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Big changes have landed in the apprenticeship world this week – and they matter for your business.
In this blog, Jodi Fair breaks down what’s new, what it really means in practice, and why now is the right time to take another look at how apprenticeships could support your workforce. With a straightforward, no‑jargon approach, she cuts through the noise to highlight the opportunities these changes create – helping you plan ahead, build skills, and make confident decisions about your future talent.
By Jodi Fair
9 June 2026
If you work anywhere near skills, apprenticeships, HR, economic development, or you’re simply trying to keep up – you’ll know it’s been a week. The Government has dropped a whole stack of changes that affect how young people get into work, how employers can use their funding, and which apprenticeship standards even exist anymore.
Here’s the low down, minus the jargon, and with the bits you actually need to know.
Big New Incentives to Hire Young People
The Government has decided it’s time to throw some serious cash at the youth employment problem – and honestly, about time. This comes after a 40% drop in young people starting apprenticeships over the past decade.
Here are the headlines:
A £3,000 grant just for hiring someone aged 18-24. If that young person has been on Universal Credit for at least six months, employers get £3,000 to take them on. Pretty decent.
SMEs get £2,000 for taking on a young apprentice. Small and medium sized businesses get £2,000 each time they bring on someone aged 16-24 as a new apprentice.
Add to that the expansion of the Jobs Guarantee, which now gives 18-24 year olds a fully funded six month work placement, and it’s clear where the Government wants the money to go: young people.
What this means in real life:
If you’ve been hesitating to recruit early career talent, this is your nudge. Between the grants and the wage subsidy, it has never been cheaper to give a young person their first break.
Apprenticeship Units Are Finally Here (and They’re Actually Pretty Cool)
This is one of the more interesting changes. Instead of forcing employers into full, long form apprenticeships every time they need someone trained, the Government is rolling out apprenticeship units – short, modular chunks of training you can mix and match.
Think: Lego bricks for skills
Seven units have been confirmed so far, (AI, Engineering, Clean Energy, Construction and Digital) with more on the way. They each focus on a tight, workplace-relevant skill area and are aligned with the Industrial Strategy.
They run alongside new foundation apprenticeships, which has now expanded to include ones in retail and hospitality – sectors where loads of young people start their careers.
Why employers should care:
This is faster, more flexible, and kinder to your budget and your workforce planning. Need someone to get targeted skills ASAP? A unit does the job without the 12 month commitment.
The Great Defunding: 16 Apprenticeship Standards Are Being Axed
This one is the most controversial move of the week. After months of rumours, the Government has confirmed that 16 apprenticeship standards will be defunded – no earlier than 1 September 2026, but still, it’s happening and expect them to be phased out pretty quickly.
Leadership & management apprenticeships are out.
Some of the most widely used professional programmes are on the chopping block, including:
and several others.
The Government says these standards don’t match national priorities anymore and are better suited to employer funded CPD anyway.
Why this matters:
If you rely on apprenticeships for staff progression — especially in leadership — you’ll need a rethink. Providers will get notice, but the clock is already ticking.
So What Does All This Actually Mean?
In short:
The message is loud and clear: apprenticeships are resetting back toward what they were originally created for – helping young people get into work, but what about the adults…
