Employers will be able to use their apprenticeship levy fund to pay for a new Masters-level degree apprenticeship in leadership and management, according to the Department for Education (DfE).
The apprenticeship will be designed by a group of employers to develop the skillsets of those working in private, public and not-for-for-profit sectors with responsibility for directing the operations of companies, third sector organisations, government departments or local authorities, and formulating national and local government policy.
The DfE gave the go-ahead for the apprenticeship to be designed this week, which will include a Masters degree and Chartered Fellow professional recognition, and is aimed at the senior executive and C-suite level. It will be developed by a group of employers led by Serco and Civil Service Learning, and supported by the Chartered Management Institute (CMI).
Apprenticeships and skills minister Robert Halfon described the apprenticeship as a “ladder of opportunity” for employees.
“In the past getting a Masters degree was something you could only do with a traditional university course,” he said. “Our reforms to apprenticeships are changing that. These new Masters-level apprenticeships will offer a ladder of opportunity for people, and mean that regardless of your background you can get the advanced skills in leadership and management that top employers want and need.”
Petra Wilton, director of strategy and external affairs for the CMI, was pleased the apprenticeship provides a vocational route to high-level qualifications.
“This exciting new Masters-level apprenticeship means that employers will now be able to lead by example and ensure that top teams have the professional leadership skills needed to drive growth,” she said. “This highest level apprenticeship will also help to challenge snobbery around vocational routes and demonstrate how these new apprenticeships really can provide pathways to the top.”
