfordshire connects levy-paying employers with businesses who could use the support:
Paying the levy? Large employers can pledge up to 50% of unused levy funds to another local business, fully covering the cost of apprenticeship training and end-point assessment.
Not paying the levy, or already used your own funds? Smaller employers, and even levy-payers who’ve exhausted their own funds, can receive a transfer and take on an apprentice or upskill existing staff at no cost.
Transferred funds can support a brand new apprentice start, an existing employee moving into a new apprenticeship, or an apprentice changing employer partway through their training.
How the transfer works
Once both organisations have an Apprenticeship Service account, they connect and agree the details of the apprenticeship to be funded. From there, it works automatically: funding moves from the donor’s levy account in monthly instalments for the length of the apprenticeship, just like a standard levy payment.
The impact so far
Since launching the scheme, Enterprise Oxfordshire has helped secure and redistribute levy funding right across the county:
- £7m in levy funds secured
- 529 apprenticeship starts fully funded
- £15.9m in social value created for Oxfordshire
Employers who’ve used the scheme point to how straightforward Enterprise Oxfordshire makes the whole process, from matching with the right partner business through to their apprentice’s first day.
How we help
Our team supports both donor and receiving employers at every step, from matching suitable partners to setting up the transfer on the Apprenticeship Service.
Whether you’re ready to take on your first apprentice or you have unused levy funds sitting idle, results day is as good a time as any to start the conversation.
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