New AI apprenticeship to close digital skills gap for UK workers
New AI and automation apprenticeship launched to help close the UK digital skills gap and support businesses to adopt AI technology while upskilling millions by 2030
The UK government and skills bodies have launched a new AI and automation practitioner apprenticeship to close the digital and AI skills gap that is holding back millions of workers and businesses. The level 4 apprenticeship and expanded training opportunities are part of a wider drive to upskill the workforce, improve productivity and help employers adopt AI responsibly, with the first apprentices beginning the programme this month and broader support for worker training planned through to 2030.
AI adoption could boost the UK economy by £400 billion
The AI and automation practitioner apprenticeship will enable apprentices to identify where AI and automation can save time, reduce costs, and improve performance. They will focus on solving real-world problems that slow down organisations, such as duplicated data entry and needlessly repetitive manual processes. Many businesses use multiple digital tools that do not talk to each other. AI and automation practitioners will help integrate these systems.
Apprentices will learn how to use AI safely and responsibly, protecting sensitive data, avoiding bias, and complying with regulatory requirements.
This new Level 4 apprenticeship is now available to all employers, regardless of sector, with the first batch of apprentices starting in March 2026.
This follows recent research by academic Dr Nisreen Ameen, with support from Skills England, which found major challenges among employers in upskilling in AI. Research also found that AI adoption could boost the UK economy by up to £400 billion by 2030 through improvements in innovation and workplace productivity, and projections indicate that jobs directly involving AI activities could rise from 158,000 in 2024 to 3.9 million by 2035.
Work and Pensions Secretary Pat McFadden said: “Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming our economy, and I am determined that young people across the country are equipped to seize the opportunities it brings. That means investing in the skills and training that will define the jobs of the future. Through our apprenticeship reforms, we are creating genuine pathways into the high-skilled, high-growth industries that AI is creating – so that a young person’s chances are not determined by their background or where they grew up. The fourth industrial revolution is already underway – our job is to make sure Britain is ready for it.”
Minister for AI, Kanishka Narayan, said: “AI offers so much potential to grow our economy, create new opportunities for people, and help businesses boost their productivity. This can only be realised when businesses, small and large, have the skills needed to adopt and use AI to its fullest. Through our AI Skills Boost initiative – a commitment to upskill 10 million workers with key AI skills by 2030 – and new AI apprenticeships like these, we are making sure our workforce has the skills needed to effectively adopt AI and make the UK a leading AI nation.”
Phil Smith, chair of Skills England and co-chair of the government’s Digital Skills Council, said: “AI is moving at an incredible pace and everyone can benefit if we train people to maximise productivity gains in a responsible way. Skills England has worked rapidly with employers to make sure this new apprenticeship and the wider AI skills offer provide what businesses need right now. I want to urge businesses across the country to recruit an apprentice or sign up for a course.”
Crispin Read, chief executive and founder of The Coders Guild, a training provider delivering the apprenticeship, said: “We’ve got 12 apprentices starting this month, with a lot more in the pipeline, and the interest and need is the highest we’ve ever experienced. What excites me most is the potential this creates. People bringing real domain knowledge – understanding of a business, an industry, a customer – and adding serious technical capability. AI and automation skills combined with industry experience are a powerful combination, and for SMEs in particular, that’s a genuinely exciting prospect.”