From 1 April 2020, all employers in England that do not pay the government’s apprenticeship levy (i.e. those with an annual pay bill of £3 million or less) can access funding of up to 95% towards the cost of apprenticeship training.

Claire Newhouse, Director of the Centre for Apprenticeships, Work-based Learning and Skills at Leeds Trinity University, said:

“The growth in degree apprenticeships has been driven by large employers utilising their levy, but now we want to encourage all employers to take advantage of developing graduate calibre employees. We are committed to supporting SMEs to access degree apprenticeships.

“We have apprentices from employers across all the country, from all sectors and sizes, which make our apprenticeships an ideal breeding ground for innovation and sharing best practice between large and small businesses, as well as a good platform for creating new supply chains between organisations within cohorts.”

There are currently eight apprenticeship programmes on offer at Leeds Trinity, with spaces available for 2020. They are:

• Business-to-business (B2B) Sales
• Chartered Manager
• Digital Marketer
• Digital Technology Solutions Professional (Software Engineering)
• Senior Leader
• Supply Chain Leadership Professional
• Children, Young People and Families Manager
• Children, Young People and Families Practitioner

All apprenticeships combine paid work alongside university study, enabling apprentices to gain a degree at the end of the programme. Government funding contributes towards the cost of the degree qualification.

TensCare Ltd., Europe’s largest distributor of pain relief machines, do not pay the apprenticeship levy but have chosen to train one of their employees through the Supply Chain Leadership Professional Degree Apprenticeship.

Movina Dias, Supply Chain Manager at TensCare Ltd. and an apprentice at Leeds Trinity, said: “This is the first degree apprenticeship that TensCare have used, and Leeds Trinity has made the whole process simple. The application, enrolment and induction processes were really easy, and the workshops have been really insightful. I can already see how my work will benefit.”

The Supply Chain Leadership Degree Apprenticeship at Leeds Trinity is delivered in partnership with CP Training, the training arm of the Supply Chain Academy. Apprentices spend approximately 15 days per year on campus at the University; attending workshops and seminars, and in addition, undertake independent research and projects within the workplace to achieve the degree and complete the apprenticeship.

For more information about apprenticeships at Leeds Trinity, visit leedstrinity.ac.uk/apprenticeships or contact a member of the team on apprenticeships@leedstrinity.ac.uk or 0113 283 7320.