Apprenticeships in the Schools Workforce
Apprenticeships are a great way to upskill existing staff, improve retention or recruit fresh talent to support your school to thrive. Apprenticeships can seem complicated, and you may not know where to start when exploring this opportunity.
An apprenticeship that can be completed alongside an existing job role or be a paid work opportunity for anyone over the age of 16 in England. Alongside on-the-job training, apprentices spend at least 20% of their working hours completing ‘classroom-based learning’ with a college, university or training provider which leads to a nationally recognised qualification.
Apprenticeships are delivered through a mixture of workplace training, online or classroom training, and online resources for self-study. Training providers offer a range of different delivery styles which means not all apprenticeships will require a member of staff to be out of the office a day a week in a classroom environment if this does not meet the needs of the school or apprentice.
Devon County Council’s Apprenticeships & Early Careers Team support maintained schools with navigating this process. Below are some starting tips to help you understand the apprenticeship process.
How to Identify an Apprenticeship Standard & Training Provider
The Institute for Apprenticeships Website is the best place to look for apprenticeships that will be funded via the DCC apprenticeship levy.
You can use the apprenticeship search function and keywords to filter your results to see what’s available or explore the occupational maps. For example, they have an Education & Early Years section which lists all the apprenticeship standards that relate directly to this sector.
Once you’ve found an appropriate apprenticeship, you will need to find a training provider.
For Voluntary Controlled and Community Schools will need to follow the Council’s procurement requirements due to Devon County Council being classed as the employer. These schools mustcontact the Apprenticeships & Early Careers Team (apprenticeships@devon.gov.uk) prior to contacting a training provider. The team will advise on training provider options that meet the Council’s procurement requirements.
We will then link directly with the training provider on your behalf to arrange for a contract to be in place for the delivery of the apprenticeship. You aren’t expected to be an expert on procurement, that’s where the team come in!
For Voluntary Aided and Foundation Schools you are able to complete your own procurement exercise when selecting a training provider to identify a provide that suits the learning needs as Devon County Council is not classed as the employer for your schools.
Funding the Training via the Levy
The apprenticeship levy can be used to fund the training costs of the apprenticeship only. Salary, travel or any other associated costs would be required to come from the schools budget.
Devon County Council administer the apprenticeship levy on all schools behalf. All schools must contact Devon County Council prior to contacting the training provider. Without speaking to the team first, no funding can be released. The Apprenticeships & Early Careers Team will provide a short Levy Funding Application Form which will need to be complete to reserve the funds.
This now includes Voluntary Aided and Foundation schools who previously were unable to access the apprenticeship levy. This is due to the ongoing issues with the Pooled PAYE number preventing schools from creating their own apprenticeship service account.
Enrolling onto the Apprenticeship
Once you have identified the apprenticeship and a suitable training provider, linked with the Apprenticeships & Early Careers Team to complete the levy funding application form to reserve funding, you are nearly done!
As part of the enrolment, the requirements will differ slightly depending on the apprenticeship and level. However, all apprenticeships will require an Apprenticeships Agreement and Training Plan to be in place.
An Apprenticeship Agreement is a document that details the following:
- the skill, trade or occupation the apprentice is being trained for
- the name of the apprenticeship they’re working towards
- the start and end dates for the apprenticeship
- the amount of training they’ll be given
A Training Plan is a document that details the following:
- the planned content and schedule for training
- what is expected and offered by the employer, the training provider and the apprentice
- how to resolve queries or complaints
These documents will be provided by the training provider for the line manager and the apprentice to sign. If you’re unsure on if you or the Apprenticeships & Early Careers Team should be signing a document from the training provider, contact us and we will advise.
UPDATE! Functional Skills English and maths requirement has been removed for apprentices over the age of 19 with immediate effect
The current requirement that apprentices aged 19 or older must pass level 2 functional skills courses to complete their apprenticeship has been removed. This means apprentices over the age of 19 are no longer mandated to complete functional skills alongside the apprenticeship removing a potential barrier to some apprentices.
There will be no change to the rule for 16 to 18 apprentices, who will still be required to pass level 2 functional skills exams to complete their apprenticeship.
Recruiting an Apprentice
If you are interested in recruiting an apprentice to complete an apprenticeship, the Apprenticeships & Early Careers Team can provide a guidance document which will cover further elements as such developing a job description, advertising the role, recruitment, & selection, potential boundaries and more.
Contact the Apprenticeships & Early Careers Team
If you’re unsure about the process, if your school can access funding or which training provider deliver the apprenticeship standard you’re exploring, contact the team.
We recommend getting in touch with us as soon as possible to enable us to advise you accordingly and ensure a smooth process.
Email: Apprenticeships@devon.gov.uk
Phone: 013929 38 3000 – Ask for Apprenticeships
The Apprenticeships & Early Careers Team will be attending the upcoming Bursar Briefings on the 4th, 5th & 6th March to discuss apprenticeships further and how you can use them in the schools workforce. See you there!