As National Apprenticeship Week approaches, it’s a timely moment to reflect on the future of the apprenticeship system itself.
For more than a decade, apprenticeships have been held up as a flagship route into skilled work, from entry-level roles to degree-level careers. Now, just as the system is starting to mature, policy changes risk destabilising it at exactly the moment employers and learners need confidence.
Responsibility for apprenticeships has recently shifted, with Skills England now central to the development and approval of apprenticeship assessment, working alongside government departments on reforms to the wider system.
These reforms were meant to streamline and strengthen skills delivery, but have instead created widespread uncertainty.
Over the coming months, Skills England is reviewing every apprenticeship standard, while ministers drive a renewed focus on foundation apprenticeships and routes for young people.
No one disputes the value of giving more school leavers access to high-quality technical education. But a narrow emphasis on entry-level pathways risks squeezing out degree apprenticeships and shutting the door on mature learners who use apprenticeships to retrain mid-career.
At Sheffield Hallam University, more than half of our apprentices are over 25, mirroring the national picture, and our programmes span sectors from health and social care to digital, engineering, construction and professional services.
We work with more than 700 employers of all sizes, helping them develop the higher-level skills and leadership capacity they need to grow and improve productivity, and we see every day how apprenticeships can transform opportunities for people at different stages of their working lives.
Layered onto these issues is Skills England’s intention to align its work with a defined set of priority sectors – the so‑called IS8 growth-driving sectors plus construction and health-related areas.
On paper, this alignment is about focusing investment where it will drive productivity and support industrial strategy. In practice, it risks downgrading or even removing established standards that do not align with these categories.
One of those at risk is the Chartered Manager Degree Apprenticeship (CMDA), which has supported thousands of learners – often the first in their family to access higher education – to develop management and leadership skills while working, many of whom often line manage and mentor younger apprentices.
At Sheffield Hallam, the CMDA and related management apprenticeships are central to how we support regional employers to build the confident, inclusive leaders they need, from SMEs to public sector organisations.
Employers and apprentices are already organising to defend the standard, warning that removing it would be a “fundamental mistake” that undermines both social mobility and business performance.
If management and leadership apprenticeships are allowed to wither, the impact will be felt far beyond university campuses. Employers across every sector repeatedly cite a shortage of good management as a brake on productivity and staff retention.
Degree apprenticeships in areas such as business and management have been one of the few genuinely scalable ways to tackle that deficit while widening participation in higher education, especially in regions that have historically missed out.
To remove or marginalise these routes at a time of economic uncertainty would be to pull up the ladder just as more diverse cohorts are beginning to climb it.
None of this is to argue against change. A more flexible, modern apprenticeship system – with modular units, better-targeted investment and clearer links to industrial strategy – is a prize worth pursuing.
As a major provider, Sheffield Hallam stands ready to work with government, Skills England and employers to pilot new models and make the system work harder for learners and businesses alike. But reforms cannot be allowed to create a fog of uncertainty that paralyses providers, confuses employers and leaves current and prospective apprentices unsure whether their chosen route will still exist in two years’ time.
What is needed now is clarity, transparency and meaningful collaboration. Skills England and ministers should give early assurances that proven standards like the CMDA will not be sacrificed in the name of tidiness.
They should publish a clear roadmap for how apprenticeship units will sit alongside full programmes, and how degree apprenticeships for both young people and mature learners will be protected within the Growth and Skills Levy.
Above all, employers, universities and training providers must be treated not as passive recipients of policy but as partners in shaping an apprenticeship system that works for the whole economy – from school leavers taking their first step into work to experienced employees seeking a second chance at higher education.
If you want to find out more about how an apprenticeship can benefit your business, you can email Sheffield Hallam at business@shu.ac.uk.
