How to Use Your Apprenticeship Levy for
Digital Marketing Training
You are paying into the Apprenticeship Levy every month. If you are not actively spending it on training, that money is expiring — permanently. Here is exactly how to deploy your levy on digital marketing apprenticeships that build real capability in your team.
✦ Quick Answer
Yes — your Apprenticeship Levy can be used to fund digital marketing training. The eligible programmes include the Multi-Channel Marketer Level 3 (£11,000 funding band), the Content Creator Level 3 (£12,000), and the Marketing Manager Level 6 (£14,000). Funds are drawn monthly from your digital levy account as training is delivered — no upfront payment required. Unspent funds expire after 24 months. Contact Tina Lavery at NTG Training to start deploying your levy before it expires.
Free Download: The Complete Employer Funding Guide
Levy explained, funding tables, step-by-step access guide — all in one PDF. Written by Tina Lavery, NTG Training. No sign-up required.
↓ Download Free PDFWhat Is the Apprenticeship Levy and Why Should You Care?
Since April 2017, every UK employer with an annual payroll above £3 million has paid 0.5% of their payroll bill into the Apprenticeship Levy each month. The money goes into a ring-fenced digital account — the Apprenticeship Service — and it can only be spent on one thing: approved apprenticeship training.
If you have not been actively spending it, your levy account has been accumulating. And depreciating. Because here is the rule that most levy-paying employers discover too late.
⏱ The 24-Month Expiry Rule — This Is Not a Drill
Every payment that enters your levy account starts a 24-month countdown. After 24 months, that specific tranche of funding expires and is returned to HM Treasury. You cannot reclaim it. You cannot roll it over. It simply disappears.
If your business has a payroll of £5 million, you are contributing approximately £25,000 per month to the levy. If you are not spending it, you are losing £25,000 of training resource every single month — permanently.
Digital marketing apprenticeships are one of the fastest, most impactful ways to deploy levy funds strategically — building capability in your marketing team whilst making productive use of money that would otherwise be lost.
Which Digital Marketing Programmes Can My Levy Fund?
The levy can fund any programme on the approved apprenticeship standards list. NTG Training delivers three marketing apprenticeship standards, all of which are eligible for levy funding and all of which result in nationally recognised qualifications assessed by BCS, The Chartered Institute for IT, or an approved assessment organisation.
| Programme | Best For | Levy Funding Band | Duration | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Multi-Channel Marketer L3 | Junior/mid marketing roles — SEO, email, social, PPC, analytics | £11,000 | ~15 months | Level 3, BCS assessed |
| Content Creator L3 | Content, social media, video and creative production roles | £12,000 | ~15 months | Level 3, approved EPAO |
| Marketing Manager L6 | Marketing managers and senior practitioners moving into leadership | £14,000 | ~24 months | Level 6, degree-equivalent, BCS assessed |
Levy funds are drawn monthly by NTG Training as training is delivered — you do not pay a lump sum upfront. If your levy balance is insufficient to cover the full cost of a programme, the government co-investment rules apply for any shortfall.
Official programme standards are published by Skills England: Multi-Channel Marketer ST1031 · Content Creator ST0105 · Marketing Manager ST0278
How to Use Your Levy for Digital Marketing — Step by Step
The process of deploying your levy for digital marketing training is more straightforward than most employers expect. Here is exactly what happens from first contact to your apprentice starting their programme.
Check your levy balance and expiry schedule
Log in to the Apprenticeship Service portal. Your current balance is displayed, along with a breakdown of when funds are due to expire. If you have not yet registered, NTG Training can guide you through the process.
Contact Tina Lavery at NTG Training
A single conversation will establish which programme fits your team's needs, how much levy you will need to draw down, and how quickly we can get started. No commitment required at this stage. Book that conversation here →
Add NTG Training as your approved provider
Through the Apprenticeship Service portal, you add NTG Training as an approved provider and authorise us to draw down levy funds on your behalf. NTG Training is registered on the Register of Apprenticeship Training Providers (RoATP) — so this is a simple, verified process.
Identify your apprentice — new hire or existing employee
Decide whether you are recruiting a new marketing hire or enrolling an existing team member. NTG Training offers a free recruitment service if you need it. Either way, we guide you through the eligibility check and enrolment process.
Sign the apprenticeship agreement and commit
NTG Training prepares the Apprenticeship Agreement and Individual Learning Plan. You review and sign. This is your formal commitment to the programme and the mechanism through which levy funds are drawn down.
Training begins — levy draws down monthly
From the start date, NTG Training delivers training and the levy funds are drawn down monthly. You receive regular progress updates. Your apprentice delivers real marketing value in your business from week one. The levy clock stops ticking on the funds you have committed.
🖥️ Navigating the Apprenticeship Service Portal
Register or log in
Go to gov.uk/sign-in-apprenticeship-service-account. Use your Government Gateway credentials. First-time users need to create an account and verify the organisation.
View your levy balance
Navigate to 'Finance' to see your current levy balance, monthly contributions, upcoming expiry tranches, and any levy transfers made or received.
Add a training provider
Navigate to 'Your training providers' and add NTG Training using our UKPRN number. NTG Training will then be able to submit apprentice details and draw down funds on your behalf.
Approve apprentice cohorts
Once NTG Training submits an apprentice's details, you will receive a notification to review and approve. This takes a few minutes. NTG Training handles all the underlying paperwork.
Monitor spend and progress
The portal shows a live view of levy spend, remaining balance, and active apprentices. You can see exactly where your levy is going and how much remains for future programmes.
What Digital Marketing Skills Does the Levy Actually Buy?
This is the question that matters most. Not what the qualification is called, but what your apprentice will actually be able to do by the end of it. Here is a practical breakdown of the skills delivered through each NTG programme.
Multi-Channel Marketer Level 3 — Skills Delivered
- Search Engine Optimisation (SEO) — keyword research, on-page optimisation, content strategy for search
- Paid Advertising (PPC) — Google Ads and Meta Ads setup, management, and performance measurement
- Email Marketing — campaign planning, copywriting, segmentation, deliverability, and analytics
- Social Media Marketing — platform-specific strategy, content planning, community management
- Analytics and Reporting — Google Analytics 4, campaign dashboards, insight generation
- Campaign Planning — multi-channel campaign development from brief to measurement
- Copywriting — persuasive copy for web, email, social media, and advertising
Content Creator Level 3 — Skills Delivered
- Short-form Video — scripting, filming, editing for TikTok, Reels, and YouTube Shorts
- Photography and Graphic Design — product, lifestyle, and brand imagery; Canva and Adobe tools
- Written Content — blog posts, web pages, social captions, and long-form copy
- Content Strategy — audience insight, content calendar development, channel planning
- Brand Management — brand guidelines, tone of voice, visual consistency across channels
- Performance Analysis — content analytics, engagement metrics, iterative improvement
Marketing Manager Level 6 — Skills Delivered
- Strategic Marketing — market analysis, positioning, competitive strategy
- Team and Budget Management — managing a marketing team and allocating resource effectively
- Customer Insight and Research — commissioning and interpreting market research
- Digital Transformation — leading digital change and integrating new channels and technology
- Brand and Communications Leadership — owning the brand and directing integrated campaigns
✅ These Are Not Classroom Skills — They Are Deployed Immediately
Unlike traditional training courses, every skill learned in a marketing apprenticeship is applied to real work in your business the following week. Your apprentice does not disappear to study and return months later. The learning is woven into their job. You see a return on the training investment from the very first month of the programme.
Can I Transfer Levy Funds to Another Business?
Levy Transfers — The Option Most Large Employers Have Never Explored
Levy-paying employers can transfer up to 25% of their annual levy funds to other businesses — including smaller employers in their supply chain or local community. The receiving employer can use those transferred funds to pay for apprenticeship training, including NTG's digital marketing programmes.
This means a large employer with a significant unspent levy balance can simultaneously address their own marketing training needs and support workforce development in partner businesses — all from the same levy account.
If levy transfers are something your business would like to explore, speak to Tina Lavery at NTG Training. We can advise on how transfers work in practice and connect you with the right Apprenticeship Service guidance.
Full Funding Guide — Free PDF
Levy explained, funding bands, portal walkthrough, cost examples, and step-by-step access. Written by Tina Lavery, NTG Training.
↓ Download Free PDFThe Three Most Common Levy Mistakes — and How to Avoid Them
Mistake 1: Waiting until you have "capacity" to think about it
There is never a perfect moment. The 24-month clock does not care about your quarterly review or your current campaign sprint. Every month of inaction costs real money. The businesses that use their levy effectively treat it as an ongoing strategic commitment — not an annual project.
Mistake 2: Assuming your HR team is already managing it
Many levy-paying employers are surprised to discover that their levy account has accumulated for months or years with little active management. The Apprenticeship Service portal does not chase you. It simply logs the expiry dates and returns the money when the time is up. If you are not sure how much is in your account right now, check today.
Mistake 3: Choosing programmes based on what sounds impressive rather than what fits the role
Levy funds are genuinely wasted when the apprenticeship standard does not match the employee's day-to-day responsibilities. If someone is primarily a social media and video content creator, enrolling them on a broad multi-channel programme may frustrate them and reduce the quality of their EPA evidence. NTG Training will always recommend the standard that is the genuine best fit — not the one that draws down the most levy.
⚠️ Do Not Let Your Levy Expire
If you are a levy-paying employer and you have not spoken to NTG Training yet, do it today. A single 30-minute conversation with Tina Lavery will show you exactly how much levy you have, how much is at risk of expiring, and which digital marketing programmes are the best fit for your team. There is no cost and no obligation. Book that conversation now →
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use my Apprenticeship Levy to fund digital marketing training?
Yes. The levy can fund any approved apprenticeship standard, including the Multi-Channel Marketer L3 (£11,000), Content Creator L3 (£12,000), and Marketing Manager L6 (£14,000). NTG Training delivers all three. Funds are drawn monthly from your levy account as training progresses — no upfront lump sum required.
When does my Apprenticeship Levy expire?
Unspent levy funds expire 24 months after entering your digital levy account. Each monthly contribution has its own 24-month clock. Once expired, funds are returned to HM Treasury — they cannot be reclaimed or rolled over. Checking your expiry schedule through the Apprenticeship Service portal is strongly recommended.
How do I access my levy account?
Your levy account is accessed through the Apprenticeship Service at gov.uk/sign-in-apprenticeship-service-account. Log in with your Government Gateway credentials. NTG Training can guide you through setup and adding us as an approved provider if you have not used the portal before.
What if my levy balance is not enough to cover the full programme cost?
If your levy balance falls below the cost of a programme, the government co-investment rules apply to any shortfall. For levy employers, the government pays 95% of any shortfall, and you pay 5%. NTG Training will be transparent about this if it applies to your situation before you commit to anything.
Can I fund training for existing employees as well as new hires?
Yes. Levy funds can be used to train existing employees on marketing apprenticeship programmes, provided they do not already hold a qualification at the same or higher level in the same subject area. This is one of the most underused applications of the levy and one that NTG Training actively supports employers to explore.
Can I transfer levy funds to another employer?
Yes. Levy-paying employers can transfer up to 25% of their annual levy to other businesses. The receiving business can use those funds to pay for apprenticeship training, including NTG's digital marketing programmes. Contact Tina Lavery to discuss levy transfers in more detail.
How quickly can we get started?
Once eligibility is confirmed and the Apprenticeship Service paperwork is in place, NTG Training can typically begin a programme within four to six weeks of initial contact. If levy funds are approaching expiry, we will prioritise accordingly. Contact Tina Lavery today to begin the process.
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