Beyond numbers: What supervisors really think about apprenticeships

While government efforts to simplify and grow apprenticeships remain a work in progress, the view from those managing apprentices remains encouragingly positive.

As a national business and professional apprenticeship provider, we recently undertook a survey of 256 apprentice supervisors – the people responsible for day-to-day apprentice management. It showed us where apprenticeships are providing value to organisations.

Some 70 per cent of supervisors cited the new ideas and perspectives apprentices bring to their teams, 56 per cent highlighted energy and motivation, 48 per cent welcomed the freeing up of others’ time and 46 per cent mentioned productivity. Overall, 94 per cent of supervisors felt apprentices bring value to their team.

Yet the most valuable impact for supervisors themselves – cited by 89 per cent – was the opportunity to watch someone develop and grow. It’s a reminder of the holistic benefits of apprenticeships.

The research also reveals where gaps in support lie.

Balancing softer and more practical management skills

Soft skills are considered most important to supervising apprentices effectively, with the provision of constructive feedback, building rapport and supporting wellbeing and motivationbeing highlighted by more than 90 per cent of respondents. In the last two areas, most supervisors state they are performing “very well”.

However, their self-assessed performance in other areas is weaker, particularly the more practical aspects of apprentice supervision: while more than 76 percent consider keeping apprentices on track with their apprenticeship “very important”, only 42 percent feel they do it “very well”.

Meanwhile, 87 per cent place maximum importance on allocating appropriate work, but only 58 percent are doing it “very well”. And while 94 percent emphasise the importance of providing constructive feedback, only 67 per cent feel they’re excelling at it.

Other challenges identified by supervisors included finding time to support apprentices(cited by 53 per cent) and understanding how the apprenticeship works(42 per cent). Conversely, supervisors are navigating other challenges well, such as giving apprentices off-the-job study time (80 per cent) and keeping apprentices engaged and motivated (76 per cent).

So how can supervisors and their organisations improve their skills further to ensure everyone benefits from apprenticeship programmes.

1. Creating confidence

Demonstrate a clear vision for apprentices’ roles in the organisation. Newer managers will benefit from colleagues with experience of supervising apprentices and how it differs from managing other colleagues. Training providers may be able to introduce managers to apprentice supervisors at other organisations.

2. Keeping apprentices on track

Ensure sufficient time away from work activities for apprentices’ study, either through full days of study or shorter chunks. It is difficult to catch up later, so review your apprenticeship provider’s progress reporting system and participate in the review meetings.

3. Providing effective feedback

Allocate time for apprentice feedback in the apprentice’s normal one-to-one or check-in schedule to ensure apprenticeship progress aligns with achieving full competence. Regular feedback helps address issues such as areas for improvement or getting progress back on track. Reviews with the apprenticeship provider are a chance for everyone to agree how things are going.

4. Allocating appropriate work

Provide structured activities before expanding the range and complexity of tasks. Discuss the apprenticeship standard with your provider to allow real-life exposure to the required competencies. Delegation from colleagues will enhance the variety of work and skills developed.

5. Finding and making the time

Make sure supervisors have time and resources to support their apprentice, especially at the beginning. Equally important is regular, constructive feedback from the supervisor but also a mentor, more experienced colleagues and perhaps a nominated ‘buddy’.

6. Understanding how the apprenticeship works

Understand the apprenticeship standard, training plan, end-point assessment and how the apprenticeship content meets your business needs. Choose activities to complement the standard by monitoring progress through the learning modules and with input from the apprentice’s coach.

7. Organisational support

Being an apprentice supervisor requires organisational support and time investment. Larger organisations should consider training and input from the training provider. In smaller organisations, advice from the apprenticeship coach and provider resources are useful.

The signs are strong that managers are delivering on the main components of effective apprentice supervision. But learning, development and improvement is as much for the manager as the managed. Ensuring a tangible return on an apprenticeship investment depends on it.

Colleges trial student exam records sharing app that could ‘save millions’

Around £30 million a year in admin costs could be saved with a new app for year 11 pupils that automatically shares their key information and exam results, ministers have claimed. 

Nearly 100,000 year 11 pupils in the Greater Manchester and the West Midlands combined authority areas will be the first to trial the app, called Education Record, this summer. 

Alongside receiving their GCSE results through the app in August, pupils can enrol for a college course or an apprenticeship with an employer without needing to bring physical copies of their qualifications or ID.

Education minister Stephen Morgan told FE Week the move will reduce burdens on school and college staff and was “just common sense” for learners moving to further education. 

“Far too often you hear about documents being saved in dusty old cabinets,” Morgan said.

“It just makes sense to have all that information in an app to make that transition to your next step. Hopefully, it will make a big difference.”

Using the app, pupils can share their information with a sixth form, college or training provider. This will then automatically share their unique learner number, date of birth, sex, address, GCSE results, school information, financial and learning support needs. 

A Department for Education press release claimed the digital record app could collectively save schools and colleges up to £30 million per year in admin costs if fully rolled out. 

Year 11 pupils at Hathershaw College school in Oldham have had access to the app since spring 2024. One pupil, who is hoping to progress to an engineering T Level at a local college this September, told FE Week the app was “a lot more efficient”.

“Now you get your results on GCSE day, and you have to keep your certificates safe for weeks and weeks. Whereas if it’s all on your phone, you know it’s going to be with the younger generation all the time anyway. So when you go to college, everything they ask for is on your phone already,” the student said.

In total, 487 schools, as well as colleges, in the Greater Manchester and West Midlands combined authorities have been invited to take part in the pilot, which runs until September. A decision about next steps will be made in the autumn. 

Morgan was cautious not to fully commit to a future rollout of the app while the pilot was underway, but said he was “really keen to learn lessons and think about how we can use AI and technology more broadly in the education system”.

School and college leaders welcomed the plans. 

The Association of Colleges (AoC) described the app as a “game-changer” for learners.

Catherine Sezen, director of education policy at the AoC, said: “Having all their personal data and exam results in on easy to access app will make enrolment so much smoother for them and for their college. Time and money currently spent on admin will allow colleges to offer even more comprehensive information advice and guidance on and after results days.”

Pepe Di’Iasio, general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said the app was a “positive step forward” but wanted a “much more strategic vision” for education technology, including exams. 

He said: “A digital exam system would improve matters for everyone involved and we urge the government to invest in creating the infrastructure schools and colleges need to make this a reality.”

Trio of ‘outstanding’ grades for SEND college

A specialist college that helps students with profound learning difficulties to make “life-changing progress” has been awarded its third consecutive grade 1 Ofsted rating.

Inspectors found Orchard Hill College, a SEND college with nine centres in London and surrey, was continuing to provide an ‘outstanding’ quality of education with a tailored and ambitious curriculum during a recent visit.

The college was previously handed the accolade from Ofsted in 2013 and 2019.

At its March 17 to 19 Ofsted inspection, the college had 414 learners aged 16 to 25 and 84 adult students. Most study full-time courses such as foundation skills for life, skills for work and supported internships.

The watchdog found students benefit greatly from a “meticulously planned, highly individualised and ambitious curriculum”, according to a report published this morning.

As a result, students make “excellent” progress towards their academic and personal targets and are “exceptionally well” prepared for their next steps.

“In many instances, the progress students make is life-changing,” the report said.

Kelly Phillips, executive principal at Orchard Hill College, said: “We are all extremely proud to be recognised in this way; it is a tribute to everyone.”

The report praised leaders for maintaining “high-quality” provision through significant change and challenges since the last inspection.

Inspectors were also impressed by leaders having a “comprehensive” understanding of the college’s provision and a “well-considered” approach to the college’s expansion of provision.

This was found after the college opened four new centres and introduced new programmes such as supported internships since 2019 and more than doubled student numbers in response to the demand for specialist post-16 provision.

“They increase provision only where they have sufficient expertise and capacity,” the report said.

Meanwhile, staff were praised for their “highly adept” skills and inspectors called them experts for recognising and anticipating students’ triggers. As a result, students’ behaviour was found to be “exemplary”.

Ofsted added that college teachers use effective teaching strategies for SEND learners such as clear verbal instructions and using sensory stories, visual cues and sign language.

For example, lecturers use sensory stories about the seasons to enable students on foundation skills programmes to understand the concept of the outside world.

Teachers also use assistive technology “exceptionally well” to communicate and build students’ vocabulary quickly.

The college teaches not only the students but their families as well, showing them how to use technology like virtual assistant technology so they can practise becoming more independent at home.

Aside from education provision, Ofsted inspectors commended the college’s coordination of wide range of highly specialised therapies, including speech and language, physiotherapy, nursing and positive behaviour support.

The report said the college effectively integrates the therapeutic interventions with learning activities to enable students to make “sustained positive changes to their lives”.

For example, therapists support and teach students to use a standing frame when learning how to prepare a meal.

Phillips said: “Importantly, our journey to ‘outstanding’ could not have been achieved without the unconditional commitment of our staff who work incredibly hard to help students achieve their full potential, together with our partnership approach with families, carers, and the students themselves.”

“It is an enormous privilege to support students with SEND and equip them with the skills needed in adulthood, there is an exciting future ahead, and this latest news is a celebration for the entire college community.”

Phillipson to exempt young people from level 7 apprenticeships funding axe

Ministers are set to row back on plans to remove public funding from all level 7 apprenticeships and include an exemption for young people aged 16 to 21, FE Week understands.

Education secretary Bridget Phillipson has written to Pat McFadden, Cabinet Office minister for intergovernmental relations, to make the “important concession” which will be applied to all apprenticeship standards at master’s level.

Her letter, seen by FE Week, said that she sought clearance from the Cabinet Office on March 3 “on the decision to remove public funding from all level 7 apprenticeships, with no exemptions”.

FE Week understands that multiple government departments rebelled against the plan and have forced Phillipson into a rethink.

Phillipson’s latest letter, dated April 23, said: “I have now agreed with other departments to proceed with an exemption for young people (who start when they are aged 16-21) across all level 7 apprenticeships. 

“An exemption for young people aligns with our opportunity mission and our intention to rebalance the apprenticeship programme to support more young people at the start of their career, as announced by the prime minister in September 2024.

“While not giving employers everything they seek, it demonstrates that government has listened to business and enables these apprenticeships to continue across all sectors where they are able to provide a route in for young people.”

‘Important concession’

Phillipson added that she hopes this “important concession enables colleagues to withdraw all conditions and support me in taking the challenging steps needed as we develop the growth and skills levy”. 

The “conditions” that the education secretary referred to are not known. 

A timeframe for when the public funding ban on level 7 apprenticeships for those aged 22 and above will begin, or when the Department for Education will officially announce the plans, is also not yet known.

Ministers have been working on controversial plans to remove level 7 apprenticeships from the scope of apprenticeship levy funding since September because the budget that the Department for Education receives from Treasury is close to going overspent, largely due to the rise in higher-level apprenticeships which are the most expensive to deliver.

The cash freed up from defunding level 7s will aid Labour’s plan to expand the apprenticeship levy into a growth and skills levy that funds a wider range of training programmes, and “rebalance” funding back to young people. Figures from 2023-24 show £238 million of the £2.5 billion apprenticeships budget was spent on level 7 programmes.

Level 7 apprenticeship starts are dominated by the accountancy or taxation professional and senior leader standards, which attract £21,000 and £14,000 respectively per apprentice. 

But other popular programmes include advanced clinical practitioner, solicitor, academic professional, chartered town planner, district nurse and community nurse specialist practitioner.

Phillipson’s letter stated that her officials will “share the communications and handling plan for the announcement of this decision with your officials, and they are happy to work with you on preparing for the announcement and on stakeholder management”.

The DfE was approached for comment.

A teaching job in FE… is this some sort of prank? 

A prank show that aims to attract professionals into FE teaching jobs has been released on social media channels after being commissioned via Channel 4. 

Three 10-minute episodes of Undercover Education have been released in the last month, featuring a bricklayer, a mechanic and a chef who give a lesson to an FE teacher posing as an adult seeking a career change. 

Sitting in another room, former Blue Peter presenter Konnie Huq watches and tells the FE teacher to play pranks that test the professionals’ patience and teaching skills. 

After the prank is revealed, each episode concludes with the professional reflecting on whether they would take a job in FE. 

Channel 4 said the “uplifting” series aimed to highlight the professionals’ “patience, creativity and value of their existing, real-world industry experience”. 

Prank your skills

It is part of the Department for Education’s Teach in Further Education campaign that has run since 2022. 

Previous videos included Share Your Skills last year – which featured Sky Sports News-style ads with presenter Mike Wedderburn talking to brickies who became FE lecturers. 

The Labour government has pledged to recruit an additional 6,500 teachers for schools and further education colleges by spring 2029 at the latest. 

However, a National Audit Office report this week found the DfE estimated between 8,400 and 12,400 FE teachers were needed by 2028/29 to meet a rising demographic of young people and to deliver T Levels. 

The FE sector is the worst affected type of education provider with 5.1 of every 100 teaching roles vacant in general FE colleges.

Modest success so far

Commissioned by the DfE’s workforce and communications teams since 2022, an FE Week freedom of information (FOI) request last year showed the media recruitment campaign cost £2 million in its first year, £4.1 million in 2022-23, and increased again to £5.1 million for both 2023-24 and 2024-25. 

FE Week asked the DfE how much it had budgeted this year, but did not receive a response at the time of publication. 

In response to the FOI request, the DfE shared data that suggested its campaigns had proved a modest success. 

Attitudinal research of the campaign’s target audience – adults between 35 and 65 years old with two years’ experience in priority sectors such as engineering, manufacturing or construction – suggests the proportion of people considering a job in FE rose slightly from 21 percent in 2021-22 to 25 per cent in 2023-24. 

However, the target audience’s understanding of FE teaching only rose by 1 percentage point to 24 per cent over that period. 

The Teach in Further Education website’s visitor sessions more than tripled from 134,000 in 2021-22 to 457,000 in 2023-24. 

In the first two years, unique page views hovered around 500,000 annually, while visits to the website’s job boards section shot up from 32,000 in 2021-22 to 190,000 in 2022-23, before dropping to 124,000 in 2023-24. 

DfE sorry for councils’ adult skills powers confusion  

Officials have apologised to councils involved in a “back door” skills devolution pilot for failing to consult them properly before increasing adult education funding powers in their areas.   

The trial, which the Department for Education denies is a formal devolution, will hand adult education cash to 11 councils to test “a theory” that they are better placed than Whitehall to address local skills needs. 

As revealed by FE Week in March, each pilot council could gain control of up to 70 per cent of their area’s adult skills fund allocation, worth a total of at least £7.8 million, from August. 

The pilot suggests the government could devolve control of adult education funding at an even faster pace than set out in its recent devolution white paper. 

Training providers operating in the 11 areas were told their nationally funded programmes would “not be fundable” as local councils were getting the cash.

Some areas surprised

But when FE Week approached the councils seeking more information in March, some were surprised to learn they had been named in the DfE’s pilot list, and suggested there had been “confusion” as they sought clarity from the department. 

A DfE policy official admitted in an email last week, seen by FE Week, that local authority devolution teams should have been fully briefed on the plans. 

The email said: “We have been communicating with the adult learning arm of the [local authorities] involved in this pilot, but understand and appreciate we would have been better served including devolution colleagues in those conversations as well, and we apologise for that oversight where this hasn’t occurred.” 

Under the pilot, nationally contracted independent training providers will lose funding in the affected areas from August to “avoid duplication of provision”.

The DfE has not publicly announced the one-year pilot, but stated in the email it wants to support areas preparing for full devolution in 2026. 

The local authorities involved are: Devon County Council, Torbay Council, Lincolnshire County Council, North East Lincolnshire Council, North Lincolnshire Council, Hull City Council, East Riding of Yorkshire Council, Warwickshire County Council, Buckinghamshire Council, Norfolk County Council and Suffolk County Council. 

Officials have told local authorities they could take charge of between 29 and 69 per cent of their adult skills funding – which for Norfolk County Council would be a spending increase of £1.5 million. 

Local authorities told FE Week they do not know why some councils have been offered lower increases than others. 

Not all have accepted the additional funding. Warwickshire County Council said it was yet to “secure clarity on funding that is being offered” and “how this has been invested previously”. 

A Department for Education spokesperson said: “Skills are crucial for our mission to grow the economy through our Plan for Change.

“We know that local leaders are best-placed to advise on local skills needs. That’s why we have invited local authorities to take part in this pilot scheme.

“We have communicated with providers, including local authorities, directly affected by this pilot. We continue to have positive conversations, and will update in due course.”

Reports into nearly 200 college and ITP financial probes remain hidden

The outcomes of almost 200 investigations into fraud and financial misconduct at FE providers are still unpublished, despite the government releasing probes into academy trusts this week.

For at least a decade, the Education and Skills Funding Agency’s (ESFA) ‘investigation publishing policy’ promised to be “fair and transparent” by releasing detailed financial investigation reports into education providers it funds “where appropriate to do so”.

The majority of investigations carried out by the ESFA related to England’s 1,900 colleges and independent training providers (ITPs) with access to almost ten billion pounds in public funding for FE and skills each year.

Meanwhile, during the same period, the ESFA, which has now merged with the Department for Education, released 17 reports into academy trusts.

But an FE Week investigation found only two reports into FE providers had been published – the most recent six years ago – despite at least 193 ESFA investigations being made into FE providers since 2017.

Delayed academy findings

On Tuesday, the DfE published five investigation “outcome” reports about academy controversies that included financial conflicts of interest and spending on antique furniture, booze and gift cards, some dating as far back as 14 years.

In January, following concerns from the Public Accounts Committee about a lack of reports hindering transparency, permanent secretary Susan Acland-Hood repeated a pledge to publish investigation reports “within two months, subject to legal or regulatory activity”.

She told the committee that preparing “very detailed reports” about named individuals was “causing significant delays”, due to the Maxwellisation process, which offers people who are criticised a right of reply.

Financial investigators’ time would be “better deployed” looking into fraud and error, the review concluded.

So officials instead decided to only publish much shorter “outcome reports” that would avoid naming individuals to prioritise “transparency” and “timeliness”.

Still no FE accountability

However, the permanent secretary did not explain why the public had yet to see reports of probes into FE providers.

Anne Murdoch, senior adviser in college leadership at the Association of School and College Leaders, said: “While we welcome the DfE’s recommitment to publishing outcome reports, we are yet to see this come to fruition.”

“More has got to be done to ensure there is transparency around ESFA/DfE’s investigations and to allow the sector to learn lessons from these.”

In January, Acland-Hood also claimed the investigation publishing policy did not include FE providers until 2023, despite several past versions of the policies clearly stating they included “colleges” and “training providers”.

The policy has included “colleges” and “any other provider in receipt of funding”, which would include ITPs, since at least 2014, when the permanent secretary was director of education and funding at the DfE.

‘We’ll consult colleges’

Acland-Hood claimed that including details on individuals, or explaining how fraud, financial irregularity or error happened, was “not required” to support other providers to learn lessons.

But she did say future reports would be “more explicit” in describing the learnings for the sector and promised officials would consult trust and college “forums” to “seek feedback” on how they “further support” the sector “to understand the gaps in practice identified and lessons they can learn from the investigations”.

The outcome reports released this week all contained ‘lessons learned’ sections produced following “prevention analysis exercise[s]”.

But some ‘lessons learned’ were generic recommendations such as trusts having “a robust policy and procedures for procurement”.

Gathering dust

The permanent secretary also reiterated the DfE’s commitment to publishing the “outcome reports within two months, subject to legal or regulatory activity, to provide transparency over how public money is spent”.

However, the most recent of the five reviews released this week was completed last summer.

Meanwhile, reports from several high-profile investigations are gathering dust, including those into Brooklands and Strode colleges, as well as independent training providers such as 3aaa and four companies owned by Angela Middleton.

Figures obtained by FE Week under the Freedom of Information Act show that between 2017 and 2024, the ESFA recovered £49 million in public funding from colleges and training providers following 193 investigations.

But the agency only published two investigation reports detailing the findings and outcomes – for the College of West Anglia in 2018 and Bournville College in 2019.

The DfE was contacted for comment.

MOVERS AND SHAKERS: EDITION 495

John Yarham

Interim CEO, The Careers and Enterprise Company

Start date: April 2025

Previous Job: Deputy CEO, The Careers and Enterprise Company

Interesting fact: John’s first jobs included working in an ice cream van and a factory making wine racks

Paul Lomas

Chair, RNN Group

Start date: April 2025

Previous Job: Retired Chief People Officer

Interesting fact: Paul has just completed a 200km charity bike ride across Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe in support of Nordoff & Robbins Music Therapy, Teenage Cancer Trust, Childline and Save the Children

Capital City College pays out again after disability tribunal

A staff member of a large London college group has been awarded a hefty payout after she was unfairly dismissed due to her disability.

Capital City College (CCC) was ordered to pay Ms M Garwood £62,281.52 after a tribunal hearing heard bosses discriminated against her disability.

Employment Judge Lewis ruled that the college group “failed to make the reasonable adjustment” of allowing Garwood to work from home from March 2022, subject to a review after three months, according to judgment documents posted last week.

Instead, the college placed Garwood on sick leave, which the tribunal ruled was disability discrimination as it did not consider any reasonable adjustments first.

The tribunal unanimously deemed Garwood was then unfairly dismissed.

Neither the details of the case, Garwood’s disability nor the written reasons for the employment tribunal judgment have been published. 

Garwood’s other complaint of unauthorised deductions from wages was thrown out.

The former worker was awarded a basic award of £4,282.50, plus £500 as an award for the loss of employee statutory rights arising from her unfair dismissal.

The financial loss Garwood incurred from the college’s failure to make reasonable adjustments was calculated as £6,682.41 plus £823.13 in interest.

She was then awarded £15,121.84 for financial loss from dismissal, plus £1,694.21 in interest as well as £1,979.54 in pension losses.

The tribunal also awarded a payout for Garwood’s injury to feelings before and after her dismissal.

Pre dismissal, the judge awarded £8,000 for injury to feelings plus £1,958.57. On dismissal, her award was £12,000 plus £2,377.64 in interest.

In total, Garwood will receive a net figure of £55,419.

The London college group has been involved in several employment tribunal cases in the last year.

Last April, CCC had to pay out £44,000 to an art and design lecturer after it failed to act on classroom safety complaints, including about regular flooding, which caused him to resign – an act that was deemed constructive dismissal.

Additionally, earlier this month, a part-time ESOL lecturer won a £30,000 pay award after her complaint that she was treated unfavourably compared with full-time workers was upheld. 

Capital City College and legal representatives for Garwood declined to comment.