Apprentices furloughed or made redundant during the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic: up to 25 September 2020

This data is management information provided to the Welsh Government by apprenticeship providers, combined with records from the Lifelong Learning Wales Record (LLWR). It has not undergone the same level of quality assurance as official statistics.

The method of producing these statistics has been adjusted to handle apprentices who had returned from furlough but the return was not recorded consistently. Data from 24 July 2020 onwards has been revised according to this adjustment.

Main points

• The number of furloughed apprentices has fallen by 4,790 (62%) from a peak of 7,770 on 29 May 2020.
• 2,980 apprentices were still furloughed on 25 September 2020.
• The number of apprentices who had their apprenticeship terminated due to redundancy increased from 50 to 95 compared to the previous month.
• An additional 180 apprentices had been made redundant but remain in learning whilst their provider tries to source an alternative employer.
• The number of apprentices who had their apprenticeship terminated for reasons other than redundancy increased from 905 to 1,450 compared to the previous month (4% of all apprentices).
• The number of apprentices who had successfully completed their apprenticeship increased from 2,510 to 4,540 compared to the previous month (12% of all apprentices).

The apprentices still most affected were:

• young
• male
• white or mixed race
• working in hair and beauty; hospitality; or construction
• not studying higher apprenticeships
• working for companies with less than 10 employees
• employed by the private sector
• living in less deprived neighbourhoods
• those who self-identified as having a 'primary disability and/or learning difficulty'

Apprentices working in leisure sport and travel had been amongst the most likely to be furloughed, but the majority have now either returned from furlough or successfully completed their apprenticeship.