What is an Apprentice?

Whilst today’s economy suffers from labour shortages and high unemployment rates, apprenticeships are fast becoming a popular investment for businesses. In 2024, government registered 132,560 apprenticeships – a steady increase of 1.3% from the previous year.

As it’s National Apprenticeship Week (10-14 February), employers must follow proper practices for their apprentices. With the right individuals, you’ll be able to fill skills gaps, meet business needs, and aspire for corporate growth.

For further advice, contact one of our expert HR advisors free of charge today. In this guide, we’ll look at what an apprentice is, what their statutory rights are, and how to hire an apprentice correctly.

What is an apprentice?

An apprentice is someone who combines working with studying to gain skills and knowledge for a specific job. To class as an apprentice, they must:

• Be 16 years old or older by the end of the summer holidays.
• Not be in full-time education.
• Work in a role that’s relevant to their apprenticeship.
• Work enough paid weekly hours to complete sufficient training for their apprenticeship certification.

Apprentices don’t always have to be new candidates or even young workers. Existing employees within your business may also qualify as an apprentice.

What statutory rights apply to apprentices?

Apprentices are eligible for numerous statutory rights in their workplace. Employers must ensure they work with experienced staff, learn job-specific skills, and receive time off work for training. Let’s look at statutory rights for apprentices under English employment law:

Statutory pay

Employers must pay apprentices at least the National Minimum Wage (NMW). Rates will vary depending on their age, as well as what year their apprenticeship was completed. As of 2025, statutory pay for apprentices are:

Work conditions

Employers must provide an approved apprenticeship that lasts at least 12 months. This means you need to offer a real job that provides apprentices with the chance to gain knowledge and skills necessary to pass their end-point assessment.

You’ll also need to pay for any time spent training or studying for their apprenticeship. This means they must receive time off work to train. Training can be held in the workplace, online, or at an educational facility (like a college).

Working hours

Under the Working Time Regulations, apprentices can work to a maximum of 48 hours a week on average (unless they opt out). They’re also entitled to rest days, breaks, and holidays (including accrual). However, if they’re under 18 years old, they cannot work more than eight hours a day or 40 hours a week.  

Apprentices will usually spend 80% of their time learning skills and gaining experiences. The remaining 20% should be used for off-the-job training.

Employee rights

As well as statutory pay, there are other employment rights that apprentices are entitled to. Employers must offer them the same conditions as other employees receive working at similar grades or roles. For example:

• Statutory holidays.
• Sick pay.
• Redundancy rights.
• Work benefits and incentives (i.e., like healthcare or childcare schemes).
• Any support your business offers (i.e., like coaching and mentoring).

Agency regulations

Some employers may decide to hire apprentices through an apprenticeship agency service. In this situation, they may class as an agency worker, as well as an apprentice.

This means they could qualify for various statutory rights under the Agency Workers Regulations 2010.

Education qualifications

As of 2025, employers can know decide whether their adult apprentices (19 and over) will need to complete a level 2 English and Maths qualification (equivalent to GCSE) in order to pass their course.

The government's aim behind this change hopes to remedy labour shortages in sectors like healthcare, social care, and construction.

How to hire an apprentice for your workplace

Hiring an apprentice isn’t as straightforward as you might think. Employers must ensure they follow proper rules on apprenticeship service accounts, training providers, and contract agreements (which can be found on the government website).

Check out our in-depth guide on how to conduct an apprenticeship; or speak to one of our professional HR advisors for free. Now, let’s take a look at how to hire an apprentice for your workplace:

• Selection: Decide on an apprenticeship that you’d like to offer within your business.
• Training: Find a training provider that offers training for the apprenticeship you’ve chosen.
• Funding: Check out whether your apprenticeship is eligible for training funding and additional payments.
• Account: Create an apprenticeship service account online to help manage funding and recruitment.
• Advertise: Start advertising your apprenticeship vacancy or give permission to your training provider to do this on your behalf.
• Agreement: Make an apprenticeship agreement and training plan once you’ve chosen your apprentice.

If you don’t want to hire and train an apprentice yourself, you can use a flexi-job apprenticeship agency. In this situation, the apprentice will be employed by the agency but will work for your business.

Apprenticeships are a great form of employment for any business industry. They’re a great method used to invest in young, talented, and driven individuals – bringing great value to your company.

How to conduct an apprenticeship

As it’s National Apprenticeship Week (10-14 February), employers must follow proper practices for their apprentices. With the right individuals, you’ll be able to fill skills gaps, meet business needs, and aspire for corporate growth.

Before you start hiring, employers must ensure they understand what apprenticeships require. It isn’t as straightforward as posting a job vacancy on your website. They’re government rules and regulations that must be followed beforehand.

The wrong steps could lead to wrongful hiring, unlawful breaches, and business disruption. For further advice, contact one of our expert HR advisors free of charge today. Now, let’s take a look at how to conduct apprenticeships in your workplace:

Decide on an apprenticeship

From administration to sales – there are endless choices when it comes to apprenticeships. Employers need to decide what type of apprenticeship will help build progression and success for their line of business.

Apprenticeships are designed by a group of employers who are supported by the Institute of Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE). Each apprenticeship relates to a specific occupation, outlining an apprentice’s role and skill requirements.

All apprenticeships must last for a year – followed by an end-point assessment (EPA). After this point, they can last to at least five years depending on what level the apprentice is studying at.

Choose a training provider

It’s important to choose the right training provider for your apprenticeship position. Speak to them about your interest in certain courses; and they’ll be able to respond to your training demands.

You and your training provider must agree to a price for the total costs of each apprenticeship; including end-point assessments costs. At this point, you can start advertising for job vacancies and manage applications.

The training provider will select an end-point assessment organisation (EPAO) at the beginning of the apprenticeship. The apprentice will only receive their certificate if they pass their end-point assessment.

Check eligibility for training funding

Some employers may qualify for training funding to help cover costs of their apprenticeship role. However, funding eligibility depends on whether you need to pay an apprenticeship levy or not. For example:

Paying levy

• Employers with an annual pay bill of more than £3 million have to pay the apprenticeship levy.
• Once you’ve registered online for the apprenticeship service, then you’ll be able to access your funds.
• Once your apprenticeship is confirmed, the government will apply a 10% top-up to funds already in the account.
• If you don’t have enough funds in your account, you must pay 5% of the outstanding balance. The government will pay the remaining 95% of the outstanding balance (up to the funding band maximum).

Not paying levy

• Employers who don’t meet the £3 million threshold won’t need to pay the apprenticeship levy. For example, like a small business.
• You’ll need to reserve funds for apprenticeship training in the ‘finance’ section of the account. (Your training provider can also reserve funds on your behalf).
• You’ll need to make a 5% contribution to the cost of training. The government will pay the remaining 95% of the outstanding balance (up to the funding band maximum).
• You’ll need to pay your 5% contribution to your training provider over the lifetime of the apprenticeship training.

Employers might be able to receive an additional £1,000 depending on the apprentice you hire. You can spend it on any costs relating to their job; like uniforms, commutes, and even their salary.

Create an apprenticeship service account

All employers must use the government’s apprenticeship service before hiring anyone. Making an apprenticeship service account allows you to:

• Advertise apprenticeships.
• Accept employer agreements with the Department for Education (DfE).
• Provide account access to others in your business (i.e., like your HR team).
• Set permissions for training providers.

You can also add details about your business, PAYE scheme, and even the apprentices themselves to your account.

Checklist for your apprenticeships…

At this point, employers will have already interviewed and even selected a suitable candidate for their apprenticeship position. You should also make the following checks:

Eligibility: The apprentice should have the right to work in England; and spend at least 50% working hours here. They should also be employed by your business or a connected company/charity defined by HMRC.

Contract: The apprentice must sign an employment contract outlining pay, working hours, work conditions, and other statutory terms.

Agreement: The apprentice must sign an apprenticeship agreement on their first day with the business. An apprentice agreement template should include job titles, work duties, start/end dates, and any off-the-job training they might receive.

Training plan: The apprentice and your training provider must sign a training plan. A training plan template should outline how training will be delivered; as well as how you and your training provider plan to establish a successful apprenticeship.

End-point assessments: The apprentice will only receive their apprenticeship certificate if they pass all elements of their end-point assessment (EPA). This also includes the required standards for English and Maths.

It's important to note that as of 2025, employers can know decide whether their adult apprentices (19 and over) will need to complete a level 2 English and Maths qualification (equivalent to GCSE) in order to pass their course. The government's aim behind this change hopes to remedy labour shortages in sectors like healthcare, social care, and construction.

Get expert advice on apprentices with Peninsula

Employers must make sure their apprentices have access to all statutory rights and regulations. With the right steps, you’ll be able to invest in career development and business progression.

Peninsula offers expert advice on apprentices. Our 24/7 HR advice is available 365 days a year. Want to find out more? Book a free chat with one of our HR consultants. For further information, call 0800 051 3685.

Sources

National Apprenticeship Week | nationalapprenticeshipweek

Apprenticeships | GOV

The Agency Workers Regulations 2010 | GOV

Employing an apprentice | GOV

Welcome to the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education | IfATE