Glossary
Growth and skills levy (apprenticeship levy)
The charge on larger employers, the funds from which they use to pay for apprenticeship training and assessment and apprenticeship units.
In full
The apprenticeship levy is being turned into the growth and skills levy, and the funding rules now use that name. It is 0.5% of an employer's pay bill, with a £15,000 allowance, so only employers with a pay bill over £3 million pay it. Employers use the funds in their apprenticeship service account. From 1 August 2026 the 10% government top-up is no longer added to new funds entering levy accounts.
Providers are paid from the employer's account, which is why an apprenticeship that is not correctly set up in the service does not generate payment even if the ILR is perfect.
Where this comes up
diagnostic
A Growth and Skills Offer Apprenticeship Unit component aim must have a corresponding programme aim with the same combination of funding model, programme type, learning start date, learning planned end date and learning actual end date (if returned)
Growth and Skills Offer Apprenticeship Unit component aim must have a programme aim with the same funding model, programme type, Learning start date, Learning planned end date and Learning actual end date (if returned)
diagnostic
A Growth and Skills Offer Apprenticeship Unit programme aim must have a corresponding component aim with the same combination of funding model, programme type, learning start date, learning planned end date and learning actual end date (if returned)
A Growth and Skills Offer Apprenticeship Unit programme aim must have a component aim with the same funding model, programme type, Learning start date, Learning planned end date and Learning actual end date (if returned)
diagnostic
Completion status 6 must not be returned for Growth and Skills Offer Apprenticeship Units
For aims that are funded via Growth and Skills Offer Apprenticeship Units (LearningDelivery.ProgType = 34), the 'Learner has temporarily withdrawn from the aim due to an agreed break in learning' (LearningDelivery.CompStatus = 6) must not be returned
diagnostic
The Learning Planned End Date can't be later than 16 weeks after the Learning Start Date for Growth and Skills Offer Apprenticeship Units
For programme aims that are funded via Growth and Skills Offer Apprenticeship Units, the Learning Planned End Date must not be later than 16 weeks after the Learning Start Date
diagnostic
There must be only one component aim (aim type 3) per programme aim (aim type 1) when returning the Growth and Skills Offer Apprenticeship Unit programme type
If the Growth and Skills Offer Apprenticeship Units programme type has been returned, then there must be only one component aim per programme aim (by matching on the learning start date, learning planned end date and learning actual end date (if returned))
diagnostic
The Length of Employment must be returned when the Growth and Skills Offer Apprenticeship Unit programme type has been returned
If the learner is undertaking an Apprenticeship Unit then the Length of Employment indicator must be returned for the Employment status record that applies to the start date of the programme aim (LearningDelivery.LearnAimType = 1)