Most firms plan to invest in training

Nov 7, 2018

The majority of UK businesses are planning to invest in training their workforce in the next few years, according to research by the Confederation of British Industry (CBI).

A survey representing more than 28,000 employers found that 85% expect to either maintain or increase their investment in training.

Despite this trend, the number of firms offering apprenticeship programmes decreased from 83% in 2017 to 70% in 2018.

Additionally, over half (59%) of businesses said they had experienced difficulty in recruiting apprentices or expected to do so in the next three years.

The Government has announced reforms to the apprenticeship levy, including a reduction to small firms' co-investment from 10% to 5%, but the CBI says further improvements are needed.

John Cope, head of education and skills policy at the CBI, said:

"While some companies are benefiting from the apprenticeship levy, big challenges remain.

"To its credit, the Government has listened and is delivering reform: making the system more flexible and slashing the cost for small businesses.

"But the end goal remains that the apprenticeship levy should evolve into a more accessible skills levy."

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