News
Apprenticeship Recovery Package Extended to March 2022
Published: 14 April 2021
The DfE has announced that the Apprenticeship Recovery Package for employers is to be extended to the end of March 2022.
This is great news for apprentices, as Belfast Met continues to work in collaboration with employers across a range of industries to ensure the retention of existing apprentices in employment, as well as the recruitment of new apprentices to new employment opportunities. We are delighted with the recent announcement from the Department for Economy that will provide additional financial support to enable employers to retain and recruit apprentices.
This additional support will be welcomed by employers, as this new incentive will help to protect existing apprentices and create new apprenticeship opportunities. The previous Apprenticeship Recovery Package for Northern Ireland responded to the crisis caused by the pandemic by providing incentives to support the return and retention of furloughed apprentices, as well as the recruitment of new apprentices, which ended last month.
This support has now been extended to provide support until 31st of March 2022, with the scheme now open for employers. The New Apprenticeship Incentive Scheme is for employers who take on an apprentice for the DfE funded ApprenticeshipsNI and HLA programmes. There will be up to £3,000 available to employers for each new apprenticeship opportunity created between 1st April and 31st March 2022.
The Apprenticeship Return, Retain and Result Scheme is open to employers on the DfE funded programmes who return apprentices that were furloughed as part of the UK Government’s Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme. So for employers that retain returning apprentices in work and for successful completion of their apprenticeship, there will be up to £3,700 available per apprentice.
Belfast Met’s Centre for Skills and Apprenticeships provides a tailored responsive approach for employers, identifying and responding to individual employer needs. We work with a range of industries to support economic recovery and development, to ensure we maintain and grow the supply of apprenticeship opportunities in Northern Ireland.
We are here to help and to find out more please contact a member of our team apprenticeships@belfastmet.ac.uk or employerengagement@belfastmet.ac.uk.
For further information about the new Apprenticeship Recovery Package please click here