In an interesting year for training providers, The Learning and Performance Institute (LPI) has published details of the Training Top 50, ranking the biggest training providers in the UK in 2013 and providing a good visual snapshot of the current market.

Compiled by The LPI, the Training Top 50 is based primarily on the fiscal successes of training companies for the last financial year. The Institute has been charting the success of training companies for over 15 years.

2013 sees A4e (Action for Employment) take first place at the top of the list with a reported revenue of £194m. Starting out life in 1991 in Sheffield providing redundant steelworkers with training so that they could find new jobs, A4e now has offices across the globe and works in partnership with governments, public sector organisations, private sector companies, voluntary and community groups to deliver a range of front line public services across the UK and overseas including skills and training.

Babcock International once again secures one of the top places at number two, joined by a number of other familiar names such as Kaplan, BPP, and QA, who once again all make it into the Top 10.

Jumping six places from last year’s position, Lifetime Training are placed at number 25 and are delighted to be recognised once again in the Training Top 50. CEO, Alex Khan said: “Our success has largely been the result of a focus on innovative, intelligent business practices. It is the dedication and commitment to our customers that has resulted in such dynamic growth.”

Just making it into the Top 50 at the other end of the list were Falck Safety Services with a reported revenue of £14m, and ILX Group at £13m, both of whom have seen a 4% increase in growth over the last year.

This year’s Training Top 50 shows us that there has been a slight fall in the overall market, seeing a shrinkage of 4% since 2012 when the market was worth £2.5bn, to its current worth of £2.4bn. In 2011 the Government made changes to the way it funds many of its programmes, resulting in a consolidation of the welfare-to-work funding stream into the Work Programme. It is suggested that this fall in the overall market could be the impact of these changes beginning to surface.

The full Training Top 50 booklet can be downloaded from the LPI website.

The LPI begins to collate information for the Top 50 in April. If you would like to be considered for inclusion in next year’s Top 50, please submit your latest accounts to the LPI in April to: [email protected]