NHS Employers responds to the government’s plans to end funding for level 7 apprenticeships

Responding to the announcement that the government will end funding for level 7 apprenticeships, Danny Mortimer, chief executive of NHS Employers, said:

 “The NHS provides one third of all apprenticeships in the public sector, reinvesting the levy it pays to the Exchequer in programmes across all areas of our workforce. There will be real concern in the NHS at the ending of funding from the levy for Level 7 apprenticeships for anyone aged over 21 – a route which has provided an increasingly important method of investment in experienced clinical staff to receive education which supports advanced practice in nursing and allied health professions. 

“Last November we asked for an exemption for such strategically vital qualifications, and there is a worry that this decision now creates an additional financial burden for the NHS at a really challenging time. The forthcoming ten-year plan and associated Workforce Plan will set out ambitious priorities to shift and transform healthcare. This decision risks running counter to these aspirations, and we look forward to the Chancellor identifying other ways to support this essential education.”