The Apprenticeship Levy is a levy on UK employers to fund new apprenticeships.
The government wants to increase productivity by investing in human capital. As part of this, they are committed to developing vocational skills, and to increasing the quantity and quality of apprenticeships. They have committed to an additional 3 million apprenticeship starts in England by 2020.
Each council has been set a target to help achieve the government’s commitment. This runs from 1 April 2017 to 31 March 2021. It is set at 2.3% of the total number of council employees.
We are required to report annually on our progress towards this target. The information below is taken from annual return to the Department for Education detailing our progress towards meeting the target.
April 2023 to April 2024
Number of employees who work in England - excluding maintained schools
Number of employees who work in England - excluding maintained schools
Detail |
Number of employees |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2023 |
1,201 |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2024 |
1,271 |
Number of new employees who started working for you in England between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 |
211 |
Number of apprentices who work in England - excluding maintained schools
Number of apprentices who work in England - excluding maintained schools
Detail |
Number of apprentices |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2023 |
30 |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2024 |
41 |
Number of new apprentices in England between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 |
23 |
Number of employees who work in England - maintained schools only
Number of employees who work in England - maintained schools only
Detail |
Number of employees |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2023 |
1,546 |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2024 |
1,311 |
Number of new employees who started working for you in England between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 |
271 |
Number of apprentices who work in England - maintained schools only
Number of apprentices who work in England - maintained schools only
Detail |
Number of apprentices |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2023 |
9 |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2024 |
9 |
Number of new apprentices in England between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 |
6 |
Reporting percentage
Type of school |
Percentages |
Excluding maintained schools - percentage of apprenticeship starts (both new hires and existing employees who started an apprenticeship) between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 as a proportion of total headcount on 31 March 2022 |
1.92% |
Maintained schools only - Percentage of apprenticeship starts (both new hires and existing employees who started an apprenticeship) between 1 April 2023 to 31 March 2024 as a proportion of total headcount on 31 March 2022 |
0.39% |
April 2022 to April 2023
Number of employees who work in England - excluding maintained schools
Number of employees who work in England
Detail |
Number of employees |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2022 |
1,176 |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2023 |
1,201 |
Number of new employees who started working for you in England between 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 |
207 |
Number of apprentices who work in England
Detail |
Number of apprentices |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2022 |
20 |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2023 |
30 |
Number of new apprentices in England between 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 |
19 |
Number of employees who work in England - maintained schools only
Number of employees who work in England
Detail |
Number of employees |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2022 |
1,159 |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2023 |
1,546 |
Number of new employees who started working for you in England between 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 |
275 |
Number of apprentices who work in England
Detail |
Number of apprentices |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2022 |
8 |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2023 |
9 |
Number of new apprentices in England between 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 |
2 |
Reporting percentage
Type of school |
Percentages |
Excluding maintained schools - percentage of apprenticeship starts (both new hires and existing employees who started an apprenticeship) between 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 as a proportion of total headcount on 31 March 2022 |
1.62% |
Maintained schools only - Percentage of apprenticeship starts (both new hires and existing employees who started an apprenticeship) between 1 April 2022 to 31 March 2023 as a proportion of total headcount on 31 March 2022 |
0.11% |
April 2021 to April 2022
Number of employees
Number of employees at the council
Detail |
Number of employees |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2021 |
3,040 |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2022 |
2,941 |
Number of new employees who started working for you in England between 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022 |
490 |
Number of apprentices at the council
Detail |
Number of apprentices |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2021 |
35 |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2022 |
28 |
Number of new apprentices in England between 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022 (includes both new hires and existing employees who started an apprenticeship) |
9 |
Percentages of apprentices at the council
Detail |
Percentages |
Percentage of apprenticeship starts (both new hires and existing employees who started an apprenticeship) as a proportion of employment starts between 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022 |
1.84% |
Percentage of total headcount that were apprentices on 31 March 2022 |
0.95% |
Percentage of apprenticeship starts (both new hires and existing employees who started an apprenticeship) between 1 April 2021 to 31 March 2022 as a proportion of total headcount on 31 March 2021 |
0.30% |
April 2020 to April 2021
Number of employees
Number of employees at the council
Detail |
Number of employees |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2020 |
3,076 |
Number of employees who were working in England on 31 March 2021 |
3,040 |
Number of new employees who started working for you in England between 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021 |
291 |
Number of apprentices at the council
Detail |
Number of apprentices |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2020 |
54 |
Number of apprentices who were working in England on 31 March 2021 |
35 |
Number of new apprentices in England between 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021 (includes both new hires and existing employees who started an apprenticeship) |
15 |
Percentages of apprentices at the council
Detail |
Percentage |
Percentage of apprenticeship starts (both new hires and existing employees who started an apprenticeship) as a proportion of employment starts between 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021 |
5.15% |
Percentage of total headcount that were apprentices on 31 March 2021 |
1.15% |
Percentage of apprenticeship starts (both new hires and existing employees who started an apprenticeship) between 1 April 2020 to 31 March 2021 as a proportion of total headcount on 31 March 2020 |
0.49% |