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1692096

registered interest
date	27/02/2024
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how much his Department (a) paid in apprenticeship levy fees and (b) spent from its apprenticeship levy funds between September 2021 and August 2023.
tabling member constituency	Feltham and Heston
tabling member printed	Seema Malhotra
uin	15907
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 13/03/2024 answer text <p>The department paid £4,665,652 in apprenticeship levy fees and received £437,478.16 between 1 September 2021 and 31 August 2023. This includes the 10% Government top up.</p><p> </p><p>The department spent £2,644,021.77 of its available apprenticeship levy funds between September 2021 and August 2023.</p><p> </p><p>The data above is for Defra Core, Marine Management Organisation, Natural England, Animal and Plant Health Agency and Joint Nature Conservation Committee, which are collectively included in the Defra Levy Account.</p> answering member constituency Sherwood answering member printed Mark Spencer question first answered 13/03/2024 11:05:44 answering member 4055 label Biography information for Sir Mark Spencer
tabling member	4253 label Biography information for Seema Malhotra

1282707

registered interest
date	01/02/2021
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many and what proportion of the staff employed by his Department are apprentices.
tabling member constituency	Hampstead and Kilburn
tabling member printed	Tulip Siddiq
uin	146975
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 04/02/2021 answer text <p>As of 31 March 2020, the Civil Service has achieved a total of 2.1% of its total workforce as apprentices against the legislative target for the public sector of 2.3% by March 2021.</p><p> </p><p>Core Defra has achieved 1% of the total staff employed within the department. A further 57 apprentices are currently being enrolled and we expect these to be fully enrolled by 31/03/21.</p><p> </p><p>This target is a percentage of the total workforce so the percentage attained will change in line with workforce fluctuations over time, making it challenging to predict when a department will meet it. The data for 2018/19 can be found <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-apprenticeship-data-2018-to-2019" target="_blank">here</a>. The data for 2019/20 can be found <a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-apprenticeship-data-2019-to-2020" target="_blank">here</a>.</p><p> </p><p>Defra has an apprenticeship strategy which has the following priorities:</p><p> </p><ol><li>Increase the use of apprenticeships in external recruitment</li><li>Use targeted apprenticeship recruitment to improve inclusion/ diversity of workforce</li><li>Promote the use of apprenticeships to support the development of existing employees at all grades</li><li>Increase/maximise levy usage</li></ol><p> </p><p>Defra is launching three recruitment campaigns in National Apprenticeship Week (8–14 February) for the following apprenticeships: Project Management Level 4; Policy Officer Level 4; Business Administration Level 3.</p><p> </p><p>Departments are committed to increasing the number of apprentices across the Civil Service and continue to work towards the 2.3% target.</p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 04/02/2021 17:36:41 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
tabling member	4518 label Biography information for Tulip Siddiq

1235561

registered interest
date	17/09/2020
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what progress his Department is making on meeting the 2.3 per cent public sector apprenticeship target; and when his Department will meet that target.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	91621
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/09/2020 answer text <p>As of 31 March 2020, the Civil Service has achieved a total of 2.1% of its total workforce as apprentices against the legislative target for the public sector of 2.3% by March 2021. Defra had achieved 1% of the total staff employed within the department.</p><p> </p><p>In Defra group, we have taken the following steps towards the public sector apprenticeship target.</p><p> </p><p>We have reactivated our ‘Early Talent’ Strategy for 2020/21 to focus on:</p><ul><li>increasing the use of apprenticeships within external recruitment;</li><li>promoting the use of apprenticeships to support development of existing staff;</li><li>increasing and maximising the use of the levy; and</li><li>using targeted apprenticeship recruitment to improve the diversity of our workforce.</li><li> </li></ul><p>We have identified a number of levers that can be used to achieve the above and these are actively being discussed within the business. We continue to enhance the information and tools available to line managers to improve understanding.</p><p> </p><p>While there are a number of standards that we can actively use, given the unique nature and breadth of our activities in Defra group, we continue to explore and invest in trailblazer activity.</p><p> </p><p>Defra group has been focused on delivery against EU exit requirements and more recently COVID-19. Defra remains committed to the Civil Service Apprenticeship Strategy and is looking to increase our use of apprenticeships across Defra group over the next 12 months.</p><p> </p><p>Given this target is a percentage of the total workforce, the percentage changes in line with workforce fluctuations over time, therefore making it challenging to predict when a department will meet the target. The data for 2018/19 can be found on the GOV.UK website at: <a href="http://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-apprenticeship-data-2018-to-2019" target="_blank">www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-apprenticeship-data-2018-to-2019</a>. The data for 2019/20 will be released on GOV.UK by the end of September 2020.</p><p> </p><p>Departments are committed to increasing the number of apprentices across the Civil Service and continue to work towards the 2.3% target. The impact of the current pandemic has slowed recruitment due to priority work and logistics. With the current strategy and targets coming to an end in April 2021, the Civil Service is already focusing on how to continue to support the apprenticeship agenda and drive forward apprenticeship recruitment, pulling on the Plan for Jobs initiative and considering the current economic situation.</p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 25/09/2020 11:12:23 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1224995

registered interest
date	15/07/2020
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to reach the public sector apprenticeship target.
tabling member constituency	Harlow
tabling member printed	Robert Halfon
uin	74515
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 12/11/2020 answer text <p>In Defra group, we have taken the following steps towards the public sector apprenticeship target.</p><p> </p><p>Defra group has recently reactivated its ‘Early Talent’ Strategy for 2020/21 and is intending to increase our activities around the following four themes:</p><p> </p><p>a) Increasing the use of apprenticeships within external recruitment</p><p>b) Promoting the use of apprenticeships to support development of existing staff</p><p>c) Increasing and maximising the use of the levy</p><p>d) Using targeted apprenticeship recruitment to improve the diversity of our workforce</p><p> </p><p>We have identified a number of levers that can be used to achieve the above and these are actively being discussed within the business, for example by: building an apprenticeship option into all new external recruitment activity; identifying executive sponsors; establishing a robust approach to learning and development; the creation of apprenticeship networks; and seeking to convert other early talent pipelines such as internships into apprenticeships.</p><p> </p><p>We continue to enhance the information and tools available to line managers to improve understanding. For example, within recruitment processes we have introduced the use of Interactive Candidate Packs, appropriate selection processes such as Success Profiles, online advertising, case studies and trained selection panels.</p><p> </p><p>While there are a number of standards that we can actively use, given the unique nature and breadth of our activities in Defra group, we continue to explore and invest in trailblazer activity.</p><p> </p><p>Defra group has been focused on delivery against EU exit requirements and more recently COVID-19. Defra remains committed to the Civil Service Apprenticeship Strategy and is looking to increase our use of apprenticeships across Defra group over the next 12 months.</p> answering member constituency Banbury answering member printed Victoria Prentis question first answered 12/11/2020 16:08:02 answering member 4401 label Biography information for Victoria Prentis
tabling member	3985 label Biography information for Robert Halfon

1174257

registered interest
date	29/01/2020
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of staff employed by her Department are apprentices.
tabling member constituency	Croydon North
tabling member printed	Steve Reed
uin	9694
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/02/2020 answer text <p>As of 31 December 2019, there were 72 apprentices in Defra. This is 1.4% of the total staff employed in the department.</p><p> </p><p>Data regarding the number of apprentices in each Government department is published yearly as part of routine Government transparency. The most recent report was published in September last year, covering the 2018-19 financial year, and can be found on the GOV.UK website:</p><p><a href="https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-apprenticeship-data-2018-to-2019" target="_blank">https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/civil-service-apprenticeship-data-2018-to-2019</a></p><p> </p> answering member constituency Camborne and Redruth answering member printed George Eustice question first answered 03/02/2020 08:55:17 answering member 3934 label Biography information for George Eustice
tabling member	4268 label Biography information for Steve Reed

1064354

registered interest
date	20/02/2019
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what proportion of staff employed by his Department are apprentices.
tabling member constituency	Batley and Spen
tabling member printed	Tracy Brabin
uin	223828
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 25/02/2019 answer text <p>There are 38 apprentices employed in core Defra as at 21 February 2019, which is 0.9% of the department’s headcount.</p> answering member constituency Camborne and Redruth answering member printed George Eustice question first answered 25/02/2019 14:20:09 answering member 3934 label Biography information for George Eustice
tabling member	4588 label Biography information for Tracy Brabin

997723

registered interest
date	30/10/2018
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many apprentices are employed in his Department.
tabling member constituency	Glasgow East
tabling member printed	David Linden
uin	185746
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 07/11/2018 answer text <p>There are 48 apprentices employed in Defra at 30 September 2018.</p> answering member constituency Camborne and Redruth answering member printed George Eustice question first answered 07/11/2018 11:23:14 answering member 3934 label Biography information for George Eustice
tabling member	4640 label Biography information for David Linden

900572

registered interest
date	09/05/2018
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what levels of apprenticeships are offered by his Department; and how many apprenticeship starts there were at each level in each of the last three years.
tabling member constituency	Filton and Bradley Stoke
tabling member printed	Jack Lopresti
uin	142419
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 17/05/2018 answer text <p>Defra currently offers apprenticeships ranging from Level 2 (Business Administration) through to a Level 7 qualification in Finance.</p><p> </p><p>Since April 2016 there have been 79 apprenticeship starts in Defra, broken down against scheme level as follows:</p><p> </p><p><strong>2016/17</strong></p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Name</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Level</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Equivalent Educational Level</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Number of Starts</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Advanced</p></td><td><p>3</p></td><td><p>A Level</p></td><td><p>29</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Higher</p></td><td><p>4, 5, 6 &amp; 7</p></td><td><p>Foundation Degree and above</p></td><td><p>4*</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p>*3 at Level 4 and 1 at Level 5</p><p> </p><p><strong>2017/18 </strong></p><p> </p><table><tbody><tr><td><p><strong>Name</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Level</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Equivalent Educational Level</strong></p></td><td><p><strong>Number of Starts</strong></p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Advanced</p></td><td><p>3</p></td><td><p>A Level</p></td><td><p>16</p></td></tr><tr><td><p>Higher</p></td><td><p>4, 5, 6 &amp; 7</p></td><td><p>Foundation Degree and above</p></td><td><p>30</p></td></tr></tbody></table><p> </p><p>Data on apprentices was not held centrally in 2015 so we are unable to provide information for that year.</p> answering member constituency Camborne and Redruth answering member printed George Eustice question first answered 17/05/2018 16:11:14 answering member 3934 label Biography information for George Eustice
tabling member	3989 label Biography information for Jack Lopresti

622582

registered interest
date	27/10/2016
answering body	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept id	13
answering dept short name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
answering dept sort name	Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
hansard heading	Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs: Apprentices
house id	1
legislature	25259 pref label House of Commons
question text	To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, how many apprenticeships have been created in her Department in each region in each of the last five years; and how many participants in those apprenticeships subsequently secured a job within the Civil Service.
tabling member constituency	Stockton North
tabling member printed	Alex Cunningham
uin	50806
answer	answer is ministerial correction date of answer 03/11/2016 answer text <p>Departmental apprenticeships within Defra have recently been introduced as a response to the Civil Service annual apprenticeship targets.</p><p> </p><p>Apprenticeship data was not collected in Defra prior to January 2016. Data on apprenticeships is now collected and reported to Cabinet Office quarterly. In the most recent return to Cabinet Office, as of the end of the first quarter of 2016/17, it was reported that two apprenticeships had commenced within the Department, one within London and one within the West Midlands. Both participants are still undertaking their apprenticeship. The data collection exercise for those apprenticeships starting in Quarter 2 is currently underway.</p><p> </p><p>Defra plan to considerably expand their apprenticeship programme in light of the Government’s manifesto commitment to achieve three million new apprenticeship starts in England by the end of the Parliament. We are currently in the process of onboarding new apprentices from a recent recruitment campaign as well as looking at further opportunities to develop our existing employees through apprenticeship schemes.</p><p> </p><p>The Cabinet Office will be centrally collecting data on all future apprenticeships to allow the Civil Service to report on its contribution towards the national target and enable tracking of initial outcomes of apprenticeships (e.g. successful completion and continued employment in the Civil Service).</p> answering member constituency Camborne and Redruth answering member printed George Eustice question first answered 03/11/2016 14:31:03 answering member 3934 label Biography information for George Eustice
tabling member	4122 label Biography information for Alex Cunningham