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<p>Apprenticeships offer brilliant opportunities for school leavers, with over 690
high-quality apprenticeship standards available across all sectors of the economy
and at all levels, including 368 standards at levels 2 and 3. The department has a
range of work underway to promote and support young people into apprenticeships, and
it is encouraging to see that starts by under-19s so far this academic year have increased
by 6% on the same period last year.</p><p>Students can now see apprenticeship vacancies
on their UCAS Hub, and our Career Starter Apprenticeships campaign is promoting apprenticeships
at levels 2 and 3 which offer great opportunities for those looking for their first
role after leaving full-time education. The department also continues to invest around
£3.2 million annually in the Apprenticeship Support and Knowledge programme which
ensures students are aware of the benefits of apprenticeships, with over 620,000 student
interactions across 2,300 schools and further education colleges in the 2022/23 academic
year.</p><p>In addition, the department continues to pay £1,000 to employers and providers
when they take on apprentices aged 16-18, and the care leavers bursary has tripled
to £3,000 to help even more young people to access and complete apprenticeships.</p>
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