Business Update - Issue 61 (September 2020)
Updated 1 November 2021
Applies to England
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This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/skills-funding-agency-business-update/business-update-issue-61-september-2020
In this edition of Business Update, our round-up of business-critical news and information from the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA):
- Redundancy Support Service for Apprentices
- Employer Incentives payment for hiring new apprentices: application go live
- National Apprenticeship Awards 2020 open for entries
- IfATE Route review restart
- Post-Brexit – preparing your business for 1st January 2021
- Covid19 Guidance
Please share Business Update with your colleagues who might like to register for web alerts. This will notify them by email when we add new editions of Business Update to GOV.UK.
To access support, you can search for apprenticeships on GOV.UK or call 08000 150 600. To find out more about how employers are using apprenticeships to benefit their business, visit our Hire an Apprentice page on YouTube.
If you have any feedback, please email Business Update
1. Redundancy Support Service for Apprenticeships
High-quality apprenticeships will have an important role to play in creating employment opportunities post-COVID-19, and in supporting employers to access the skilled workforce they need to bounce back and succeed. Training providers have a critical role to play in supporting redundant apprentices to help them to find a new employer and support them through to completion.
To further support apprentices who have been made redundant, or who are at risk of redundancy, we introduced the Redundancy Support Service for Apprentices (ReSSA) on 1 August 2020.
ReSSA provides clear, accessible advice and guidance to individuals on the impact of redundancy, their options and next steps. We will also help redundant apprentices to identify new apprenticeship and employment opportunities, and, where they are eligible, complete their current apprenticeship.
The service is made up of three main elements:
- providing apprentices with advice and guidance on the impact of redundancy
- signposting apprentices to local and national support services
- an apprenticeship vacancy sharing service to make redundant apprentices aware of new opportunities
If you are an employer who would like to recruit a redundant apprentice or offer new apprenticeship opportunities, visit GOV.UK or call 08000 150 600 to find out more.
If you’ve made your apprentice redundant or may have to make them redundant in the future, please encourage your apprentices to use the service to get free advice, access local and national support, and find new opportunities. Apprentices should visit GOV.UK or call 0800 150 400 to speak to an adviser.
Read more on GOV.UK.
2. Employer Incentive payment for hiring new apprentices: applications go live
From 1 September, employers large and small can apply for large cash incentives designed to create more high-quality apprenticeship opportunities.
As part of the Government’s Plan for Jobs, employers are being offered £2,000 for each new apprentice aged under 25 they hire, and £1,500 for each new apprentice they hire aged 25 and over, up to the 31 January 2021. This includes taking on an apprentice who has been made redundant.
The new cash incentives for employers are in addition to the existing £1,000 payment for new 16 to 18 year-old apprentices, and those aged under 25 with an education, health and care (EHC) plan.
The incentive payment for hiring a new apprentice is different to the apprenticeship levy and can be used on anything to support organisational costs, for example facilities, uniforms, apprentice’s travel or their salary.
Any organisation can apply for the payment, no matter the size or the sector. Applications must be made through the Apprenticeship Service, employers not currently registered will be able to set up an account.
3. National Apprenticeship Awards 2020 open for entries
The National Apprenticeship Awards 2020 are now open for entries.
Back for their 17th year, the National Apprenticeship Awards are a fantastic opportunity to highlight business and individual success in apprenticeships and are particularly poignant this year, given the challenges many employers and apprentices have faced during the pandemic.
Entries to the awards are open until 25 September, and this year winners will be recognised at online broadcast ceremonies. These ceremonies will also showcase good news stories from Covid-19, with examples of where apprentices have gone above and beyond to make a difference.
Regional ceremonies will take place between 2 and 6 November, with the national ceremony taking place on 25 November.
Apprentice employers, apprentices and apprenticeship champions from all sectors are invited to enter the awards - from engineering, digital, healthcare and science, to beauty, manufacturing and education.
To enter the National Apprenticeship Awards 2020, or to sign up to our mailing list, please visit: appawards.co.uk.
4. IfATE Route Review Restart
The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (the Institute) will relaunch apprenticeship route reviews from 18 September.
These look at what apprenticeships are available for the different occupational routes, making sure they are still relevant and up to date. They are an important way in which employers improve the apprenticeships on offer.
This comes after all route reviews were paused in March due to the COVID-19 lockdown.
With the economy opening out again, the Institute thinks the time is right to relaunch those looking at the agriculture and animal care, creative and design, engineering and manufacturing, and hair and beauty sectors.
The current state of play for each of these can be viewed online.
The Institute recognises that a lot of businesses have been severely impacted by the pandemic and would like to hear about their experiences. These can be sent to the relevant route review email address below:
- Agriculture, Environment and Animal Care
- Creative and Design
- Engineering and Manufacturing
- Hair and Beauty
Workshops are being organised for the agriculture and animal care and engineering and manufacturing reviews. The latter will be held on 8 October, and the date for the former will be confirmed soon. Email the agriculture or engineering email addresses above for more information.
No further route reviews will be launched this year to give employers time to recover from lockdown and contribute fully to future consultations.
5. Post-Brexit – preparing your business for 1 January 2021
While the Government continues to negotiate a free trade agreement with the European Union, there are actions your business can take now to prepare for the end of the transition period after Brexit. You can use the straightforward checker tool at gov.uk/transition to identify the specific steps you need to take to be ready on 1 January 2021.
You can also sign up to receive a regular Business Readiness Transition Bulletin providing information on major announcements and recently published guidance.
6. COVID-19 Guidance
Version 8 of the Apprenticeship Programme response to COVID-19 was published on 2 September 2020.
This version of the guidance has been refreshed to improve the layout, style and remove any out of date references. It has also been updated with the following:
- information on the actions that training providers should take for the return of apprentices from September. This compliments and supplements the FE guidance that was published this weekend
- information on how apprentices who have been made redundant, or who are at risk of redundancy, can access online and telephone support through the Redundancy Support Service for Apprentices
- confirmation that we are planning to restart routine funding audits from September 2020
- information on the new incentive payment for hiring a new apprentice
A reminder that guidance, for apprentices, employers, training providers, end-point assessment organisations and external quality assurance providers during COVID-19, is available on GOV.UK. Guidance and support for businesses can also be found on GOV.UK.
The Business Support Helpline number in England is:
Freephone: 0800 998 1098
The helpline provides free, impartial business support and signposting services to businesses in England – which currently includes business advice on COVID-19.
You can also find free support, advice and sources of finance through your local growth hub or speak to an advisor on webchat about support for your business.
DfE coronavirus helpline: 0800 046 8687