New guidelines for apprenticeships
Employers must take responsibility for apprentices’ off-the-job training, according to new government guidelines.
The guidelines lay out further details of the apprenticeship levy’s training requirements, which employers and providers will be expected to comply with to deliver high-quality apprenticeship programmes.
As part of the requirements of the new apprenticeship levy, which was introduced this April, 20% training must be off-the-job — described in the guidelines as learning that takes place outside the core working environment and which focuses on the personal development of the apprentice.
Keith Smith, director of funding and programmes at the Education and Skills Funding Agency (ESFA), which is working alongside the government to oversee the apprenticeship levy, said employers and providers that were confused by the off-the-job training threshold must approach ESFA with any queries, warning that a hard line would be taken with any employer that did not comply with the guidelines.
“A huge amount of work has gone into the guidelines — please do read it, as this will be an area of zero-tolerance around non-compliance,” he said.
Actual delivery of the training can be handled by a provider or the employer themselves. Regardless of how the training is delivered, employers will be responsible for making sure apprenticeships are receiving off-the-job training for a minimum of a fifth of the time they are paid to work.
www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/621565/OTJ_training_guidance.pdf