‘Apprenticeship penalty’ on benefits forces young people from poorer UK families to quit

Government advisers call for review of rules that cause loss of household income when a child takes up job training

Young people from disadvantaged backgrounds are abandoning valuable job training opportunities because of a little-known welfare “apprenticeship penalty” that can leave their families out of pocket by as much as £340 a week.

The problem is caused by benefit rules that classify a 16-year-old apprentice as an “independent worker” who no longer requires parental support. As a result, the parents’ child benefit and child and disability elements of universal credit are withdrawn.