New figures have revealed a 35% drop in the number of apprenticeship starts in November last year.

Statistics from the Department for Education show the number of new apprenticeship starts in November have decreased by more than a third.

Brian Berry, Chief Executive of the Federation of Master Builders (FMB), said the results show the government's Apprenticeship Levy initiative is in need of reform.

"These are not finalised figures, but even allowing for a certain degree of change, this looks like a clear downward turn in new apprenticeships," he said.

"Unfortunately, this is not altogether surprising given the intrinsic flaws in how the apprenticeship levy works. The lack of flexibility in the value of vouchers which large employers are able to pass down the supply chain to smaller subcontractors who work for them is a key issue."

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Continuing, Mr Berry said at present only 10% of vouchers are able to be passed down, yet larger firms "do not tend to directly employ large numbers of on-site tradespeople".

"This means that there is a real danger that these vouchers are not being spent on training the key skills that the industry so desperately needs," he said.

"In the long term, the only way we will be able to address the chronic skills crisis that is impacting the whole sector is by recruiting and training more new entrants.

"It is imperative that we make moves to iron out the flaws in the apprentice levy, given that more than two-thirds of small and medium-sized firms (SMEs) in construction are facing difficulties hiring bricklayers. This has increased by nearly 10% in just three months which demonstrates the swift worsening of an already dismal situation."

Concluding, Mr Berry said with Brexit on the horizon and access to EU workers in doubt, the next few years will bring "extraordinary challenges" to the industry.

"It's only through close collaboration between the Government and the construction sector that we will be able to overcome issues such as the skills crisis," he said.

(LM)