Employing an Apprentice

You will need Employer Liability Insurance before you consider hiring an apprentice. Once hired you will then need produce a contract of employment stating rate of pay, hours, terms and conditions etc.

The current national minimum wage for an apprentice is £4.30 per hour, depending on you as the employer this can be higher. Many employers do increase rat of pay after 3 – 6 months as as a probational period. Once the apprentice has completed 12 months of their qualification, they must be paid the national minimum wage for their age.

Yes, employers are required to pay apprentices on apprenticeship training days. As apprenticeships are now completed in the workplace, they do not require the learner to take time away from the workplace.

To be able to hire an apprentice, they must be contracted to work between 30 – 40 hours a week. They must also have an allocated lunch break (this can be 30 min – 1 hour).

You must offer apprentices the same conditions as other employees in similar roles including holiday entitlement, sick pay, and other benefits you offer (for example. childcare vouchers, mentoring etc.). Apprentices are entitled to 20 – 28 days including bank holidays.

All of our services here at 360 Apprenticeships are completely free for both candidates and employers. However, if you do hire one of our candidates but decide to place them with another training provider that we do not provide (e.g. college), you will be required to pay a recruitment fee.

Depending on the vacancy, the recruitment stage can take from two to six weeks. Yet we work quickly to make sure we find the right apprentice for you as soon as possible. If you are needing an apprentice to start as soon as possible, we will ensure that your vacancy is our priority.

This is not a mandatory but after your apprentice has completed their apprenticeship, you can offer them a full time position.

Employers are not required to pay National Insurance Contributions for apprentices under the age of 25 on earnings below £43,000 a year. As of May 2017 the Government made incentives (below) available to employers who take on an apprentice.

• Employers and training providers receive a £1000 grant each when they employ and train a 16 – 18 year old.
• Employers and training providers receive a £1000 grant each when they train a 19-24 year old who has a Local Authority Education, Health and Care Plan or has previously been in care.
• Employers with less than 50 employees that hire a 16-18 year old apprentice do not need to contribute towards the cost of training as the government will finance 100% of these costs.