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Employers
Apprenticeships, Training and CPD
Hiring an Apprentice
Each year the college works with hundreds of businesses and places apprentices in a variety of sectors and at all levels. Whether you are a levy paying business or a SME, we can work with you to develop bespoke training to meet your needs. Whether you want help to develop a programme for existing staff or to recruit new talent we are the perfect partner.
The benefits to taking on an apprentice
Apprenticeships have made a massive impact on delivering outstanding customer experiences and we’re seeing more organisations measure customer experience as a big benefit from Apprenticeship programmes. Embedding culture and customer ethos into programmes to achieve a consistent and powerful approach to customer management is essential.
Other practical metrics that can be considered for measuring the value or impact of Apprenticeships may include: impact on costs for recruitment, Sickness and absenteeism, impact on productivity, Motivation, Cultural alignment and Community Engagement.
For companies who invest in apprentices:
- 83% rely on apprenticeship programmes to provide the skilled workers they need for the future
- 80% report a significant increase in employee retention
- 57% report apprentices going on to management positions within the company
- 92% believe it has led to a more motivated and satisfied workforce
- 59% believe apprentices are more cost-effective than hiring skilled staff, and a similar percentage feel apprenticeships lead to lower overall training costs
- 41% feel apprentices make a valuable contribution to the business during the training period, and a further 33% believe they add value from day one!
* From data compiled by the National Apprenticeship Service
What is an End Point Assessment?
End-point assessment (EPA) is the final stage of an apprenticeship. It is an impartial assessment of whether your apprentice has developed the skills, knowledge and behaviours outlined in the apprenticeship standard. Each apprenticeship includes an end-point assessment plan which describes how the apprentice should be tested against the appropriate criteria, using suitable methods. For example, your apprentice may need to complete:
- A practical assessment
- An interview
- A project
- Written and/or multiple choice tests
- A presentation
OTJ training explained (off-the-job training)
Full-time apprentices should do a minimum of six hours OTJ training a week.
Part-time apprentices OTJ training hours may vary but should make up at least 20% of their working hours.
OTJ training should take place during regular working hours. If it takes place outside of these hours, you must offer the apprentice time off at a later date.
OTJ training must help the apprentice learn new skills that are directly relevant to the KSBs needed. Training could include:
- Day/Block release on the college/work site
- Online learning
- Practical training such as shadowing and mentoring
- Time spent on writing assignments and projects
OTJ will need to recorded, OTJ training will be explained/agreed during enrolment.
Contact us
For more information contact a member of our Apprenticeships team on 01702 221800 or email apprenticeships@southessex.ac.uk
Hiring an apprentice
Whether you are a levy paying customer or an SME we offer a range of over 20 apprenticeships to choose from and will support you every step of the way.
Learn more
Adult learning
We offer a range of courses, some of which are free, to help upskill your employees. We also run programmes to get people back into work.
Learn more
Offering work experience
Gaining real-life, on-the-job training is a key priority for all of our students who are studying vocational qualifications.
Learn moreFunding explained
Each Apprenticeship standard has its own funding band and the funding contribution will depend whether you pay into the Apprenticeship Levy or are a non-levy employer (SME) and dependant on the age of learner at the time of their first day in learning.
Information on Non-Levy and Levy paying Business can be found on the Government website
Non-Levy
Non-Levy – this would mean you have an annual pay-bill less than 3 million which means if you employed a candidate aged 16-21 then the government would fully fund the costs of the training and assessments.
If you employed a candidate aged 22+ then the government would fund 95% of the training and assessment and you as an employer would only contribute 5%.
If the learner is aged 16-18 then you as an employer would be eligible for an Employer Incentive which is £1,000 split into 2 instalments over the first year.
Levy
Levy – this would mean you have an annual pay-bill of over 3 million which would mean you would have an Apprenticeship Levy fund which would fund the total costs of training and assessments for that Apprenticeship standard.
The funding does not change depending on the learners age but should you run out of levy funding you will be switched to co-investment model and be invoiced every three months for the difference until your levy funds are refreshed.
If the learner is aged 16-18 then you as an employer would be eligible for an Employer Incentive which is £1,000 split into 2 instalments over the first year.
Our apprenticeships
Recruiting an apprentice
You may prefer to advertise yourself and we can look to promote this to gain further interest so please get in touch to discuss.
We offer a free recruitment service to support you finding the right apprentice(s) for your business. We would check suitability and eligibility inline with your own requirements and send these to you for interview. You may prefer to advertise yourself in which case our team can help promote your vacancy, please let us know about it.
What is End Point Assessment?
End-point assessment (EPA) is the final stage of an apprenticeship. It is an impartial assessment of whether your apprentice has developed the skills, knowledge and behaviours outlined in the apprenticeship standard.
Each apprenticeship includes an end-point assessment plan which describes how the apprentice should be tested against the appropriate criteria, using suitable methods.
For example, your apprentice may need to complete:
- A practical assessment
- An interview
- A project
- Written and/or multiple choice tests
- A presentation
OTJ training (off-the-job training) explained
Full-time apprentices should do a minimum of six hours OTJ training a week. Part-time apprentices OTJ training hours may vary but should make up at least 20% of their working hours. OTJ training should take place during your regular working hours. If it takes place outside of these hours, you must be able to take time off at a later date.
OTJ training must help you learn new skills that are directly relevant to the KSBs needed for your apprenticeship. Your training could include:
- Day/Block release on the college/work site
- Online learning
- Practical training such as shadowing and mentoring
- Time spent on writing assignments and projects
- OTJ will need to recorded and your OTJ training will be explained/agreed with you at enrolment
Work experience
Work experience is a fantastic way to “try before you invest” and help ensure you find the right Apprentice(s).
Further details are available on our Work Experience page.
We can arrange for you to come down to the college to see the facilities, meet the team and see learners in action to discuss your opportunities with them directly.
Assessment Days are a fantastic way to see our current learners already on L1/L2 courses who are keen to progress to employment/Apprenticeships so get in touch to see when the next one is.
