It was recently announced that those employers making claims under the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme (CJRS) will be published. HMRC will publish employer names, details about the value of the claim and company numbers, on a monthly basis.

However, the Government recently updated its guidance confirming that in certain circumstances employers can request that their claims under the CJRS are not published.

In order to do this, employers have to demonstrate that if their claims were published, this would lead to a serious risk of violence or intimidation to certain individuals, which include:

Employers that are individuals (employers or any employees of the employer).

Employers that are companies (directors, officers or employees of that company).

Employers that are partnerships (partners, officers or employees of that partnership).

Employers that are LLPs (members or employees of that LLP).

Trustees of a trust (settlors, trustees or beneficiaries of the trust).

Any individual living with any of the above.

Applications must include relevant company details and evidence supporting their application showing the danger to individuals and any documentary evidence of any attack.

Employers must make these applications themselves without the use of third parties.

Apprenticeships During Lockdown

Training providers, employers and end-point assessment organisations must now ensure that training and assessment should take place remotely wherever possible. However, face-to-face training and assessment can continue in:

Colleges and training providers' premises for vulnerable young apprentices (which includes 16 to 18 year olds who may have difficulty engaging with remote training and assessment at home which may be due to a lack of devices, connectivity or quiet places to study) and the children of key workers who need it.

Employers' Covid-secure settings (only where essential and safe).

Any face-to-face training/assessment must be done in small groups, following a risk assessment, and with social distancing in place.

End-point assessment and functional skills assessments can continue in colleges, training providers' premises, assessment venues and workplaces where it cannot be conducted remotely and where providers and end-point assessment organisations judge it right to do so.

If there is more than a four-week break in an apprenticeship, employers or training providers must report a formal break in learning which will suspend funding to the training provider for the duration of the break in learning. However, once possible, apprenticeships should resume.