York College
‘apprenticeships’
There has been some confusion about the off-the-job training funding rule since it was introduced for all apprenticeship starts on frameworks and standards since May 2017, particularly how to calculate the minimum 20 per cent hours. The ESFA has worked hard to help providers understand what counts as eligible activities and the associated calculation of […]
Opinion
The country’s best apprenticeship providers, employers and champions have been honoured at the Annual Apprenticeship Awards 2019. More than 500 people celebrated the winners at a glittering gala dinner at the Annual Apprenticeship Conference, held in Birmingham. This is the second year of the awards. Organised by FE Week and the Association of Employment and […]
News
Apprenticeship funding mechanisms should be weighted to favour those standards that boost employability and earnings, argues Nicole Gicheva The best apprenticeships provide an alternative entry route into employment to academic education. They make it easier for people to reskill and change career. High-value apprenticeship programmes also increase skill levels, enhance productivity in firms and in […]
The quality of apprenticeships is “sticking” instead of moving forward, according to Ofsted’s chief inspector who today urged the sector to “improve”. Amanda Spielman (pictured) delivered a keynote speech on day one of FE Week’s Annual Apprenticeship Conference and provided delegates with an update about what the education watchdog is finding during inspections. She said […]
Apprenticeship starts for January are up 15 per cent on last year but down 21 per cent on the same month in 2017 before the levy was introduced, new government figures have revealed. There have been 29,100 starts recorded so far in January 2019, compared with 36,700 in January 2017 and 25,400 in January 2018, […]
Colleges, training providers and employers have flooded to Birmingham for the Annual Apprenticeships Conference (AAC) 2019 which officially gets underway this morning. Across two days the conference, in partnership with the Department for Education and now in its fifth year, will provide over 1,200 delegates with an opportunity to access vital updates on apprenticeships policy […]
The proportion of apprenticeships delivered by subcontractors fell 15 points to just 11 per cent last year, according to government figures obtained by the Association of Employment and Learning Providers. The drop has been attributed to more stringent rules on subcontracting, introduced in May 2017 as part of the levy reforms, and the introduction of […]
The government appears to have changed the off-the-job (OTJ) training rule again, and is now telling providers they should cap the 20 per cent calculation based on 30 hours per week. The unexpected change, made in an ESFA ‘apprenticeship off the-job training policy background and examples’ document released last Thursday, contradicts the official apprenticeship funding […]
The boss of the Education and Skills Funding Agency has promised MPs that management apprenticeships will be “increasingly” audited to ensure they are “additive” amid fears they offer little value for public money. During last night’s Public Accounts Committee hearing on apprenticeships Eileen Milner (pictured) was asked if she was concerned at the increase in […]
