Apprenticeships for small businesses
We offer over 70 apprenticeships in around 50 sectors - from intermediate through to degree level.
If you're a small business looking to take on an apprentice, we're here to help.
Our dedicated team can help you maximise your return on investment - from the free recruitment service (worth approximately £2,000) to the expertise our team will bring; advising on the grants and funding options available for your business.
What puts Weston College ahead of other training providers is the quality and uniqueness of our provision - supported by dedicated and award-winning facilities and accolades - including our ISO27001 accreditation.
We continuously invest in our courses, lecturers, assessors and teaching spaces, meaning that you can have confidence in our service as we help you to create a motivated and skilled workforce.
What makes us different...
We offer over 70 apprenticeships ranging from intermediate to degree-level, which means there are plenty of training options to choose from.
Weston College is one of the top colleges in the country. We’ve won many awards including College of the Year and Overall Training Provider of the Year. We’re rated outstanding by Ofsted, and we’re officially the top-performing college in the West of England. This means that when you choose Weston, you’re choosing a well-established and proven training provider.
We work with 2,500 businesses and organisations, from local employers to international companies, which means we have the right experience to help you expand or upskill your current workforce through apprenticeships.
97% of the employers we provide apprentices for say that they are satisfied with their apprentice and our support, and as a result 90% of our apprentices are offered permanent positions by their employers at the end of their programme.
What puts us ahead of the rest is our personalised and bespoke apprenticeship programmes which are based around supporting businesses throughout apprenticeship programmes. This means that we’ll be with you every step of the way when it comes to providing advice, guidance and training.
Funding and grants for small businesses
Your apprenticeships will be paid for through co-investment, which means that you’ll be able to pay for apprenticeships for only 5% of their cost, with 95% of the money coming from the Government.
Apprenticeships are split into 15 different funding bands which range from £1,500 to £27,000. The cost depends on the type of apprenticeship, the level it is being taught at and the skills it teaches. These costs can be negotiated with us.
If your company has fewer than 50 employees and you plan to employ an apprentice between the ages of 16 and 18 the Government will cover 100% of the costs providing they fall within the funding cap for that particular standard.
Small businesses employing an apprentice between 16 and 18 years old, as well as 19 to 24 year olds who were formerly in care or who have an Education and Health Care plan, will receive a £1,000 grant.
When you choose Weston College as your apprenticeship training provider, our team will look into the various funding options and grants available to your business.
Apprenticeship reforms for non-levy paying employers
Only companies with an annual payroll of £3 million or more have to pay into the levy, which means that 98% of employers don’t have to pay. Even if you aren’t currently paying into the levy, apprenticeship funding reforms will impact all employers who have or are looking to recruit apprentices.
If your company has fewer than 50 employees and you plan to employ an apprentice between the ages of 16 and 18 the Government will still cover 100% of their training costs (providing they fall within the funding cap for that particular standard). 19 to 24-year-old care leavers and those with an Education and Health Care Plan will also have their training fully funded by the Government.
If your apprentices don’t meet the conditions for fully-funded apprenticeships, your business can employ apprentices through a co-investment scheme which means you’ll only pay 5% of the costs of training your apprentices and the Government will pay the rest.
Apprenticeships have been split into 15 different funding bands which range from £1,500 to £27,000. The cost of an apprenticeship depends on the apprenticeship standard you choose, the level it is being taught at and the skills it teaches. These costs can be negotiated with us.
