An HGV apprenticeship is a driving job with the training built in: you pay nothing for the licence training, and you are paid a salary while you learn. In England there is an apprenticeship for lorry drivers and one for bus and coach drivers, and both are run by employers rather than training schools.
You are employed from day one, you pay nothing for the training and you are paid a salary. To start you must be 18 or over and not in full-time education. Some vacancies also ask for a full car licence, so read each advert closely.
Because the apprenticeship is a job, you apply to the employer, not to a training school. The employer chooses the training provider, and the apprenticeship ends with an end-point assessment.
Skills England publishes these two standards for professional drivers:
The funding band is the most the government will contribute towards training and assessment. Both driving apprenticeships sit at £8,000; the lorry standard's band was raised to that in June 2023, from £7,000. Employers with a pay bill over £3m pay the apprenticeship levy, 0.5% of the pay bill with a £15,000 annual allowance.
For apprenticeships starting from 1 August 2026, the employer's share, called co-investment, works like this:
An apprenticeship can let you drive professionally before it ends. The Driver CPC national vocational training (NVT) concession lets you drive professionally before passing Driver CPC parts 2 and 4, as long as you are registered on an eligible course or apprenticeship of six months or more and have passed parts 1 and 3. It lasts 12 months, costs £25 and can only be used once.
Once qualified, you keep your Driver CPC like any professional driver, with 35 hours of periodic training every five years.
Search Find an apprenticeship on GOV.UK for 'LGV driver' or simply 'driver'; the service covers England. Check the standard named in the advert (ST0257 for lorries, ST0338 for buses and coaches), whether a car licence is needed, and where the training and tests will take place.
Vacancies depend on employers advertising them, so there may be none near you at a given time. It is worth asking an operator you would like to work for whether they take apprentices. Under the 2026 rules, an apprentice under 25 costs a non-levy employer nothing in co-investment, which can help that conversation.
An apprenticeship suits you if you want to be paid while you train and are happy to commit to one employer for around a year. A training course suits you if you want the licence in weeks rather than a year and want to choose where you work afterwards, but you pay for it unless one of the funded routes applies.
If an employer offers to pay for a course outside an apprenticeship, read any repayment clause carefully. The Court of Appeal ruled in 2026 that a repayment clause must reflect a genuine training cost and be proportionate, and where training is a contractual requirement of the job, charging you for it cannot take your pay below the National Minimum Wage.
Yes. In England the LGV driver C+E apprenticeship (standard ST0257) trains you to the full articulated Class 1 licence over about 13 months, and a bus and coach driver apprenticeship (ST0338) takes about 12 months. Both are Level 2, and both are jobs with an employer, not courses you book.
The LGV driver C+E apprenticeship typically lasts 13 months, not counting the end-point assessment. The bus and coach driver apprenticeship typically lasts 12 months. A licence course on its own is much shorter, but you pay for it unless you qualify for funding.
Yes. An apprentice is an employee, so you are paid a salary throughout and pay nothing towards the training. Pay varies by employer, so check each vacancy. The employer and the government share the training cost, within a maximum funding band of £8,000 for both driving apprenticeships.
18 or over, and not in full-time education. Some vacancies also ask for a full car licence. For apprentices aged 24 or under at the start, employers pay no co-investment towards the training on apprenticeships starting from August 2026.
Yes. The passenger transport driver apprenticeship for bus and coach or tram (standard ST0338) is Level 2, typically takes 12 months and has a maximum funding band of £8,000. Typical job titles are bus driver, coach driver and tram driver. Search Find an apprenticeship for driver vacancies.
For starts from 1 August 2026, nothing in co-investment for apprentices aged 24 or under. For apprentices aged 25 or over, non-levy employers pay 5% and levy payers who have used up their funds pay 25%. On an £8,000 course that is £400 or £2,000, plus the apprentice's wages.
Use Find an apprenticeship on GOV.UK and search for 'LGV driver' or 'driver'. Check the standard in the advert, whether a car licence is needed and where the training happens. If nothing is listed nearby, ask local operators directly whether they take apprentices.
Train one-to-one in a full-size vehicle, with your DVSA test fees included and the training centre, test centre, dates and full price confirmed in writing before you pay anything. When you pass, we make introductions to our employer network. Call 01634 907 229 or WhatsApp 07541 093339.
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Free HGV training: who can genuinely get it in 2026 · HGV Skills Bootcamps in 2026: what they cover and how to find one · The Class 1 licence (Category C+E) explained · The PCV licence (Category D) explained · What the Driver CPC actually is · How to get your HGV licence — every step · All HGV and PCV guides