Prime Minister Andy Burnham has confirmed that families on Universal Credit will be eligible for a bursary of up to £4,500 when their child starts an apprenticeship. The payment is designed to replace the loss of benefit income that currently discourages many young people from taking up apprenticeships.
Bursary Details and Impact
Under the new scheme, households that lose between £17 and £330 per week in Universal Credit when a child begins an apprenticeship will receive a bursary to compensate. The move is expected to benefit an estimated few thousand families and is part of the Labour government's wider strategy to boost apprenticeship uptake and reduce the number of young people not in education, employment, or training (NEETs).
Mr Burnham confirmed the policy on Tuesday, stating he wants to avoid “crude cuts to benefits to get the welfare bill down … Often that just pushes people into even more crisis and then even more public spending in another part of the system.”
Reactions from Charity and Politicians
Enver Solomon, chief executive of the social justice charity Nacro, welcomed the bursary. “If more young people are to take up apprenticeships it is vital their family isn’t worse off, so introducing a new bursary is a welcome step towards narrowing the income gap,” he said. “As the new scheme is rolled out, the government must ensure it is as easy as possible for young people to apply, and that nobody loses out because they were not directed towards support. We know in families where wages should outweigh benefit payments there can still be real difficulty as payments shift from parents to young people who have to take on the responsibility of contributing to overall household income.”
Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden added: “By providing bursaries to those who need them most and fully funding apprenticeship training, we are making sure cost is not the reason someone misses out.”
However, the opposition criticised the plan. Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary Helen Whately said she was glad Burnham agrees apprenticeships are good but called the plan “uncosted.” She said: “It is spending money already committed elsewhere. So, either it is another unfunded announcement, or Andy Burnham is not being straight with us about his plans.”
Broader Context and NEETs Reduction
Mr Burnham has said he is “on a mission” to reduce the number of NEETs. “The trend is rising at the moment, so the first thing I've got to do is to stop that rise,” he stated. The government’s approach focuses on incentives rather than punitive measures, with the bursary intended to prevent families from being financially penalised when a young person moves into work-based training.
