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Apprenticeship achievements and starts

North East apprenticeship starts and achievements, with comparisons over time, by learner characteristic, level and local area.

Education and skills Newcastle North Tyneside South Tyneside Durham Gateshead Sunderland Northumberland
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Starts and achievements

Totals in 2022/23

  • In the North East in the 2022/23 academic year:
    • There were 13,430 apprenticeship starts and 7,090 apprenticeship achievements
    • the number of starts was 930 lower than in 2021/22 but 800 higher than in 2020/21
    • the number of achievements was 1,420 higher than in 2021/22 and 580 higher than in 2020/21
    • in both cases, the five year trends were decreasing.

Apprenticeship levels

  • In the North East in the 2022/23 academic year:
    • About 48% of apprenticeship starts and achievements were at advanced level
    • about 24% of starts and 28% of achievements were at intermediate level
    • the remaining 28% of starts and 24% of achievements were at higher level
    • over the latest five years, the numbers of starts and achievements at intermediate level have more than halved
    • advanced level starts and achievements have also decreased in number, but not as sharply
    • the numbers of higher level starts and achievements have increased during this period.

Age groups

  • In the North East in the 2022/23 academic year:
    • About 47% of apprenticeship starts and 43% of achievements were by people aged 25 and over
    • about 27% of both starts and achievements were by people under 19 years old
    • in the latest year, starts in all three age groups decreased
    • in contrast, achievement totals increased for all age groups
    • across the latest five years, starts and achievements have consistently been higher in the oldest age group.

Females and males

  • In the North East in the 2022/23 academic year:
    • About 52% of apprenticeship starts and 53% of achievements were by males
    • in both cases, the number of males has been higher in most recent years
    • the age profile of females starting apprenticeships was older than for males
    • about 54% of female apprenticeship starts were by those aged 25 plus, compared to 40% for males.

About the data

  • The Department for Education (DfE) release of full-year data on apprenticeships and traineeships in England for the 2022/23 academic year was published at the end of November 2023
  • it covers the period August 2022 to July 2023 and is based on data returned by providers in October 2023
  • the geographical breakdowns are based on the home address of each learner
  • the source data and further information can be accessed from the Explore Education Statistics website
  • the information is part of a broader further education dataset and analysis of this will shortly be added to the evidence hub.

Subject areas

  • In the North East in the 2022/23 academic year:
    • More than half of apprenticeship starts and achievements were in two broad subject areas
    • these were health, public services and care; and business, administration and law
    • most of the remaining starts and achievements were in four broad areas
    • these covered engineering and manufacturing; construction and planning; retail and commerce; and ICT
    • among these six areas, apprenticeships in construction and planning and in retail and commerce were most likely to be at intermediate level
    • apprenticeships in ICT; health and public services; and business and law were most likely to be at higher level
    • compared to five years earlier only health, public servuces and care; and ICT had more apprenticeship starts
    • the largest percentage decrease in starts had been in retail and commerce over that period.

Geographical comparisons

The North East and England

  • Geographical comparisons of apprenticeship starts and achievements use rates based on the population of 16 to 64 year olds:
    • The North East apprenticeships start rate in 2022/23 was 1,100 per 100,000
    • the North East achievement rate was 580 per 100,000
    • these were both higher than the England equivalents (947 and 456)
    • the North East rates have been consistently higher over the past five years, although the gap has closed slightly.

Within the North East

  • In the North East in the 2022/23 academic year:
    • Six of the seven North East local authority areas had apprenticeship start and achievement rates above the England rates
    • the exception was Newcastle upon Tyne
    • County Durham had the highest overall apprenticeship start rate
    • at intermediate level, the highest start rate was in Sunderland
    • at advanced level it was in South Tyneside and at higher level it was in North Tyneside.

Subject areas

  • In the 2022/23 academic year:
    • Compared to nationally, the North East had particularly large percentages of apprenticeship starts in construction and planning; and in engineering and manufacturing
    • the percentages of starts in key subject areas varied among apprentices in the seven local authority areas
    • those from Northumberland were more likely to be starting in health and public services or in construction and planning than elsewhere
    • for business, administration and law, this was true for Newcastle based apprentices
    • for engineering and manufacturing and for retail and commerce, this was true in Gateshead
    • for ICT this was true in North Tyneside.

Apprentice characteristics

  • In the 2022/23 academic year:
    • The North East had smaller percentages of apprenticeship starts and achievements by females than nationally
    • in England, more than half of starts and achievements were by females but this was not mirrored in the North East
    • the North East had higher percentages of starts and achievements by the under-19s than England
    • it had lower percentages among the 25 plus and 19 to 24 age groups.