The Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) is urging those interested in accessing the Level 7 Chartered Town Planner apprenticeship to apply before next year’s reforms.
Funding for the course is only available until January next year – just seven months away
After the deadline, funding for the RTPI Level 7 Apprenticeship will only be available to those aged 16-21, or under 25 for care leavers or with an Education, Health and Care Plan.
Reducing options for employment
The RTPI is further encouraging employers to act fast in the face of funding changes, stating that ten of their accredited universities are recruiting for the Autumn 2025 cohort and are ready to support employers.
The RTPI Level 7 Apprenticeship was launched in 2019, and has been a popular route into the town planning profession. Around 200 students per year took the apprenticeship to become chartered town planners.
Dr Judith Taylor, head of education at the RTPI, said: “This apprenticeship has been transformative, not only in supporting career development for individuals from a wide range of backgrounds, but also in addressing real workforce needs in the profession.
“With significant changes to funding on the horizon, we strongly encourage employers to take advantage of the current flexibility while it remains available.”
Government changes to Level 7 funding
As part of a package of reforms in May, the government announced that funding would be diverted from Level 7 apprenticeships, or masters-level apprenticeships, for people over 21 years old.
This will mean extra funding for lower level courses, such as the 13 new Level 2 construction courses for adults in non-devolved areas.
This package is intended to boost construction recruitment and tackle the chronic-under-employment and lack of skills in the sector.
Other aspects of the package include:
- A 32% increase in the Immigration Skills Charge, potentially delivering 45,000 extra training places for the domestic workforce and reducing reliance on migration for workers in priority sectors
- £14m in adults skills funding for construction to be devolved to local mayors in the next academic year, potentially supporting 5,000 new adult learners
- £136m invested in Skills Bootcamps in several sectors, potentially funding 40,000 learners
- £100m over the next four years expanding Construction Skills Bootcamps
- 10 Technical Excellence Colleges for construction skills opening in September
AMuyiwa Oki, president of RIBA, commented on the removal of Level 7 funding: “While we welcome the emphasis on wider skills development, the decision to refocus funding away from Level 7 apprenticeships is a misguided and backwards step that will reduce access to a flexible, accessible, and inclusive route into the architecture profession.
“This arbitrary age cut off will negatively impact the number of architecture apprentices, at both Level 7 and likely Level 6, and will ultimately have the opposite effect of the government’s intention to get more young people into apprenticeships.
“We’ve worked closely with the government and parliamentarians to promote the value of Level 7 architecture apprenticeships, but our work is not over; we continue to advocate for architecture apprenticeships and the value they bring to the profession and society.”
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