Apprenticeships in Composite Materials
How to take on an apprentice
To employ an apprentice, you need to check and meet the following terms and conditions.
Your apprentice should:
- be 16 years old or older by the end of the summer holidays
- not be in full-time education
- work in a role that is relevant to their apprenticeship
- work enough paid hours each week to undertake sufficient training to achieve their apprenticeship
- Apprentices can be new employees or current employees already working for you.
Click here to follow the steps and guidance on how to take on an apprentice
L3 Composite Technician
The approval by Government of the Composites Technician Apprenticeship is a significant milestone and companies can now train apprentices on composites part manufacture. The training programme has been designed and developed by industry to provide the apprentice with a broad understanding of all elements of composites manufacture. This will enable cross-industry movement of people in the future.
Recent review of all apprenticeship standards means that this apprenticeship will be incorporated as a specific module in a wider Science Manufacturing Technician Standard.
There are 8 mandatory units and 14 optional units which enable the trainee to focus on specific areas and gain a deeper understanding in the specific operations the company requires. Click here for more information
Apprentices will be eligible for engineering tech (EngTech) status with the Institute of Materials, Minerals and Mining and Institution of Mechanical Engineers on completing their apprenticeship.
Colleges currently offering the apprenticeship
Barking and Dagenham College
Dagenham Road, Romford, RM7 0XU
Bridgewater and Taunton College
Bridgwater Campus, Bath Road, Bridgwater, Somerset, TA6 4PZ
Chichester College Group
Chichester Campus, Westgate Fields, Chichester, West Sussex, PO19 1SB
Farnborough College of Technology
Boundary Road, Farnborough, Hants, GU14 6SB
Isle of Wight College
Dodnor Lane, Newport, PO30 5TA
Loughborough College
Radmoor Road, Loughborough, LE11 3BT
Maritime and Engineering College North West
The Engineering College, Monks Ferry, Birkenhead, Wirral, CH41 5LH
Milton Keynes College
Woughton Campus West, Chaffron Way, Leadenhall, Milton Keynes MK6 5LP
The University of Sheffield
Western Bank, Sheffield, S10 2TN
Apprenticeship Levy
You can get help from the government to pay for apprenticeship training. The amount you get depends on whether you pay the apprenticeship levy or not. You pay the levy if you’re an employer with a pay bill over £3 million each year.
If you are an employer that doesn’t pay the apprenticeship levy, you pay just 5% towards the cost of training and assessing an apprentice.
If you employ fewer than 50 employees, the government will pay 100% of the apprenticeship training costs up to the funding band maximum for apprentices aged:
- 16 to 18
- 19 to 24 with an education, health and care plan provided by their local authority or has been in the care of their local authority
From 11 January 2022, you will be able to apply for an incentive payment of £3,000 for apprentices with an employment start date from 1 October 2021 to 31 January 2022. Applications close on 15 May 2022.
*Photo courtesy of Formaplex
