The apprentice service has issued the following article regarding their new incentive aimed at encouraging SME's to take on apprentices.
On 16th November 2011, the government announced a new incentive to encourage thousands of small firms that don't currently employ apprentices to take on a young apprentice aged 16 to 24. This will support up to 40,000 new Apprenticeships. The incentive is for employers with up to 50 (and in some cases up to 250) employees and comprises a payment of £1,500 payable in two stages. It will be available to small firms in all industries and for Apprenticeships at all levels from April 2012. Details of how the new incentive will be administered and when employers will be able to express formal interest in it are currently being developed and will be announced as soon as possible. Updates on this development will appear on this website. The incentive is part of a wider £1 billion package of support to encourage small businesses to employ young people.
Employer subsidy to employ a jobless young person From April 2012, an incentive of £2,275 will be available for small employers who employ a jobless 18-24 year old for a period of 6 months. The subsidy will support work and training placements. Government aims to subsidise work placements and training for up to 160,000 young jobless over a 3 year period. Details of this subsidy are currently being developed and updates will appear on this website.
Links between the incentive and subsidy We will work with Job Centre Plus to ensure that the two schemes complement each other. The Apprenticeship incentive focuses on enabling small employers to recruit new employees aged 16-24 into sustainable jobs that provide the opportunity for the young person to achieve a national recognised qualification. The work placement subsidy outlined to date covers a 6 month work placement with supporting training for 18-24 year olds.
Merit Skills offers a range of apprenticeship schemes, please contact us to discuss your requirements.