Adult apprenticeships good value for money, says NAO
By Vivienne Russell | 1
February 2012
Adult apprenticeships provide a good
return for the public money invested in them, but not as good as the government
claims, auditors have said.
An examination by the National Audit
Office found that each £1 of public money spent on the work-based training
schemes produced an average economic return of £18. This compares with £28
estimated by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.
The difference is explained in how the
department and the NAO assessed the potential impact of apprenticeships on
workforce productivity.
In the auditors’ view, more data is
needed to determine the full effect. They said the department had yet to assess
‘additionality’ – how far public money results in training that would not
otherwise have taken place.
They added: ‘The department assumes
that, for economic returns to apprenticeships, all public funding achieves
additionality, but lacks data to support this; therefore any reduction in
additionality would result in an equivalent reduction in the economic returns.’
The department has commissioned work on
apprenticeships and additionality and expects to know the results in the early
part of this year.
The NAO found a 140% increase in the total
number of apprenticeship places between 2006/07 and 2010/11. Last year, the cost
of the programme was £1.2bn, including £451m for adult apprentices.
In 2010, 5% of employers employed an
apprentice, and the vast majority of these (86%) said vocational qualifications
improved their business performance.
Both apprentices and inspectors were
positive about the programme, with 91% of apprentices saying they were
satisfied with the training they were receiving.
Despite this, NAO head Amyas Morse said
the department should ‘set its sights higher’ to get better value from the adult
apprenticeship programme.
‘It needs to target resources more
effectively; confirm the training provided is in addition to what would have
been provided without public support; and make sure that the funding system is
informed by robust information on the cost of delivery,’ he said.
The Public Accounts Committee will be
following up the NAO’s conclusions in the coming weeks. Chair Margaret Hodge
said: ‘We will want to know how the department is making sure it targets its
resources towards those areas and qualifications that have the most impact on
the economy.’
