Bosses at an adviser training academy fear planned apprentice schemes could be ‘destroyed’ after hitting a “large stumbling block”.

Darren Smith, head of Old Mutual Wealth’s Financial Adviser School, called for political parties to address the problem during the election campaign.

He said the school was planning to provide apprenticeships from this year.

But it has been hit by delays and wants politicians to outline what they will do to get the process moving again.

He said problems had arisen when, in April, the Education and Skills Funding Agency announced that it was pausing its £440 million procurement process for the 98 percent of non-levy paying employers.

The Government stated that it needed to revisit how it will distribute funding and many training providers may not receive funding until 2018.

Mr Smith said this hit providers and students alike.

The Financial Adviser School, a not for profit training provider, offers a study programme providing academic support and soft-skills training for those hoping to obtain a Diploma in Financial Planning and pursue a career as a professional financial adviser.

Mr Smith said: “The delay in funding has meant all apprenticeship providers, including the Financial Adviser School, now have to either find other sources of funding or tell students they will have to wait for next year.

“With the upcoming snap election, political parties have the opportunity to outline how they plan to address the issue of apprenticeships and to ensure that the merits of this initiative are not destroyed.”

He said: “In the run up to the general election, political parties have started to outline fresh plans to improve education and employment. They must not fail to address the revised plans to the apprenticeship scheme, which has hit a large stumbling block. Whoever comes to power needs to address the funding issue quickly to ensure the scheme, which is crucial to the economy’s growth, is a success.”

The new levy requires all employers in the UK with an annual wage bill of over £3 million to pay 0.5% of it towards funding apprenticeships. This money will be invested in quality training for apprentices and double the annual investment in apprenticeships in England to £2.5 billion by 2019 to 2020, compared with 2010 to 2011 levels.