The government celebrated National Apprenticeship Week 2025 with announcements introducing a more flexible system that will be led by Skills England.

On Tuesday, the leadership team of Skills England was announced, which will soon be taking over the responsibilities of IfATE. It will be made up of:

Former Cisco UK and Ireland Chair and CEO, Phil Smith, as Chair. He brings extensive industry experience in digital, tech and innovation leadership, is also Co-Chair of the government’s Digital Skills Council, and was a former Chair of Innovate UK.

Sunderland University Chief Executive and Vice Chancellor, Sir David Bell, as Vice Chair. He previously served in central government as Permanent Secretary at the DfE and Chief Inspector of Schools in England.
Tessa Griffiths and Sarah Maclean, highly experienced civil servants who have overseen the setting up of Shadow Skills England, as CEO.

Gemma Marsh, who has extensive experience with the No10 Delivery Unit and as Director of Education, Skills and Work with the Greater Manchester Combined Authority, will be their Deputy CEO.

The government also highlighted several changes to how apprenticeships will operate in future, in response to employers’ calls for more flexibility.

This will include introduction of shorter apprenticeships from August 2025 (subject to the parliamentary timetable), with the minimum length reduced from 12 to 8 months. The new development will allow training to be delivered and completed faster where that makes sense for a given industry, or an individual has significant prior learning.

Added to this, employers were from this week given more flexibility over maths and English requirements for apprentices. Businesses will now be able to decide whether adult learners, over the age of 19 when they start their apprenticeship course, will need to complete a level 2 English and maths qualification (equivalent to GCSE) to pass it. This does not mean that apprentices won’t be assessed on core English and maths skills needed to demonstrate competency relevant to their occupation, these requirements will remain a fundamental part of the apprenticeship.

Learners aged 16-18 will still be required to achieve English and maths qualifications.

Further changes unveiled on Thursday 13 included to the payment system. The government will cut red tape by stopping the need for providers to log the same data multiple times, saving valuable time currently wasted on duplicating records, ensuring consistency across systems.

In addition to this, changes were announced to apprenticeship end point assessments, making the system simpler and more flexible while ensuring apprentices prove their competence for skilled work. Where appropriate, apprentices will be assessed on some aspects during their apprenticeship rather than all at the end, and training providers may be able to deliver elements of the assessment, rather than relying on external assessors.

This will deliver more timely assessments while retaining rigour, and ensure that apprentices are assessed on what matters most to employers.

Existing assessment plans will be rewritten on a standard-by-standard basis to reflect these changes.. Further detail on implementation, including which assessment plans will be revised and when, will follow in due course.

Carmel Grant, acting chief executive of IfATE, said: “These changes show that the government has listened to employers’ calls for more flexibility. They will encourage many more businesses, particularly smaller ones that may have struggled in the past with bureaucracy, to upskill their workforces through apprenticeships. These flexibilities will support economic growth and create life changing career opportunities for many more people from all backgrounds.”

The government has on Friday 14 launched a new “one stop shop” app that is set to revolutionise how apprentices access training and support. 

The Your Apprenticeship app, designed by the DfE with extensive input from apprentices, provides easier access to essential tools, resources, and support to help apprentices to thrive in their qualification. They will be able to track their apprenticeship through the app, ensuring they have learnt all the necessary knowledge and skills and they need to progress into skilled work and help drive Britain’s economic growth.  

The Your Apprenticeship app is available to be downloaded from Google Play and the Apple app store now.