Apprenticeship achievements
Advanced/Level 3
Advanced/Level 3 Engineering & Manufacturing apprenticeship achievements in 2022/23 numbered just under 15,000. Women's apprenticeship achievement levels were notably low, at just 6%.
Higher level
A relative bright spot – both in terms of the rise in overall achievements and in women's participation – is in higher-level apprenticeship achievements. Overall numbers continue to rise, reaching 1,580 in 2022/23, of which women represented 25%.
England: Total number of higher level apprenticeship achievements (all Engineering & Manufacturing disciplines)
Source: Matchtech analysis of DfE data
Set in the context of the university output of graduates in Engineering & Technology subjects – which numbered 29,900 in 2021/22 (the latest available data), 1,500 higher level apprenticeships in the same year shows that this training route is contributing to just 5% of graduate output levels.
Spending on level 6 & 7 apprenticeships has notably increased in recent years, however. According to FE Week analysis of Freedom of Information (FOI) request data, employer spending on qualifications at these levels rose from £44 million in 2017/18 (when the levy was introduced) to £506 million in 2021/22, and accounted for over a fifth of England’s annual apprenticeship budget in that year. In comparison, spending on level 2 apprenticeships dropped by a third over the same period, from £622 million to £421 million.1
1. FE Week: Treasury Plans Apprenticeship Levy restrictions, 16 November 2023 https://feweek.co.uk/treasury-plans-apprenticeship-levy-funding-restrictions/
In November 2023, FE Week reported that the UK government was considering restrictions on how the levy for higher-level apprenticeships is spent, as there were worries that it was affecting investment in lower academic attainment levels.