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Apprenticeship levy transfer funding

Apply for apprenticeship levy transfer funding

Apply for apprenticeship transfer funding from East Sussex County Council.

Apprenticeship training funding

The apprenticeship levy is giving East Sussex County Council (ESCC) the opportunity to invest in high quality training, helping to recruit apprentices and develop existing employees for our future economy.

As a large levy-paying employer, the council can transfer up to 50% of its apprenticeship levy funding to other employers for their apprenticeship training, helping to further boost the number of employers having apprenticeships in East Sussex.

Who can receive transferred funds?

We can transfer funds to employers for new apprentices, for existing staff who would like to develop their skills through apprenticeship training.

Employers eligible for funding should be East Sussex based or can apply if the apprentice has an East Sussex connection.

Priorities for funding

All applications will be viewed on a first come first served basis. You can apply for funding for multiple apprenticeships; however, we cannot guarantee that we can fund them all. Application approval is subject to availability, and it may be necessary to prioritise.

Considerations for applying for levy transfer funding.

To apply, you’ll need to confirm:

  • your apprentice(s) place of work is in East Sussex, or they currently live in East Sussex.
  • your apprentice(s) will be employed for at least the duration of their apprenticeship.
  • They are undertaking an appropriate apprenticeship standard featured on the Institute for apprenticeships
  • you have set up a digital apprenticeship account
  • you have a planned start date and duration of the apprenticeship training.

As a transfer receiving employer you are responsible for:

  • meeting the requirements in the apprenticeship funding rules on GOV.UK
  • accepting the invite from ESCC to connect our digital accounts
  • adding your apprentice/s using transfer fundsto your digital account and submitting these within three months of your application being accepted by us
  • keeping us informed when a learner ceases their apprenticeship training or takes a break.

The opportunity to apply for funding is open continuously, depending on funds remaining available. We will contact you within 15 working days of the form submission to inform you whether your application was successful.

How to apply

Contact the apprenticeship team directly at TRANSFORM@eastsussex.gov.uk with your initial enquiry and the team will then send an application form and book an initial appointment to discuss your needs.

More information and support

The Transform project has created a toolkit to help micro, small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) and third sector organisations in East Sussex that want to invest in new and existing staff but are struggling to understand the publicly funded opportunities that are available.  It includes help on setting up an apprenticeship service account, if you don’t already have one. For further details please see the Transform Skills Toolkit. 

Apprenticeship levy transfer strategy 2024-2025

We (ESCC) have been paying into the apprenticeship levy since it started in 2017. We have since helped over 900 staff members gain apprenticeship qualifications using these funds.

Since 2019, the East Sussex apprenticeship team has shared some unspent monies with employers in the county. This funding supports economic growth and skills development through apprenticeship opportunities. Through the TRANSFORM project, we have helped over 100 small and medium employers take on new apprentices and upskill existing staff. We can now pass on more funding than ever to East Sussex employers.

This statement explains our approach to the Apprenticeship Levy Transfer for 2024-25.

The priorities are:

  • to create apprenticeship opportunities for candidates with a recognised barrier to employment
  • employers in the Skills East Sussex priority sectors:
    • construction and civil engineering
    • creative, cultural, digital and media
    • engineering and advanced manufacturing
    • health and social care
    • visitor and cultural economy
    • land, agriculture and environmental
    • wider local industry priorities:
    • education
    • energy and utilities
    • finance
    • professional, scientific and technical

The TRANSFORM Service

This service connects eligible employers to an apprenticeship and skills specialist. They will support them to:

  • identify skills gaps and provide impartial advice on apprenticeship and skills training programmes.
  • choose a provider
  • apply for levy transfer to cover the full cost of apprenticeship training
  • set up and manage their apprenticeship service account
  • access advice and guidance about incentives, grants and business support

The apprenticeships team provide further support to these employers by:

  • advising on marketing their vacancies to reach their target demographic
  • offering information and guidance on all areas of apprenticeship recruitment
  • helping them to access events such as careers fairs and information sessions
  • working with a talent pool of candidates to refer to upcoming opportunities
  • providing aftercare to both employer and apprentice

Learn more: