Apprenticeships

About apprenticeships

An apprenticeship is a paid job where you also study.

You will usually:

• work about 4 days a week
• study 1 day a week at work, college, with a training provider or online

Levels of apprenticeship

Apprenticeships are available between level 2 and level 7. 

To start some apprenticeships, you might need certain qualifications, but there are many level 2 apprenticeships that don't need qualifications to start. 

Find out about apprenticeship levels on the government apprenticeship website.

Who can do an apprenticeship

You can start an apprenticeship if you are 16 or over.

You can apply while you are at school but you must be 16 by the time the apprenticeship starts.

Support you can get

You can get extra support during your apprenticeship if you have a: 

• learning difficulty
• disability
• physical or mental health condition

Your employer and training provider must make reasonable adjustments to help you. 

English and maths requirements

You might need a minimum level of English and maths to complete the assessment at the end of your apprenticeship. 

If your learning difficulty or disability means you can’t achieve this level of English or maths, you may be able to complete a functional skills qualification instead.

Find out more about support for apprentices on the government apprenticeships website.

If you have an EHCP

Your education, health and care plan (EHCP) will continue if you are under 25 and your apprenticeship is at level 2 or 3.

The apprenticeship provider will be named in your EHCP.

The support written in your EHCP should help everyone understand what reasonable adjustments you need.

Bursaries for care leavers 

If you are aged 16 to 24 and have been in care, you might be able to get a bursary for an apprenticeship.

Find out about the care leavers' bursary on GOV.UK

Apply for an apprenticeship

You can search and apply for all available apprenticeships on GOV.UK. 

Put in your post code to find apprenticeships in the local area. 

Find an apprenticeship on GOV.UK.

Applying if you have an EHCP

1. Apply for the apprenticeship directly.
2. Tell us this is your preferred choice at your EHCP annual review. 
   You can also email the SEND Team to tell us you have applied. 

It’s important that the apprenticeship provider and SEND Team are in contact so that everyone can understand how best to support you.