Apprenticeship grants available

Looking to recruit more talent into your business?

Grants of up to £2,500 are available for businesses with 249 or fewer employees to recruit an apprentice. If you’re based in Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds, Wakefield or York you can apply for the apprenticeship grant for employers (AGE) from Leeds City Region Enterprise Partnership (LEP). A core grant of £2,000 is on offer, allocated on a first-come, first served basis and you’ll need to meet the full grant eligibility criteria:

• Businesses with 249 or fewer employees within local authority areas of Bradford, Calderdale, Kirklees, Leeds, Wakefield and York
• Have never offered apprenticeships before
• Are offering new employment as an apprenticeship opportunity to 19-24 year olds with associated apprenticeship training via a training provider approved by the Education Skills Funding Agency (ESFA)
• The Apprentices must be following a recognised Apprenticeship Standard or Framework
• Are paying the national minimum wage for the age of the apprentice from day 1 of their apprenticeship training (above the apprenticeship wage of £3.90).  This equates to £6.15 per hour for 18-20 year olds, £7.70 per hour for 21 – 24 year olds

An additional top up grant of £500 is on offer if:

• The Apprenticeship is at level 4 or above as defined by the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA).

For further information please visit http://www.the-lep.com/age To check eligibility and register interest, contact the Chamber on 0113 348 1818