FAQs

To recruit an apprentice, get in touch with Gateshead Council Learning and Skills through our 'contact us' page. We handle the entire apprentice recruitment process for you, from advertising the vacancy to screening and shortlisting candidates and supporting you through interviews.

We work with businesses of all sizes across Gateshead and the North East, not just the council itself, and will talk you through the right apprenticeship standard, funding, and timeline for your business. 

A training provider delivers the structured training and qualification an apprentice needs to complete their apprenticeship through one to one tutoring and skills sessions.

At Gateshead Council Learning and Skills, we design the training plan, deliver teaching and coursework, monitor progress through regular reviews, prepare apprentices for their end-point assessment, and manage the funding and compliance requirements on your behalf, so you can focus on employing and developing your apprentice. 

We also support you as the employer directly, guiding you through recruitment, helping with the paperwork, advising on your mentor's role, and staying on-hand throughout the apprenticeship to answer questions, so you're never left to manage the process alone. 

The levy and non-levy systems determine how apprenticeship training is funded. Levy-paying employers, those with an annual pay bill over £3 million, fund apprenticeships through their apprenticeship service account. Non-levy employers, which includes most small and medium-sized businesses, pay just 5% of the training cost, with the government funding the remaining 95%, rising to 100% for smaller employers taking on 16 to 24 year old apprentices. 

Recruiting and onboarding an apprentice with Gateshead Council Learning and Skills typically takes 4 to 8 weeks from vacancy to start date, depending on how quickly you can interview candidates and the notice period for your chosen apprentice. We manage the process for you, for free, keeping it as quick and straightforward as possible. 

Employer costs for hiring an apprentice are lower than most businesses expect. As the employer, you're responsible for paying your apprentice's wage for their contracted hours, just as you would for any other employee.

The current apprentice minimum wage is £8.00 per hour if they're under 19, or 19 and over in their first year of the apprenticeship. As a rough budgeting guide, most apprenticeships run for at least 18 months, so at 30 hours a week (the minimum required), that's around £240 a week, or roughly £18,720 across an 18-month apprenticeship at the legal minimum wage. This is a minimum estimate only; many employers pay above this rate, and wages typically rise after the apprentice's first year if they're 19 or over.

On top of the wage, non-levy employers get their apprentice's training fully funded by the government if the apprentice is aged 16 to 24. A 5% contribution fee only applies if the apprentice is 25 or over. There are no hidden fees, and we'll give you a clear cost breakdown before you commit.

Apprenticeship funding covers the majority of training costs for most employers. Non-levy paying businesses, which includes most SMEs, pay only 5% towards training costs.

Core funding support includes:

• 100% of training costs covered for eligible under-25 apprentices (non-levy)
• No employer National Insurance contributions for apprentices under 25

Hiring incentive payments available:

• £1,000 additional payment for hiring apprentices aged 16 to 18 (19 to 24 if they have an EHCP or are a care leaver), paid in two equal instalments at day 90 and one year after the apprenticeship started (or day 242 if the apprenticeship is under 12 months)
• £2,000 foundation apprenticeship incentive for apprentices aged 16 to 21 (22 to 24 for those with an EHCP, care leavers, or prisoners and prison leavers), paid in three equal instalments at day 90, day 242, and when the apprentice progresses onto their next apprenticeship
• £2,000 new SME hiring grant for apprentices aged 16 to 24, from October 2026 (subject to confirmation), paid in two equal instalments at day 90 and day 365 (or day 242 if under 12 months)
• £3,000 Universal Credit hiring incentive for apprentices aged 18 to 24 who've been on Universal Credit for over 6 months, from June 2026 (subject to confirmation), paid directly to employers by the Department for Work and Pensions
• £3,000 bursary for care leavers under 25 starting an apprenticeship

A mentor should be an experienced member of staff who works in the same area as the apprentice, with direct experience of the type of work the apprentice will carry out on their course. There's no formal mentoring qualification required, though we provide guidance and support to help mentors get the most out of the role. 

A mentor is usually the apprentice's line manager, an experienced colleague who supports them day to day, answers questions, checks in on their wellbeing, and helps them apply what they're learning to real workplace tasks. At the start of the apprenticeship, the mentor sets a work plan with the apprentice, and they attend regular review meetings alongside the apprentice and their tutor to track progress throughout the course. It's not a heavy time commitment, but it makes a genuine difference to an apprentice's progress and completion rates. 

Yes. Apprenticeships are an effective way to address both staff retention and skills gaps in your business. Apprentices trained in-house tend to stay with a business longer than external hires, and apprenticeships let you build the exact skills your business needs rather than relying on the open job market. 

An apprentice must work a minimum of 30 hours a week on average, including their 6 hours a week of protected learning time (16 hours a week in some specific circumstances). We'll help you structure a working pattern that fits both your business and the apprenticeship requirements. 

If an apprentice leaves before completing their apprenticeship, we'll work with you to understand the funding implications and, where possible, help you recruit a replacement. Funding is generally only paid for training that's actually been delivered, so you're not left covering costs for training that didn't happen. 

For most small businesses, yes. Apprentices cost less than hiring a fully qualified employee, government funding covers most or all of the training cost, and you end up with a loyal employee trained exactly to your business's way of working. Get in touch and we can talk through the expected costs and benefits for your specific business.