As an academy trust with 19 schools across East Sussex and South London, we’re creating a workforce united by a mission to improve the life chances of all children.
Apprenticeships as a route into working for STEP Academy Trust have proved popular, with a growing number of apprentices across ICT, business administration, sports and premises, and now teaching via our new teaching degree apprenticeships.
Throughout this expansion we have learned lessons, including the importance of working with providers whose values align with ours.
However, apprenticeships in schools remain under-discussed within the wider skills landscape. And this is surprising given the number of support staff and teachers who enter the sector this way.
The best structure for apprenticeships continues to evolve, with the recent creation of Skills England, the introduction of the growth and skills levy and the importance of what prime minister Sir Keir Starmer describes as “gold-standard apprenticeships”.
Alternative training route
STEP introduced apprenticeships because we understood that everyone learns differently, and there are plenty of talented, passionate people who need a different environment to thrive.
We are proud that some of our senior leaders came through the apprenticeship route, so our values have been instilled from the outset.
We have also been well placed to learn from other qualification models, taking what’s working well from traditional routes into teaching, namely SCITT (School-Centred Initial Teacher Training) and ITT (Initial Teacher Training), and embedding them into our apprenticeships.
This is part of our commitment to ensuring our apprentices receive the same level of high-quality teaching, support and career development as those on traditional routes.
This inspired the creation of the STEP Apprenticeship Network and Mentorship Programme, designed to address some of the key barriers young people and career-changers face when beginning an apprenticeship. The network offers reflection and collaboration by connecting apprentices across departments, providing a platform to share learning and mutual support.
To deepen organisational understanding, senior leaders are invited to showcase career pathways, and each session concludes with hands-on activities that challenge participants and strengthen teamwork.
In addition, our mentorship model mirrors the PGCE. Each apprentice is paired with one of our eight mentors, who work within a different service and school. This broadens our apprentices’ exposure to various operational contexts, facilitates knowledge sharing and builds their confidence through guidance, feedback and peer learning.
The appetite for this support is shown by the near-100 per cent attendance at all of our apprenticeship network events. Apprentices report that they feel more confident and have clarity about their career progression.
In total, 90 per cent of those who have completed an apprenticeship with us went on to join us in a full-time position.
Possibility of progression
The success of this approach is also evidenced by the progression of our staff. For example, one of our cleaners embarked on the facilities apprenticeship. Not only has she qualified, but she has been promoted to assistant site manager and is now a mentor for other apprentices.
Ultimately, the programme is supporting our apprentices to reach their potential by facilitating opportunities to learn from their peers and maximising engagement by having consistent expert support around them.
This is accelerating professional growth by creating clear, supported pathways from entry-level roles to long-term careers in education. As a result, apprentices feel fully embedded and part of our mission.
While apprenticeships are a big part of our ethos at STEP, no pathway should function in isolation. There is much to gain from sharing insights from other career entry routes, which helps us to build a more inclusive, flexible and future-ready workforce.
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