Small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) can register for the new digital apprenticeship service, which will allow them to take advantage of training opportunities.
The online service enables employers to recruit apprentices, find training contracts and secure funding for training.
It comes after research revealed that more than £133 million from apprenticeship levy accounts expired before it could be used in 2019.
However, the report, published by HR publication People Management, found that the unused levy funds were not being redirected to small businesses as intended.
The apprenticeship levy is paid by large employers with a wage bill exceeding £3 million. The compulsory tax is used to fund the development and delivery of apprenticeships, with any unused cash passed down to small, non-levy paying businesses.
Mark Dawe, chief executive of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP), said: “Many SMEs that want to offer places on the programme can’t do so because not enough unused levy money is being returned to reallocate to smaller businesses.
“Unless the situation is addressed the position will get worse, which is why the government urgently needs to bring back the separate £1.5 billion annual apprenticeship budget for non-levy employers that it took away when the levy was introduced.”
According to the report, 25 per cent of apprenticeship training providers believe that funding is sufficient to meet the demand of businesses, while 24 per cent have had to turn away a small employer for apprenticeship training in the last year because of a lack of funding.