School leaders are currently operating in one of the most challenging workforce climates in recent years. Support staff, who make up over half of the school workforce, are leaving at unprecedented rates, driving recruitment pressures, service gaps and rising workloads. According to new NFER-supported analysis published by Tes, around one in five support staff left the school system between 2023–24 and 2024–25, the highest exit rate since records began. Leaders also report severe recruitment challenges, with 74% struggling to hire support staff in 2025. A major reason for this churn is the lack of clear career progression routes for support staff, along with financial pressures and low morale. Yet one powerful tool that directly addresses career development, retention, and workforce capability remains underutilised in many schools and trusts: the Apprenticeship Levy. This article sets out how school leaders can strategically use the levy to grow your support-staff workforce.
What school leaders need to know
The Apprenticeship Levy requires organisations with an annual pay bill over £3 million (including most MATs and some standalone schools) to contribute 0.5% of payroll into a ring-fenced apprenticeship fund. This funding can be used to train new employees or upskill existing staff across all roles.
From April 2026, the levy will undergo a significant reform, transitioning into the Growth & Skills Levy, bringing major changes leaders should prepare for:
- Short Levy-Funded Apprenticeship Units (30–140 hours): Ideal for rapid upskilling and targeted CPD.
- Funds Expire After 12 Months (not 24): More proactive planning will be essential to avoid losing unspent funds.
- 10% Auto Top-Up Removed: Reduces the value in digital accounts.
- Co-Investment Rises to 25% once levy funds run out (currently 5%).
Restrictions to Level 7 Funding for Staff Aged 22+ beginning in 2026. For schools and trusts, these changes make levy planning both more flexible and more time-sensitive, reinforcing the need for annual (not ad-hoc) workforce CPD strategy.
Why this matters and how apprenticeships address support-staff attrition
Support staff consistently highlight lack of progression and development as key reasons for leaving the sector. Apprenticeships offer a structured, nationally recognised solution that aligns CPD with real operational needs [accessindustry.co.uk].
For leaders, apprenticeships provide:
- A tangible career pathway for support staff
Many role (TAs, pastoral workers, SEND support, early years staff, administrative, IT and data teams) are often seen as flat-structured. Apprenticeships create transparent, achievable progression routes from Level 2 to Level 5+, improving motivation and long-term retention.
- Fully funded or substantially subsidised professional development
For levy-paying schools, training is funded through your digital account. Non-levy schools benefit too: apprentices under 25 can access fully funded training with no co-investment.
- High-quality, role-specific, job-embedded CPD
Apprenticeships include structured training, assessment, mentoring, and off-the-job learning—all aligned to national occupational standards. This ensures staff development is rigorous, relevant, and impactful.
- A solution to recruitment shortages
With support staff exit rates rising and recruitment difficulties persistent, apprenticeships provide an alternative and sustainable pipeline of skilled professionals already embedded within your values and culture.
- New short modular training (from 2026) for specific skills needs
Short ‘apprenticeship units’ allow schools to upskill staff quickly in emerging areas, digital systems, safeguarding, AI literacy, data management, without committing to full qualifications.
Relevant example of apprenticeship pathways across early years, classroom support and professional services
Apprenticeships offer structured, high-quality development routes across both classroom-facing roles and the operational functions that keep schools running effectively. Together, these pathways allow leaders to build a whole-workforce development strategy that supports retention, progression, and long-term capability.
Early Years & Classroom Support Pathways:
- Early Years Practitioner (Level 2) – 12 months
- Early Years Educator (Level 3) – 17 months
- Teaching Assistant (Level 3) – 16 months
- Early Years Lead Practitioner (Level 5) – 18 months
These programmes include one-to-one support, mentoring, and job-embedded training. Apprentices report increased confidence, capability, and readiness for progression, helping schools develop a sustainable and high-quality classroom support workforce.
Digital, Data, HR, Safeguarding & School Business Leadership Pathways:
- Digital Skills Technician (L3): Builds in-house digital support and systems expertise.
- Data Analyst (L4): Strengthens data modelling, reporting, and analysis to inform strategic decisions.
- HR Support (L3): Develops recruitment, onboarding, employee relations, and compliance capability.
- Safeguarding & Pastoral (L3–4): Provides training in safeguarding frameworks, early help, trauma-informed practice, and multi-agency working.
- School Business Professional (L4): Enhances finance, estates, operations, procurement, and governance skills, supporting stronger succession planning.
By embedding apprenticeships across early years, classroom support, digital, HR, data, safeguarding and school business leadership functions, leaders can create sustainable talent pipelines, professionalise key roles, and strengthen operational resilience across the whole school workforce.
How school leaders can strategically use the levy
- Audit your levy usage and upcoming expiry dates
With the shift to a 12-month expiry window in 2026, schools must plan to start across the year to avoid losing funds.
- Map apprenticeships to every staff group, not just teachers
Create clear progression pathways for:
- Teaching Assistants
- SEND and inclusion staff
- Early years practitioners
- Pastoral and safeguarding roles
- Office, HR, data, and finance staff
- Estates and ICT teams
- Use apprenticeships to strengthen recruitment pipelines
Recruit support staff directly into an apprenticeship pathway, improving attraction and retention from day one.
- Leverage short apprenticeship units for targeted CPD
Ideal for areas such as digital systems, safeguarding, and leadership, especially where quick upskilling is required.
- Partner with high-quality training providers
Schools should look for providers with proven achievement rates and OFSTED‑recognised quality. At Acorn Training, this is a core part of our offer.
A strategic opportunity for schools
With support-staff turnover at its highest level in over a decade and recruitment challenges intensifying, school leaders must rethink how they invest in workforce development.
Apprenticeships are not simply a training route, they are a strategic enabler, directly aligned to retention, capability building, and long-term workforce sustainability.
The Apprenticeship Levy, and its upcoming Growth & Skills Levy reforms, gives leaders a powerful, flexible and often fully funded mechanism to:
- support staff development
- offer real career progression
- tackle recruitment challenges
- stabilise workforce churn
