Apprenticeships

Trish Murphy is Apprenticeships Manager at the RTPI

Planning needs a diverse range of people and a range of accessible entry routes to enable it to be a career of choice for young people in particular.

We are all aware of the Government's policy decision to restrict funding in England for level 7 (L7) apprenticeships to those aged 21 and under, which came into force in January 2026, and will no doubt impact the number of apprentices joining the profession via this route.

Where does this leave us and our L7 Chartered Town Planner degree apprenticeship, which has been running since 2019?

We do not expect the funding policy to change, so now we need to play the hand we have been dealt.

We are fortunate that there are still five RTPI accredited Planning Schools in England continuing to offer the Chartered Town Planner apprenticeship in 2026/27.

Three of those universities deliver training to apprentices who can join the programme without an undergraduate degree. Imagine being able to provide an opportunity to school/college leavers, introduce them to your business, and the profession, and support them on their journey to achieving Chartered Town Planner status!

There are many other built environment professions that provide entry points to young people who may not have had the opportunity to attend university or who have chosen not to study at university via the traditional route – is recruiting people at an earlier stage something we can support more in the planning sector?

Having worked in the apprenticeship field across a range of industry sectors for many years, I have seen first-hand how beneficial apprenticeships can be to both employers and apprentices. It is so amazing to see apprentices develop and grow both personally and professionally during the course of an apprenticeship so this route will always be one I strongly advocate.

In addition to recruiting school leavers, did you know:

Undergraduates under the age of 22 are still eligible for an apprenticeship and can bring fresh ideas and enthusiasm.
If you are an SME, you may be eligible for an Apprenticeship Incentive of £2,000.
If you recruit an apprentice under the age of 25 you do not currently pay Class 1 National Insurance.

Apprentices are often recruited from your local area and have a real desire to improve the place where they live and work. With demand for degree apprenticeships often outstripping supply there is a great choice of candidates. Apprentices can also be privately funded if they do not meet the Government eligibility criteria – this means they receive all the support associated with the apprenticeship and can still achieve Chartered status upon successful completion of their end point assessment. If you are interested in knowing more about how this works, your chosen Higher Education Institute will be able to advise.

Along with the L7 Chartered Town Planner apprenticeship, the L4 Town Planning Assistant apprenticeship provides an opportunity to either recruit new talent into your organisation or upskill existing employees. There are now two training providers delivering this apprenticeship so if this is of interest to you, do make contact with the training providers to discuss further.

One further ask from me…….. we will soon be adding to our pool of talented Professional Discussion Assessors. These Chartered members support the RTPI to assess apprentices on their journey to Chartered Town Planner status. You might be thinking what’s in it for me?

My response would be:

It provides you with the opportunity to discuss and learn about the amazing, diverse range of work apprentices complete while on the apprenticeship programme.
It’s a great way to actively engage with early career planners via an online discussion .
It provides you with an opportunity to work alongside other planning professionals to build a network.
It can count towards your CPD requirements.

However – you don’t need to take my word for it: more information on the role, how to express an interest and read what current assessors like about it can be found here

Let’s hope the academic year 2026/27 sees continued recruitment to town planning apprenticeships to secure alternative routes into the profession. The interest is there - so I will finish where I started – offer them and they will come……..