1. Key Facts and Figures 2022/23
Key points:
Participation
1,530
Up 38% from 2021/22
Success
91%
Up 1pp from 2021/22
The academic year 2022/23 shows:
- 845 starts on an HLA programme. This was an increase of 235 (39%) from 2021/22.
- Approximately three in ten starts were female; 270 females compared to 580 males. A trend has emerged showing more males are entering HLA programmes than females.
- In total there were 1,530 participants on HLA programmes; this included 845 starts, 475 in year 2 and 205 in year 3.
- The most popular sector subject area was Engineering and manufacturing technologies accounting for 36% of all HLA participants.
- The overall success rate for final year HLA students was 91% (390 participants).
Definitions
Starts:
The number of FE
students who joined an HLA programme in academic year 2022/23.
Participation:
The number of students on an HLA
programme in academic year 2022/23.
Success:
The number of final year FE HLA students who achieved an HLA
qualification in academic year 2022/23.
2. About this report
This report presents analysis of the sixth publication of Higher Level Apprenticeships (HLAs) at Further Education (FE) in Northern Ireland. HLA provision commenced at FE colleges in 2017/18 and at the College of Agriculture, Food and Rural Enterprise (CAFRE) in 2018/19. The report details key information on level 4, 5, 6 and 7 HLA programmes and characteristics of HLA students for the academic years 2017/18 to 2022/23.
3. Starts
Number of Starts
In academic year 2022/23, there were 845 starts on an HLA programme. This was an increase of 235 (39%) compared to 610 HLA starts recorded in 2021/22.
There is a noticeable year on year increase in starts with the exception of 2020/21 where the decrease may be attributed to the effect of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
Figure 3.1: 39% increase in HLA starts from 2021/22
HLA starts for academic years 2017/18 to 2022/23
Level and FE colleges
Level 4 to Level 7 HLAs are offered at FE. Level 7 HLAs were introduced for this reporting year 2022/23 and Level 6 were introduced the previous year in 2021/22. Level 5 HLAs recorded the highest number of starts, having an uptake of 680 in 2022/23.
Table 3.1: SWC accounts for the largest proportion of starts
FE Providers by HLA level, 2022/23
| HLA Level | Belfast Metropolitan College | Northern Regional College | North West Regional College | South Eastern Regional College | Southern Regional College | South Western College | CAFRE | Total |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | 25 | 5 | 5 | 30 | 0 | 20 | 0 | 80 |
| 5 | 130 | 70 | 45 | 80 | 160 | 180 | 20 | 680 |
| 6 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | 35 | 5 | 75 |
| 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 0 | 5 |
| Total | 175 | 75 | 45 | 110 | 180 | 240 | 25 | 845 |
Sex of Starts
In 2022/23 approximately three in ten starts were female; 270 females compared to 580 males. A trend has emerged showing more males are entering HLA programmes than females.
Figure 3.2: More males are following an HLA pathway than females
HLA starts by sex for academic years 2017/18 to 2022/23
Multiple Deprivation Measure
The lowest number of starts were from Northern Ireland’s least deprived Multiple Deprivation Measure (MDM) areas (Quintile 5) and the most deprived (Quintile 1): 110 and 105 respectively.
Quintile 2 reported the highest number of HLA starts (235).
The analysis presented in Figure 3.3 utilises five groups (quintiles) of Super Output Areas (SOAs) across NI. Quintile 1 is the most deprived group of areas and Quintile 5 is the least deprived group of areas. These five groups are determined based on relative level of deprivation using the Northern Ireland Multiple Deprivation Measure (NI MDM) 2017.
Figure 3.3: HLA starts are lowest in the most deprived quintile
HLA starts by deprivation 2022/23
Sector Subject Areas (SSAs)
Engineering and manufacturing technologies was the most popular sector subject area (SSA) for HLA starts in 2022/23. It recorded 285 starts, 87% of these were males and 13% females. Engineering and manufacturing technologies has been the most popular SSA year on year since the HLA programmed commenced in 2017/18.
Figure 3.4: Engineering and manufacturing technologies is the most popular subject sector.
HLA starts by five most popular SSAs 2022/23
Science, Technology, Engineering and Maths (STEM)
In 2022/23, (65%) of starts were studying HLA programmes in broad STEM areas, 550 starts. The proportion of HLAs in narrow STEM was 50% (420); 83% of these were males. Non-STEM was comprised of mainly females (59%).
Figure 3.5: The number of female Narrow STEM starts remains low in 2022/23
HLA starts at FE by sex and STEM indicator 2022/23
Note: Narrow STEM is a subset of Broad STEM.
4. Participation
This section reports on the total number of students enrolled on HLA programmes at FE colleges and CAFRE in the academic year 2022/23, this includes students in all years of an HLA programme.
In total there were 1,530 students participating on HLA programmes at FE in 2022/23; this included 845 starts, 475 in year 2 and 205 in year 3. The number of HLAs has noted an increase of 38% in 2022/23 compared to 2021/22.
Figure 4.1: The number of HLA students increased by 38% in 2022/23
The number of HLA students at FE for academic years 2017/18 to 2022/23.
Sector subject areas (SSA)
Engineering and manufacturing technologies HLAs remained the most popular among students accounting for 36% (555) of all HLAs in 2022/23. This was the most popular SSA among the male HLA participants, 490 males. The sector subject area Business, Administration and law recorded the most female HLA students; 160 females and 140 males.
Figure 4.2 Engineering and manufacturing technologies HLAs account for 36% of HLAs
The number of HLA students at FE by SSA and sex for academic year 2022/23.
5. Performance
This section reports on the performance (retention, achievement and success) of final year HLA students in academic year 2022/23.
Achievement rate
93%
Up 2pp from 2021/22
Success rate
91%
Up 1pp from 2021/22
Definitions of rates
Retention rate:
97% of
final year FE HLA students completed the HLA programme in 2022/23.
Achievement rate:
93% of final year FE HLA
students who completed the HLA programme achieved an HLA qualification
in 2022/23.
Success rate:
91% of final year
FE HLA students achieved an HLA qualification in 2022/23.
Males and females recorded similar success rates, namely 93% for females and 90% for males. In 2022/23, 125 females and 260 males successfully completed and passed their HLA programme.
Figure 5.1: Success rates for males and females were similar
Success rates of HLA students at FE by sex for academic year 2022/23.
6. Further Information
Excel/Open/CSV Tables
Detailed Excel/Open/CSV Data tables are available here.
New Publication Format
This publication marks the first release of the Higher Level Apprenticeship at FE Bulletin in HTML format. This has been developed in a collaboration project between YSTRB and NISRA Techlab. The developments use a RAP (Reproducible Analytical Pipeline) Strategy to produce higher quality, more efficient and transparent analysis.
Higher Level Apprenticeships offer the opportunity to gain quality training and a recognised higher qualification while in paid employment. To learn more about the DfE funded HLAs offered see Higher Level Apprenticeships. The length of a Higher Level Apprenticeship will vary depending on the programme and when the student joined the HLA programme. Level 6 HLAs at FE commenced in academic year 2021/22 and Level 7 commenced in 2022/23.
For information regarding ‘Technical Notes’ on the methodology used to produce the statistics and information regarding definitions of terms within the report, please see the document: Technical Notes.
Contact Details
For further details on any of these statistics, or to provide feedback, contact: Seana.mcilwaine@economy-ni.gov.uk (Tel: 028 90 257708)
This publication is produced by Youth Training Statistics and Research Branch, Analytical Services Division, Department for the Economy.
Our statistical practice is regulated by the Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR). OSR sets the standards of trustworthiness, quality and value in the Code of Practice for Statistics that all producers of official statistics should adhere to. You are welcome to contact us directly with any comments about how we meet these standards. Alternatively, you can contact OSR by emailing regulation@statistics.gov.uk or via the OSR website.