SCTP has carried out an analysis of the Sussex Apprenticeship Starts which gives local Sussex data by borough and district and parliamentary constituency compiled from the ESFA’s Statistical First Release that was issued recently. The sheet shows a column for the 2017 local Q1 apprenticeship starts figures (August to October) and then compares these to the Q1 figures for 2016. The next two columns show the difference and in all cases the percentage drop. The local figures really just bear out the national drop averaging around 25%. There are a few local exceptions where the drop isn’t so bad – Lewes, Wealden and Horsham districts and the parliamentary constituencies of Arundel & South Downs, Lewes, East Worthing & Shoreham and Wealden. One area, Hastings (down 39%) seems to have been hit particularly hard as has the parliamentary constituency of Hove which is also down 39%. Any comments from members as to the reasons for these variations would be useful.
Meanwhile AELP’s national analysis of the stats shows that there would need to be around 176,590 starts per quarter to reach the Government’s target of 3 million starts by May 2020. This would be higher than any previous quarter on record, including the pre-levy implementation peak in early 2017 – a seemingly impossible ask if non-levy policy doesn’t change.