In 2013 the government announced their ambitions plans to have 3 million apprenticeships by 2020. An apprenticeship is a combination of employment and training, where the apprentice gains a nationally recognised qualification on completion.
Apprenticeships are available to anyone entitled to work in the UK, they must be aged 16 and over and not currently in full time education.
How do apprenticeships differ from other training?
They are a unique way of learning a profession in the workplace that can be tailored to the specific requirements of an organisation, encompassing current and future needs of the business.
Organisations can utilise the skills and knowledge of existing employees ensuring they keep this in-house, passed down from one generation to the next.
Apprentices bring in the latest learning and innovations through their formal training in the classroom. They are also able to contribute to the productivity of the organisation, so employers can see a return on investment from the outset or at least in the early-stages of the apprenticeship.
How do apprenticeships work and how are they safeguarded?
The government is working to safeguard the quality of apprenticeships. Employers should not view them as a way of getting cheap labour or for low skilled roles. The term ‘apprenticeship’ will be protected by law to safeguard them and preventing them being misused.
In April 2012 the government announced the minimum length of all apprenticeships will be 12 months. Apprentices should be employed for a minimum of 30 hours a week, including time spent away from the workplace in training.
Apprentices are covered by employment law and have the same rights as other employees. The National Minimum Wage Act must be complied with.
Funding
Apprenticeship levy - Employers with a pay bill of more than £3 million each year pay an apprenticeship levy through Pay as you Earn (PAYE) process. In England employers paying this levy can use it to fund apprenticeships.
Apprenticeship service – An online service that employers can register on for payments and receiving funds.
Co-investment – For organisation’s that don’t pay the levy, they can share the cost of training and assessing their apprentices with the government, employers pay 10% and the government pay 90%.
For further information on funding visit the government website: Apprenticeship funding: how it works
Key features to consider
- How does an apprenticeship fit within your strategic workforce plan? Identify any skills or knowledge gaps.
- Design an apprenticeship programme, identifying the benefits and costs to the organisation. Consider the impact on the rest of the workforce and how you will get buy in from the whole organisation. Who will manage and mentor the apprentice? What training and support will they require to do this?
- Who will provide the external training? Visit www.apprenticeships.org.uk for finding providers. You will need to work closely with the training provider to ensure the external training fits the needs of the organisation.
- How will you recruit to the programme, internally or externally? You are looking for someone with potential and who has capacity for learning and development. The government website offers support on finding an apprentice.
- Create an apprenticeship agreement, this should be signed by the apprentice and employer at the start of the apprenticeship.
- Running the apprenticeship, you need to ensure that the programme is designed to effectively support the apprentice’s individual needs as well as the requirements of the role. It will need a proactive approach throughout the duration, with clear goals and objectives from the outset. Regular reviews, communication and feedback will help to make sure the programme is running well and that the apprentice is getting what they need. Ensure any issues or learning gaps are addressed quickly.
- At the end of the apprenticeship how will they be integrated in to the workforce?
Benefits to an organisation
A well designed and managed apprenticeship can provide organisations a unique opportunity to grow their own talent with the specific skills the business requires. They offer apprentices a career route in to an organisation and can give other employees the opportunity to develop their leadership and mentoring skills, this can drive retention and engagement. Apprenticeships can also help to improve diversity and social mobility within an organisation, for example they can tackle gender bias in roles that might currently be dominated by one particular gender.