Our first meeting will be a conversation to get to know each other, and see how The Colleges’ Partnership (TCP) can help you. We’ll provide you with impartial information, advice and guidance in order for you to make a decision about delivering an apprenticeship. Should there be substantial interest, TCP will send you delivery plans and overviews of select apprenticeships that may suit your organisation.
Once you confirm you would like to proceed delivering an apprenticeship with TCP, you will be assigned a Case Manager who will digitally send you a contract outlining the terms of the agreement between the employer and TCP, and due diligence forms that will need to be completed in order to proceed. Your Case Manager will be your first point of contact for any queries you have throughout the apprenticeship journey.
After the contract is signed by all parties, TCP can support the process of recruiting an apprentice. TCP; with the employers permission, can manage the recruitment process via the Digital Apprenticeship Service (DAS) website - a service we will help you set up an account for. Once the employer has completed a job description form, and confirmed their agreement to TCP managing the recruitment process via the DAS, TCP will then manage the process and share applications with the employer at the closing date. If the employer wishes to enrol a current employee on to an apprenticeship, or the employer has already appointed the apprentice, no further action is necessary at this stage.
Alongside this process, we will also arrange for the employer to meet our Funding Manager, who will provide information, advice and guidance on the funding and payment processes.
At this stage, the apprentice recruitment process will have been completed, and an assessor will be assigned to work with the apprentice. The designated assessor will support and assess the apprentice’s progress throughout the apprenticeship from the very beginning, and this starts with an initial meeting to complete the following documentation:
TCP’s policy is to recognise prior learning as a method of assessing whether a learner’s experience and achievements meet the evidence requirements of the knowledge, skills and behaviours of the apprenticeship standard. All apprentices are to produce all prior learning certificates and TCP will check the Learner Assessment Records (LARS) for validity.
Skill scan is an online self-assessment completed by the apprentice in order to ensure that the chosen apprenticeship standard is appropriate.
The skills scan is also a method of RPL, which enables TCP to tailor the delivery plan appropriately. Should the RPL deem that content can be omitted from the training plan, this will lead to a reduction in off-the-job training hours and will subsequently reduce the price of the apprenticeship.
A form that ensures the apprentice is eligible to undertake an apprenticeship.
This form will identify the apprentice’s start and end dates for the practical period of their employment, as well as date of the end of assessment period (including their End Point Assessment (EPA). The end date for the practical period and the end of assessment period date are approximately three months apart.
This document is underpinned by the Delivery Plan and will outline precisely how TCP will deliver training to the apprentice.
The apprentice’s first day in learning is their official start date of their programme, and TCP ensure the apprentice receives safeguarding and health and safety training, as well as establishing their first SMART targets with their assessor. Apprenticeship’s vary in length from 12-30 months, and we feel it is crucial that communication between all stakeholders is consistent throughout the process. Whilst your Case Manager and our assessor’s are available to speak to at any point, we like to at least operate with the 4-8-12 rule (see below).
4 Weeks
Every 4 weeks the assessor will meet the apprentice (either virtually or inperson) and have a conversation about their progress.
8 Weeks
Every 8 weeks the assessor will undertake a formal review of the apprentice’s progress, setting them SMART (specific, measurable, achievable, relevant and time-based) targets.
12 Weeks Every 12 weeks the employer and Case Manager will meet for a formal review of the overall progress of the apprenticeship.
At the end of the apprenticeship, the apprentice will need to undertake an End-Point Assessment (EPA), which will test the knowledge, skills and behaviours that the apprentice has gained throughout their apprenticeship, and demonstrates their competence as an apprentice in their role. In order to undertake an EPA, two things are required.
For an apprentice to undertake the EPA, they need to advance through ‘Gateway’. Gateway is a process by which an employer and their training provider sit down and review the apprentice’s progress to see if they have met the minimum requirements in order to take the EPA. The minimum requirements are as follows:
• Display occupational competency
• Passed Functional Skills in English and Maths
• Completed mandatory training
• Taken any qualifications set out in the apprenticeship standard
• Have met the minimum duration for their apprenticeship training
The EPAO is an independent body who is responsible for conducting the apprentice’s EPA. There are many different EPAO’s available to choose from, and approximately 6 months before the Gateway process is due to begin, your Case Manager will contact you to provide information, advice and guidance on selecting an EPAO, however, it is the sole responsibility of the employer to choose the EPAO.
There are a multitude of different acronyms associated with apprenticeships, and sometimes it can be a little daunting to come across. Below we have provided you with a small apprenticeship acronym cheat sheet you can refer to if you’re ever in any doubt.
ALS Additional Learning Support
EPA End Point Assessment
EPAO End Point Assessment Organisation
EQA External Quality Assurance
ESFA Education and Skills Funding Agency
ILP Individual Learning Plan
ILR Individual Learner Record
KSB Knowledge Skills Behaviours
LARS Learning Assessment Records
LCS Learner Commitment Statement
NAS National Apprenticeship Service
QAR Qualification Achievement Rates
QIP Quality Improvement Plan
RPL Recognition of Prior Learning
SAR Self Assessment Report
