News: Employers — 4 quick benefits of hiring an apprentice

The vast majority of apprentices stay in their employment after completing their qualification. As an employer, this means you can develop your staff your way, and help them have a long-term impact on your business.

Apprenticeships are suitable for a huge range of job sectors, and the new apprenticeship Standards mean that employers are now at the heart of apprenticeship design.

Apprenticeships can be a lower cost option to grow your business compared to other forms of training. This is ideal if you’re looking to moving into a new area of business but want to limit your financial risk, for example. 

Apprentices bring lots of fresh ideas with them, whether they are a school leaver who has grown up in the digital age, or someone looking to retrain who brings their own unique experience and perspective with them.

Smaller businesses (with a wage bill of less than £3 million) will now only pay 5% towards the cost of training and assessing an apprentice (subject to T and Cs). The government fund the rest. If you run a small business, you may also qualify for a grant and/​or funding to help towards the cost of an apprentice.

If your salary bill is £3 million or more, you’ll already be contributing to the apprenticeship Levy. So, make sure you make the most of it, and take advantage of the extra 10% that the government will add on top of the funds you can receive. 

Nottingham College have a dedicated Employer Services team who are experts in navigating the Levy (where applicable), advising on what additional funding may be available, and answering any questions you may have. 

We can also help you to access any locally or nationally available incentives. We provide a full recruitment service to find you an apprentice, and if you choose to train through us, our assessor/​s will support you and your apprentice throughout their training.