London South Bank University (LSBU) is donating £150k to ‘Reskilling the Recovery’, a project to create new apprenticeships for low-paid Londoners.
LSBU’s donation, from unspent apprenticeship levy funds, will be used to cover the tuition fees of apprentices in small businesses that have been hardest hit by the Covid-19 pandemic.
‘Reskilling the Recovery’ is being run by London Progression Collaboration (LPC). Over £4m has been pledged to ‘Reskilling the Recovery’ by large employers from unspent levy funds paid by employers towards the cost of supporting degree apprenticeships. The LPC estimates that £470m of 2018/19 apprenticeship levy funds were unused by employers. This is not likely to change in the short-term - according to the last London Business 1000 survey, only half (53%) of levy-paying businesses indicated they expect to use apprenticeship funding over the next year.
Sammy Shummo, LSBU group director of apprenticeships said: “LSBU is proud to be able to donate towards the Reskilling the Recovery campaign. Now, more than ever, we need to band together to support London's economic recovery from damage inflicted by Covid-19. More than ever we believe apprenticeships can support people into rewarding employment and help make businesses more resilient.”
SMEs make up 99.8% of all London's private sector businesses, and employment in SMEs represents 49.8% of all London jobs.