Apprenticeship statistics for England

Skills and training are devolved policy areas. This Briefing Paper covers apprenticeships in England. 

Constituency data on apprenticeship starts is available on the Library dashboard Constituency data: Apprenticeships. 

The chart below shows the number of apprenticeship starts in England from the 2016/17 academic year to the 2023/24 academic year. 

Apprenticeship starts in 2023/24

In the 2023/24 academic year, there were 736,500 people participating in an apprenticeship in England, with 339,600 apprenticeship starts and 178,200 apprenticeship achievements. 

Starts slightly increased from 2022/23, when there were 337,000 starts. Participation decreased from 752,000, and achievements increased from 162,000. 

The number of starts fell in 2017/18 in response to the introduction of a new apprenticeship funding system in May 2017. The number of starts fell again in 2019/20 due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. 

Starts by apprentice characteristics

The age distribution of learners is similar in 2023/24 as in the previous five years of data. The number of men and women beginning apprentiecships is also similar. The proportion of learners with a learning difficulty or disability has increased from 10.3% to 15.6%. The proportion of learners who are BAME has also increased, from 12.3% to 17.3%. 

Starts by apprenticeship characteristics

The proportion of apprenticeships at intermediate level has declined over the last five years. The proportion of apprenticeship starts at higher level has increased, and the proportion of advanced apprenticeships is similar to 2018/19. 

78% of starts were in one of four subject areas: Business, Administration and Law; Health, Public Services and Care; Engineering and Manufacturing Technologies; and Retail and Commercial Enterprise.