Earlier this week, the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS) asked HEFCE to manage the Degree Apprenticeship Development Fund. The multi-million pound fund was launched by BIS three weeks ago, with the aim to increase degree apprenticeships and provide more opportunities for young individuals. The BIS press release had said that ‘£8 million will be focused on supporting universities to design and deliver new degree apprenticeships while a further £2 million will be devoted to encouraging more learners to choose degree apprenticeships.’
Earlier, Universities UK published The Future Growth of Degree Apprenticeships, which outlined the benefits of apprenticeships, claiming that ‘degree apprenticeships are too important for many universities to ignore’.