Only businesses with an annual wage bill of £3 million pay into the levy

It is widely believed that all businesses pay into the apprenticeship levy, but this isn’t the case. Only employers that have an annual wage bill of more than £3 million pay into the apprenticeship levy. Organisations that meet this criteria must pay 0.5% of their wage bill into the levy, and this can only be retrieved by investing in apprenticeships.

For every £1 that a levy-paying organisation invests in an apprentice, the government adds 10p. If you don’t pay into the levy, the government will fund 90% of apprenticeship training costs!

Even business that don’t hire an apprentices are paying into the levy

Some businesses believe that you only pay into the levy if you hire an apprentice. But that’s not true. ALL BUSINESSES with a wage bill over £3 million pay into the levy.

So, by choosing not to train an apprentice, many businesses missing put on a share of the pot they’ve contributed to.

The levy can be used to train all employees - regardless of age

The levy doesn’t have to be used to train school leavers or new recruits. It can go towards the training of existing staff – regardless of age.

The levy can be used to provide members of staff with industry-specific or transferable skills, like team leading. Apprenticeships also cover a range of levels, including degree level. This is an effective way of developing existing staff and strengthening your work force.

The levy gives businesses more control over their apprenticeship programme

Another misconception is that businesses have less control over apprenticeships that are funded by the levy. That’s not true. In fact, the levy has actually made it easier for employers to choose bespoke packages that meet the needs of their business.

If you’re confused about the levy, or not sure how it can be used to benefit your business, get in touch with our Training Solutions team.

You can email apprenticeships@weston.ac.uk or call 01934 411 594.

Alternatively, you can find out more on the team’s webpage.

Weston College has been named among the first 21 colleges to establish a maths centre of excellence.

The new centres were announced last year in response to Sir Adrian Smith’s review of post-16 maths education, which recommended improving basic maths for people over 16.

The chosen colleges, which will share £40 million of funding over five years, are spread across the country. Weston College is one of only two centres in the South West.

As well as improving the quality of basic maths provision for low-attaining young people over 16, the new centres will design new teaching approaches, develop high-quality resources, build teachers’ skills and spread best practice.

Weston College Principal and CEO, Dr Paul Phillips, said: "This is fantastic news – not just for Weston College and our learners, but also the wider community in North Somerset and beyond.

“Becoming a maths centre of excellence will allow us to revitalize our maths provision, and develop new resources for our learners.

“Being one of only 21 providers awarded the funding is a great honour and reinforces our national reputation for high-quality education.”

Two-thirds of business leaders in Britain don’t believe they will be able to find enough skilled people to fill job vacancies in the coming years.

This startling figure – from a recent CBI survey – highlights the scale of the challenge to address skills shortages in numerous sectors. To fill these skills gaps, it’s essential that education providers work closely with employers to understand their needs and create a workforce that will enable them to compete in the years ahead.

Weston College’s Principal and Chief Executive Dr Paul Phillips CBE, commented: “Providing work-focussed education is one of our top priorities, which is why we’re due to open two new state-of-the-art training centres in spring 2019.

“The multi-million Health and Active Living Skills Centre, based at our Loxton Campus, is the result of our work with the NHS and other healthcare employers, which has identified increasing skills shortages that could lead to a recruitment crisis.

“It will enable young people and adults to gain the skills they need to enter healthcare professions, as well as allowing local and regional employers to develop the skills of existing staff.

“Also, the £3.8 million Construction Training Centre – based just off Junction 21 of the M5 – is designed to tackle the regional skills shortage head on.”

The College has devised this innovative centre to offer training in three key construction areas – scaffolding, plant operations and groundworks – training has been selected and designed with employers’ needs in mind and in response to the growing demand for a trained and skilled construction workforce in the region.

Dr Phillips commented: “What makes this project unique is that it’ll provide training at the point of need for whoever needs it – rather than fitting it into the academic year for school leavers. This means employers can come to us at any time for short courses, top-up courses and to up-skill staff who are taking on new roles.”

The above investments has been made possible by the College match-funding a successful bid for funding of £5.4m from the West of England Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP) through the Local Growth Fund, administered by the West of England Combined Authority.

Professor Steve West, Chair of the West of England LEP, says: “We’re very pleased to support these ambitious projects that will deliver important investment in the skills that businesses in the West of England need.

“As a region we need to work together to improve the quality and relevance of work-focussed education, and provide clearer routes into sustainable and rewarding careers for our residents. As well as giving people the skills they need to progress further in their education and training to secure better career prospects, this will also help lead to improved employment opportunities for our region’s businesses in the future.”

Preparing learners for the workplace has been a focus of Weston College for many years, with existing facilities aiming to mimic real-life workplaces.

Some operate as commercial businesses – such as the Hair and Beauty Centre and The Grove Restaurant – which have both been recently refurbished to provide the very latest resources learning environment. The College strongly believes that working with ‘real’ customers provides an invaluable way for its learners to develop vital transferrable skills, like teamwork and communication, as well as their sector specific skills.

Dr Phillips said: “Our learners also benefit teaching staff who are experts in their field and, in many cases, are still working in their trades. They work with employers to develop a curriculum, which reflects local and national trends in terms of employment, which is particularly apparent in our apprenticeship provision.”

A prime example of this approach is the ‘‘The School of Food Apprenticeship programme delivered by Weston College.

The School of Food is a unique training course, run by chefs for chefs and designed to tackle the local skills shortage.