The Chancellor's 28 September announcement restores the Union Learning Fund at £15 million a year and expands apprenticeship brokerage services to all 14 Mayoral Strategic Authorities from Spring 2027. Full funding detail to follow at the Budget.
29 September 2026
ESFA has published final contract values for the 2024-25 funding year, covering Adult Skills Fund, apprenticeships, and Advanced Learner Loans.
26 September 2026
DfE has published the payment and allocation dates for post-16 settings for 2026-27. Here are the key dates for the most common funding streams.
21 September 2026
The final 2025-26 ILR return closes at 6pm on 22 October 2026 with no post-closure adjustments permitted. R12 QAR data is now available and an earlier data quality issue has been corrected.
20 September 2026
Two items from the DfE's 9 September Further Education Update that providers may have missed — changes to the financial assurance monitoring guidance and a delay to the apprenticeship subcontracting rules review.
19 September 2026
The DWP has withdrawn government funding from 16 apprenticeship standards. No new starts are permitted from September 2026, with provider-level start caps in place until December 17, 2026.
18 September 2026
What a privately funded apprenticeship is, when it comes up, what providers need to know, and how it differs from a standard funded programme.
17 September 2026
What's changed in apprenticeship funding for 2026-27, including new co-investment rates, the hiring payment, and apprenticeship units.
15 September 2026
How does apprenticeship funding work?
16 July 2021
Amazing Apprenticeships is the approved communication channel, commissioned by the National Apprenticeship Service, to support the Apprenticeship Support & Knowledge for Schools project.
This agreement must be signed by the apprentice and the employer at the start of the apprenticeship.
ADI, a free service from Nick Linford, has one aim – to help the skills sector share and use apprenticeship data better, in England.
How the government funds apprenticeships in England, including details of funding bands and the apprenticeship levy.
Sets out the funding bands that will apply for existing apprenticeship frameworks and apprenticeship standards.
Apprenticeship funding rules for current and previous academic years.
Main apprenticeship funding rules for starts on or after 1 August 2026, including updated co-investment requirements.
Roles and responsibilities for apprenticeship gateway and resits for end-point assessment.
Manage your apprentices and employers.
A list of published funding guides from the ESFA.
The framework and specification DfE will use to review the quality of apprenticeship training from providers.
Funding rules for apprenticeship units beginning on or after 1 August 2026.
Explains the funding policy and system operations for apprenticeship unit new starts on or after 1 August 2026.
Public-facing website for apprentices and employers to find out more about what apprenticeships are and how they work.
The revisions status report shows apprenticeship standards that are being revised, provides a brief overview of the revisions planned for each apprenticeship standard, and states the stage that each revision has reached.
How employers and training providers should meet the off-the-job training requirements for an apprenticeship
How training providers can create apprenticeship vacancies using their apprenticeship service account.
The Employer Data Service is a terrible web service on which training providers can find employers and their Employer Reference Numbers (ERNs).
The current and prior qualifications accepted as meeting the minimum English and maths requirements for apprenticeships at level 2 and above.
Cost form and guidance for claiming exceptional learning support for learners whose costs exceed £19,000, covering 19+ learners with learning difficulties or disabilities and apprentices.
Online search tool for prospective apprentices, will find employer listings and vacancies.
Find an end-point assessment organisation early on during the apprenticeship. This will give the employer and apprentice enough time to prepare for the assessment.
Information on Flexi-Job Apprenticeships and how to make apprenticeships work in your sector
Search for help and guidance articles, published by the ESFA, for apprenticeship training providers, employers, and end point assessment organisations.
Information for employers on the Growth and Skills Levy, including funding available for young apprentices and eligible training schemes.
Guidance on how to use the apprenticeship service to access funds to pay for apprenticeship training.
Information about employing an apprentice and how apprenticeship funding works.
This explains the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education's (IFATE) revisions status report, which shows the standards that have entered IFATE’s formal revisions process.
An independent organisation which is funded by the DfE and represents employers to help develop apprenticeships and technical education. Also features an apprenticeship search tool.
Find out when you have to pay Apprenticeship Levy and how to work out and report your payments.
Employers and training providers could be eligible for £1,000 each if they hire an eligible apprentice.
Government white paper setting out the vision and policy framework for post-16 education and skills reform in England.
QAR guidance and datasets for 2025 to 2026, updated to include T Levels and foundation apprenticeships.
Information for employers about getting a levy transfer to pay for apprenticeship training and assessment costs.
This service is for registered training providers (including large employers with direct grant funding) to post vacancies and manage applications for apprenticeships and traineeships.
Information for training organisations about using the recruit an apprentice service.
Organisations that are eligible to receive government funding to train apprentices.
Search for official apprenticeship specifications on the Skills England website.
Information for large employers about transferring unused apprenticeship levy funds to another business to pay for their apprenticeship training and assessment.