A look at the current picture of national employment and skills programmes in England.
We estimate that around £20 billion is spent across England on 49 national employment and skills related schemes or services. This is made up of 22 nationally contracted programmes and 27 other national programmes. They are listed in the two tables below.
These programmes are managed by at least nine Whitehall departments and agencies, which include the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP), the Department for Education (DfE), the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities (DLUHC), the Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), Jobcentre Plus (JCP), the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), the National Apprenticeship Service (NAS), the Careers and Enterprise Company (CEC) and the National Careers Service (NCS).
This data is based on April 2021 information of provision that was in live running, or that was about to come on stream.
There is limited information about what provision is available for England. We looked at each of the 49 interventions and identified their geographic coverage (UK wide; England, Scotland and Wales; England and Wales; England and Scotland; and England only) then calculated how much would be allocated to England based on population size (ONS population statistics, June 2021).
We recognise that the funding methodology is more complicated than this, so this aims to broadly illustrate the England allocation.
Nationally contracted programmes
|
Programme |
Cohort |
Govt Dept / Agency / Delivery |
Available funding information |
One year funding average UK wide unless indicated |
Estimated one year funding average for England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
Access to Work: Assessments |
Adults with disability |
DWP / Two national contracts |
2020-2024: £30 million |
£7,500,000 ** |
£6,506,250 |
|
Access to Work: Mental Health |
Adults with disability |
DWP / Two national contracts |
2020-2024: £30 million |
£7,500,000 ** |
£6,506,250 |
|
Intensive Personalised Employment Support (IPES) |
Unemployed with specialist needs |
DWP / 6 Contract Package Areas (5 - England, 1 - Wales) |
2020-2024: £38 million |
£9,500,000 *** |
£8,995,550 |
|
Job Finding Support |
Unemployed |
DWP Serco - national contract |
2020- 2022: £40 million announced. Current contract £10 million |
£20,000,000** |
£17,350,000 |
|
New Enterprise Allowance (NEA) |
Unemployed |
DWP 14 CPAs |
To 2023: £42.6 million DWP and ESF funded |
£7,100,000** |
£6,159,250 |
|
Restart |
Long-term unemployed |
DWP / 12 CPAs |
2021-2024: £2.9 billion |
£400,000,000*** |
£378,760,000 |
|
WHP: Job Entry Targeted Support (JETS) |
Unemployed |
DWP / 6 CPAs Devolved to London and Greater Manchester |
2020-2022: £238 million DWP and ESF funded |
£158,700,000** |
£137,672,250 |
|
Work and Health Programme (WHP Core) |
Long term unemployed |
DWP / As above |
2018/19: £46 million DWP and ESF funded
|
£46,000,000*** |
£43,557,400 |
|
Career Changers in to teaching |
Career changers into teaching |
DfE / National contracts with regional focus |
2020: £10 million |
£10,000,000* |
£10,000,000 |
|
High Potential Initial Teacher Training and Leadership Development Programme |
Graduates |
DfE Teach First |
September 2021: £35 million |
£35,000,000*** |
£33,141,500 |
|
Information, Advice and Support Programme (IASP) |
Children and young people with special educational needs |
DfE |
Ended March 2021: £25 million |
£25,000,000* |
£25,000,000 |
|
National Careers Service |
Adults |
DfE / ESFA |
3 year contracts – end March 2022 |
Not available |
Not available |
|
National Citizen Service (NCS) |
Young people - 16-17 |
DCMS / NCS Trust |
2018-19: £121.8 million |
£93,800,000* |
£93,800,000 |
|
Step up to Social Work |
Career changers |
National supplier plus |
2022-23: £300,000 |
£300,000* |
£300,000 |
|
Think Ahead |
Graduates |
DHSC |
2021-22: £27 million |
£27,000,000 |
£22,761,000 |
|
Traineeships 18-24 |
Young people |
DfE / ESFA |
2021- 23: £233.5 million |
£116,800,000* |
£116,800,000 |
|
Skills/Digital Bootcamps |
In work and unemployed with sector focus |
DfE (National Skills Fund) |
National 12-month rollout (May 2021) |
£36,300,000* |
£36,300,000 |
|
DWP CFO European Social Fund 2014 to 2020 |
Unemployed |
DWP / LEP |
DWP/ ESF funded |
Not available |
Not available |
|
Skill Support for the Unemployed (SSU) |
Unemployed |
ESFA / LEPs, devolved in London |
2019-2023: £75 million |
£18,800,000* |
£18,800,000 |
|
Skills Support for the Workforce |
Employed |
As above |
2019-2023: £145 million |
£36,300,000* |
£36,300,000 |
|
Supporting NEETs |
NEETs |
As above |
2019-2023: £54 million |
£13,500,000* |
£13,500,000 |
|
Youth Employment Initiative (YEI) 2014-2020 and 2021-2023 |
Young People NEET |
DWP / |
2014-20: £490 million 2021-23: £25.5 million |
£12,800,000* |
£12,800,000 |
|
|
|
|
|
|
CONTRACTED TOTAL FOR ENGLAND £1,025,009,450 |
Other national programmes
|
Programme |
Cohort |
Gov Dept / Funding agency Delivery |
Funding commitment |
One year funding average UK wide unless indicated |
Estimated one year funding average for England |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
16 to 19 - grant funded |
Young people - 16-19 |
DfE / ESFA / Further education (FE) settings |
2018-19: £5.7 billion |
£5,700,000,000* |
£5,700,000,000 |
|
Access to work (AtW) |
People with a disability or health condition |
DWP / JCP / Employers |
2018-19: £129 million |
£129,000,000** |
£111,907,500 |
|
Adult Education budget (AEB) |
Adults - 19+ |
DfE / ESFA /FE settings |
2020-21: £615.5 million |
£615,500,000* |
£615,500,000 |
|
Adult Education Budget (AEB) |
Adults - 19+ |
DfE / ESFA FE settings |
2020-21: £88 million 2021-22: £73million (no longer covers 18-24 traineeships and more devolved areas) |
£88,000,000* |
£88,000,000 |
|
Advanced Learner Loans and Bursaries |
Adults - 19+ |
DfE / ESFA / FE settings, |
2021-21: £273 million (other AEB funding) |
£273,000,000* |
£273,000,000 |
|
Apprenticeship Levy |
Young people, |
DfE, employer funded / ESFA / NAS |
2021-22: £2.5 billion. ESFA funding (majority from Levy payments and underspends) |
£4,700,000,000 |
£3,962,100,000 |
|
Apprenticeships - procured non-levy |
Young people, |
As above |
Government pays 100% of training costs for employers less than 50 employees, and 95% of training costs for employers over 50 employees |
£1,900,000,000 |
£1,601,700,000 |
|
Building Better Opportunities |
Disadvantaged people |
National Lottery, Community Fund |
2014-2022: £300 million. |
£37,500,000* |
£37,500,000 |
|
Careers & Enterprise Company (CEC) |
Young people - 13-18 |
DfE / CEC and 32 careers hubs |
2019/20 - £21.3 million grant funding |
£21,300,000* |
£21,300,000 |
|
Community Grants |
Unemployed |
ESFA / |
To 2023: £36 million |
£18,000,000 |
£15,174,000 |
|
Flexible Support Fund (FSF) |
Unemployed |
DWP / JCP |
2019-2020: £40 million. announced (Plan for Jobs) |
£40,000,000 |
£33,720,000 |
|
Green Recovery Challenge Fund |
Green jobs |
DEFRA |
£80 million: in two rounds of £40 million |
£40,000,000 |
£33,720,000 |
|
Help to Grow |
SMEs |
Not known |
2021-22: £60 million 2022-23: additional £75 million |
£60,000,000 |
£50,580,000 |
|
Kickstart |
Young people |
DWP / JCP / employers + gateways |
Ends March 2022: £2 billion. |
£2,000,000,000 |
£1,686,000,000 |
|
Levelling up Fund (LUF) |
Local authorities |
Cross Whitehall / LAs and delivery partners |
2020-2024: £4 billion. Further £800 million for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland |
£1,000,000,000 |
£843,000,000 |
|
Life Chances Fund (LCF) |
Disadvantaged people |
DCMS |
2016-2025: £80 million (9 years). |
£8,900,000* |
£8,900,000 |
|
Sector-based work academy programme (SWAPs) |
Jobseekers, especially young people |
DfE funded - DWP led ESFA - AEB JCP, local employers, training providers |
2020-21: £13.2 million. Plan for Jobs doubled SWAP capacity from 40,000 to 80,000 opportunities |
£13,200,000**** |
£12,037,080
|
|
Strategic Development Fund / College Business Centres |
Training providers |
DfE Colleges / training providers, |
2021: £65 million |
£65,000,000 |
£54,795,000
|
|
Supported internships |
Young people with EHCP |
DfE / ESFA / FE providers, schools, charities, local / community organisations, |
|
|
|
|
Towns Fund |
Local authorities |
DLUHC / |
£3.6 billion in total |
£3,600,000,000* |
£3,600,000,000 |
|
Traineeships |
Young people |
DfE / ESFA - AEB / Training providers, |
2020-21: AEB 2021-22: |
£27,300,000* |
£27,300,000 |
|
Troubled Families Programme (TFP) |
Disadvantaged people |
DLUHC / Local authorities |
2015-20: £1.1 billion committed to March 2021. |
£165,000,000* |
£165,000,000 |
|
Community |
Local authorities |
DLUHC / Local authorities + successful applicants |
2020-21: £220 million |
£220,000,000 |
£185,460,000
|
|
UK Shared |
|
|
Not known at time |
|
|
|
Union Learning |
Employed |
DfE ESF match funded / TUC Unions |
~£11 million but ending April 2021 |
£11,000,000** |
£9,542,000
|
|
Youth Employment Programme |
Unemployed young people - 18-24 |
DWP / JCP |
No direct funding - wrapper for other programmes |
|
|
|
Youth Hubs |
Unemployed young people - 18-24 |
DWP Flexible Support Fund JCP |
Not known |
|
|
|
OTHER PROGRAMMES TOTAL FOR ENGLAND £19,136,235,580 |
|||||
|
ENGLAND TOTAL £20,161,245,030 |
Key
* England only
** England, Scotland and Wales
*** England and Wales
**** England and Scotland
