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<p>The Institute for Apprenticeships is working with a range of sectors, including
construction, to design and deliver new high quality apprenticeship standards that
will meet the skills needs of industry. There are currently 52 construction standards
approved for delivery, with 43 further standards in development. We have seen a 338%
growth in apprenticeship starts at higher levels (Level 4 and above) in construction
and planning this year, compared to the same period last year. To support smaller
employers who do not pay the levy take on apprentices, the government provides at
least 90% of training and assessment costs.</p><p>We recently released additional
funds for providers who were successful in our procurement drive to fund apprenticeships
amongst smaller employers, taking the total amount of investment to nearly £560 million.
We recognise, however, that a number of smaller, niche providers were unsuccessful
in the procurement. We have recently introduced the ability for levy paying employers
to transfer up to 10% of their levy funds to other employers, including small and
medium-sized enterprises in their supply chains, and we continue to make subcontracting
an option; such initiatives have helped providers who were unable to continue in delivering
high quality apprenticeship training.</p><p>We are encouraging employers to take advantage
of these changes to enable them to grow their apprenticeship programmes and invest
in the long-term skills required of their business. We meet regularly with business
groups and individual employers to understand the impact of the reforms and use their
feedback to inform any further changes.</p><p> </p>
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