From 1st April 2019, employers who pay the apprenticeship levy* will be able to transfer up to 25% of their unused funds to a partner organisation or another employer who are non-levy paying.
Transfers can be made to as many employers as the levy paying employer wishes, but the transferred funds can only be used for Apprenticeship Standards.
This is very positive news and means that smaller employers can benefit from financial support for apprenticeship training and assessment for new apprenticeship starts.
The process is straight forward; the receiving employer needs to create an account with the Apprenticeship Service and sign an agreement with the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA).
Wirral Met College, as the chosen training provider, negotiates the training and end point assessment costs, and can then help the receiving employer with the set-up of the apprenticeship details on the Apprenticeship Service digital account.
The employer sending the transfer then receives an ESFA transfer request to approve, for the total cost of the apprenticeship duration, after which it’s all systems go and the apprenticeship(s) can commence.
For more information, visit https://www.gov.uk/guidance/transferring-apprenticeship-service-funds or call Wirral Met’s Employer Services team for advice.
*Employers with an annual pay bill of more than £3m have to pay and report the levy, then they can access funding for apprenticeships through their digital account with the Apprenticeship Service.