Looking to hire an apprentice?

There are lots of benefits to hiring an apprentice:

• Cost effective: a lower cost option to grown your business, ideal if you’re looking to moving into a new area of business but want to limit your financial risk.
• Fresh ideas and creativity: apprentices bring lots of fresh ideas with them, for example, does your business want to improve its social media presence? An apprentice can help you excel in areas like this.
• Funding and grants available: small to medium sized business may qualify for a grant and/or funding to help towards the cost of an Apprentice. Find out more about grants and funding here.
• Grow your own talent: 90% of Apprentices stay in employment after completing their qualification, meaning you can develop your staff your way and help them have a long-term impact on your business.

• Employers can receive a £1,000 payment the government already provides for 16-18-year-old apprentices, and those aged under 25 with an Education, Health and Care Plan.
• Payments will be made in two instalments, 50% when the apprentice has been in learning for 90 days and the final 50% at 365 days.
• To enable you to claim the incentive you have to reserve funding on The Apprenticeship Service account upfront.
• Grants will be processed through the Apprenticeship Service.
• There is no limit on the number of incentive payments that can be claimed for new apprentices (apprentices must meet eligibility criteria).

To find put more about how your businesses can access these grants and what you're eligible for click here.

An apprenticeship will generally last between 12 and 18 months but this can vary depending on the individual.

The national minimum wage for an apprentice is £6.40 per hour. This wage applies to apprentices aged 16-18 or those who are 19+ in their first year. All other apprentices should be paid at least the minimum wage.

Apprentices should work for a minimum of 30 hours per week and a maximum of 40, however the working day should be no longer than 8 hours.

If you employ an apprentice under the age of 25, you may not need to pay employer Class 1 National Insurance Contributions (NICs), on their earnings below £827 a week (£43,000 year).

The apprenticeship levy is a UK tax which can be used to fund apprenticeship training. The amount you get depends on whether your business pays the levy- your business will pay the levy if you spend £3million or more on wages per year. Find out more about the levy.