Move could leave architecture apprenticeships for older students at risk, despite sector-wide warnings about skills shortages and diversity
The government is reportedly planning to exempt only 16 to 21-year-olds from controversial cuts to public funding for Level 7 apprenticeships, raising fresh concerns about the future of architectural training routes.
According to a report in FE Week, education secretary Bridget Phillipson has written to other departments confirming that younger apprentices will be excluded from the proposed funding withdrawal. The exemption applies across all master’s-level apprenticeship standards.
“I have now agreed with other departments to proceed with an exemption for young people (who start when they are aged 16-21),” Phillipson reportedly wrote, describing the move as an “important concession” intended to support early-career training.
However, figures published in the same article suggest the exemption would benefit very few Level 7 apprentices, as most begin these programmes in their mid-20s or later.
Level 7 apprenticeships include architecture Part 2 qualifications such as the University of Cambridge’s Master of Studies in Architecture course. These routes have been promoted as a more accessible pathway into the profession, particularly for students from underrepresented backgrounds.
“No one under the age of 21 is doing a Level 7 apprenticeship unless their birthday comes really late in the year,” Timothy Brittain-Catlin, course leader for the MSt apprenticeship in architecture at Cambridge, told BD. “The government’s messaging on this has been utterly chaotic. They don’t seem to understand how disruptive these delays have been for universities and architects’ practices alike.”
In December, RIBA, RTPI, RICS and CIOB issued a joint statement warning that removing funding from Level 7 apprenticeships would reduce the sector’s capacity to meet housing and net-zero targets, while limiting employer access to skilled recruits.
“Built environment Level 7 apprentices play a key role in delivering the government’s ‘mission-led’ milestones of building 1.5 million homes over the course of this Parliament and the acceleration to achieving net zero,” the institutes said. They also highlighted the importance of these programmes in widening access to the professions.
There has been no official announcement from the Department for Education on when funding changes will be implemented or whether older apprentices in sectors like architecture will face full defunding.
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