Apprenticeships are devolved, so the funding, the names and the vacancy services all differ depending on where you live. The core deal — employed, paid, trained on the job — is the same everywhere.
England
Apprenticeships in England are built on apprenticeship standards, each written by groups of employers and each assigned a level from 2 to 7. Training is funded through the apprenticeship levy paid by larger employers, with government co-investment for smaller ones.
- Vacancy service: Find an apprenticeship
- Also worth knowing: T Levels, two-year technical qualifications for 16 to 19-year-olds that include a 45-day industry placement, and Skills Bootcamps for adults retraining.
- No upper age limit. Adults can and do start apprenticeships at 40 and 50.
Scotland
Scotland calls them Modern Apprenticeships, run through Skills Development Scotland, and offers three types:
- Foundation Apprenticeships — started while still at school, in S5 and S6, combining school with work-based learning.
- Modern Apprenticeships — the main employed route, at SCQF levels 5 to 11.
- Graduate Apprenticeships — degree-level study with a university while employed.
- Vacancy service: apprenticeships.scot
- Careers support: My World of Work
Wales
Wales runs Foundation Apprenticeships (level 2), Apprenticeships (level 3) and Higher Apprenticeships (levels 4 to 7), funded by the Welsh Government and delivered by colleges and work-based learning providers. Training can be delivered bilingually in Welsh and English.
- Vacancy service and advice: Careers Wales
Northern Ireland
ApprenticeshipsNI covers level 2 and level 3 apprenticeships, with Higher Level Apprenticeships at levels 4 to 7 delivered mainly through the six regional colleges. The programme is funded by the Department for the Economy.
- Information: nidirect apprenticeships
- The six regional colleges deliver most provision, so start with the one nearest you.
Jersey, Guernsey and the Isle of Man
These are Crown Dependencies, not part of the United Kingdom. They set their own
education policy and fund their own apprenticeships, so nothing on the GOV.UK pages
applies to you if you live and work there. You cannot apply through Find an
Apprenticeship, and UK apprenticeship funding does not reach the islands.
Each island runs its scheme through its own college:
- Jersey — Highlands College is the island's further education college and delivers Jersey's apprenticeships across construction, engineering, care, hospitality and business.
- Guernsey — The Guernsey Institute delivers the island's apprenticeships, with scheme details published by the States of Guernsey.
- Isle of Man — University College Isle of Man is the island's only FE and HE college, with policy and funding set by the Department of Education, Sport and Culture.
The qualifications themselves are usually the same UK awards — City & Guilds, NVQs,
EAL — so what you earn is recognised on the mainland. The employment, funding and
application route is entirely local.
Does it transfer?
Mostly, yes. The qualifications underneath — City & Guilds, NVQs, SVQs, EAL awards — are recognised UK-wide, and the trade cards that matter on site (CSCS, JIB/ECS, Gas Safe, CPCS) work across all four nations. A qualified electrician from Glasgow can work in Cardiff.
What does not transfer automatically is funding: you apply in the nation where you live and work.
Last reviewed 25 September 2026.