Nursery World - Apprenticeship levy warning to early years sector

Settings are urged to air their views in the Government’s apprenticeship levy consultation after a leading training provider warned that ‘catastrophic’ funding cuts are in store.

With the deadline for responses fast looming in less than two weeks, Ross Midgley of PBD Early Years Training said training companies are likely to pass on thousands of pounds of the predicted 60 per cent shortfall to childcare providers - or be forced to cut corners on quality.

‘There’ll be a massive fallout of good training providers and the ones that are left will have to cut corners so that quality of training will decline,’ said Mr Midgley.

‘Unless the SFA [Skills Funding Agency] changes these proposals, most [training] providers will withdraw from apprenticeship delivery altogether.

‘This will have a catastrophic effect on nurseries’ ability to recruit, dwarfing any of the claimed effects of the GCSE requirements.’

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