Upon programme commencement, a representative from the organisation must be a first point of contact for all apprenticeship matters. This person must ensure the organisation supports the apprentice as required by the Education & Skills Funding Agency, and they should partake in quarterly meetings at the very least, but managers are typically much more proactive.
It is employer commitment and involvement that leads to the best training experience for the apprentice. It is highly recommended that your organisation appoints a mentor (not necessarily their manager) so that the apprentice can talk more regularly with a work colleague or superior about their development.
For a non-levy organisation, up to 10 members of staff can be trained at the same time using Government funds for apprenticeships. There is no time like the present to prioritise staff training and keeping digital skills relevant and useful to your business, whilst funds are available due to being under-utilised.
You can read more about the levy and how it works here, but the quickest way to get started with hiring or placing staff on apprenticeships is to fill in this form.
When it comes to guiding an apprentice’s knowledge and skills, we as the training provider ensure they are on track to satisfy their Qualification Standard. In terms of their behavioural development, this starts with your leadership.
Is your workplace and team set up in a way that the people working in it are led, supported and appraised for continuing development? If you have a concern about what responsibilities there are in managing apprentices: Firstly, you should treat them like a member of staff. Read more here.
To get off to the best start, you can always read our guide on How to set tasks for apprentices and get the best result. Also consider upskilling and training your current staff, even Executives and Directors, to lead to a stronger and better performing team.
Employees working 31 hours or more will have enough time to complete any Commun-IT programme, where 20% of their time is dedicated to guided off-the-job training.
The schedule of an apprentice’s time is something that you as the employer must define with us, such that we can make sure the apprentice will attend their guided training hours. These run as fixed classes and attendance is a requirement.
The remaining 80% of the apprentice’s work hours are spent on-the-job i.e. under your direct instruction. You can read more about how to support an apprentice in making the best use of their time here.
Any organisation, whether a self-employed business, a charity or business, who can pay the apprentice through payroll can have an apprentice. That of course means current staff can also train through apprenticeship programmes.
The Government funds the training for all companies with a payroll bill under £3 million annually (non-levy). Non-levy companies do not have to contribute towards costs if the apprentice is 16-18 years old, wherein The Government also gives you a £1,000 cash incentive. For age 19+ apprentices, you have to contribute only 5% of training costs.
It depends on the age of the learner. The government funds either 100% or 95% of training costs. The 5% employer contribution, if applicable, is paid to the training provider.
There are also government cash incentives if you place new or current staff on apprenticeships. We have a guide on Apprenticeship Training costs here.
Age affects the management of a programme but not its relevance. The apprentice simply needs to be in need of the skills the qualification delivers. Therefore, any employee who will be employed for the full duration of the qualification can undertake an apprenticeship. Apprentices are trained and challenged not only on the knowledge and skills for the job, but the behaviours that make them efficient and good workers.
Apprenticeships are here to keep staff trained for evolving businesses and changing markets. This is also known as continual professional development (CPD) and is typically required for businesses that require digital skills. Outdated workforce skill levels cause stagnation and poor productivity. Training can not only increase skills but also confidence and motivation.
Apprentices are a member of staff under normal employment law. They should be paid through payroll and given payslips as usual. Their salary should be the best package that you can offer them.
You can also utilise the Apprentice Wage of £4.30 per hour for the first year if you require. The Government has made reduced costs an opportunity for businesses to be able to afford unqualified staff who are in Government funded training.
You can either recruit directly yourself, and use our Guidance for Apprentice Recruitment, or hire our Source Apprentice (SApp) managed service.
Source Apprentice (SApp) Managed Service
A Commun-IT specialist can help solidify your recruitment strategy to attract high quality talent. We find candidates with a proven willingness to learn at the pace of the job role and training requirements.
Once we provide you with a vetted shortlist of candidates, you can invite your selection to an interview. Successful candidates must be given a contract under normal employment law, after which we can onboard them as a learner, and yourself as their employer onto our systems. Read more about recruitment here.
Eligiblity requirements for Commun-IT courses are very simple. An employee:
If you have someone whom you would like to train, the quickest way forward is for the employer to fill in the form on this link, or the employee to fill in a different form here. If they are not started as an employee, but you would like to check if they would like to undertake the qualification, this form is also suitable. It can also check the motivations for existing staff, whom you are considering putting into training.
