Employing an Apprentice

Introduction

Following the introduction of the Enterprise Act 2016, the government has set a target of having three million apprentices in schools by 2020. In order to achieve this, as of April 2017 new public sector apprenticeship targets will come into effect for all public sector organisations, including schools and academies, with more than 250 full-time equivalent (FTE) employees.

Any organisation with more than 250 staff members must hire the number of apprentices equivalent to 2.3 percent of their FTE workforce.

For instance, a school with more 300 FTE employees will be responsible for enrolling seven apprentices to start each year. Likewise, a school with 500 staff must have 12 new apprentices starting each year.

Types of apprenticeships

There are three levels of apprenticeships:

  • Intermediate (level 2) is equivalent to five A* to C GCSEs
  • Advanced (level 3) is equivalent to two A-levels
  • Higher (level 4 and above)

There are two types of ‘supporting teaching and learning in schools’ apprenticeships. An intermediate level apprentice could train in the following:

  • Teaching assistant
  • Classroom support
  • Learning support assistant
  • Admin assistant
  • ICT support
  • Facilities management
  • PE support
  • Play support
  • Kitchen services

An advanced level apprentice could train in roles with more responsibility, including the following:

  • Behaviour support assistant/coordinator
  • Pastoral/welfare support assistant
  • Bilingual support assistant
  • Team leader

The advanced level apprenticeship adds more responsibility to the role, such as planning, carrying out, and evaluating a wide range of learning activities.

All apprentices will work under the close supervision of a class teacher and their duties will vary depending on how the teachers plan their lessons. It is important to ensure that an apprentice is aware of their duties and responsibilities in relation to their role before they undertake activities and tasks.

Requirements

There are few requirements regarding being an apprentice; however, they must be at least 16 years of age, eligible to work in England, and not in full-time education.

The basic requirement is for schools to provide up to level 2 training in maths and English, as well as 280 hours of guided learning over a 12 month period, with employment for at least 30-hours-a-week. Training that is part of the apprenticeship should be provided on a regular basis (usually one day per week). This information must be outlined in the signed apprenticeship agreement.

It should be noted, that in order to help fund the new apprenticeship scheme and reach the government’s target, an apprenticeship levy will be implemented as of April 2017. This means that all employers with a pay bill of over £3 million each year will be subject to pay the levy charged at 0.5 percent of their annual bill.

For maintained schools the levy will be paid by the LA; however, due to every LA having a payroll bill of over £3 million per annum, the levy will be another tax deduction from school payroll costs.

Benefits of apprentices in schools

Cost effective

With wages starting from £3.40 per hour, which is lower than the national minimum wage, and the scheme being partially funded by the government, there is less financial risk for a school hiring an apprentice rather than taking on a new employee.

Furthermore, if you employ an apprentice who is below the age of 25, the school will not be required to pay employer National Insurance contributions for them.

Recruitment

Apprenticeships are a tried and tested way to recruit new staff, as well as re-train or upskill existing staff. Employing an apprentice can provide you with the skilled workers you need for the future and can help to reduce staff turnover, by increasing employee loyalty.

According to Skills Funding Agency data, around 7 in 10 apprentices stay on with their employer after completing their apprenticeship; this can help schools with succession planning and tackling recruitment.

Support

Over 70 percent of organisations who employ apprentices believe they make the workplace more productive through providing support across a wide range of areas and tackling skill shortages. Apprentices can fulfil a range of tasks, including assisting in lessons, monitoring behaviour, sorting resources and planning lessons.

As well as this, apprenticeships can also be tailored to specific job roles, meaning that they are flexible to the needs of your business and are a great way to attract enthusiastic talent with fresh ideas.

Engage and inspire

Due to apprentices typically being below the age of 25, and therefore at a more relatable age for children, pupils often see them as role models. This means that they will want to engage more in lessons, learn new skills and listen to the apprentice, in the hope to ‘be like them one day’.

Benefiting the apprentice

By employing an apprentice at your school, you are providing the opportunity for a young person to:

  • Learn new skills.
  • Gain new experiences.
  • Receive qualifications.
  • Build the foundation of their career.

Supporting an apprentice

To effectively support an apprentice, it can be beneficial to allocate each apprentice their own career coach or mentor within the specific field/area they are interested in. This designated person will support the apprentice throughout their time at the school and offer them relevant advice and feedback through regular scheduled meetings.

Ideally, the mentor is someone who has volunteered for the role and is not the apprentice’s line manager. Each apprentice is matched to an appropriate mentor, taking into account factors such as relatability, the apprentice’s needs and the mentor’s expertise during the matching process.

Mentors should take a proactive approach to working with apprentices, such as creating a step-by-step support plan for apprentices to ensure that they fully understand their role and responsibilities, as well as the impact that their role has.

In order to ensure that an apprenticeship programme is having maximum impact with minimum costs, schools should have processes in place for implementing mentoring schemes, as well as for monitoring apprentice’s progress.

Bibliography

DfE (2012) ‘Supporting teaching and learning in schools apprenticeships’, < [Accessed: 17 February 2017]

GOV.UK (2016) ‘Become an apprentice’, < [Accessed: 20 February 2017]

Learn direct (N.D.) ‘Top 10 benefits of Apprenticeships’, < [Accessed: 20 February 2017]

Schools Week (2016) ‘Apprenticeships: how the levy and hiring targets will affect schools and multi-academy trusts’, < [Accessed: 17 February 2017]

SecEd (2016) ‘The Apprenticeship duty and how it affects schools’, < [Accessed: 20 February 2017]

Steps2Sport (2016) ‘The Benefits of a PE Sport Apprentice in Primary Schools’, < [Accessed: 20 February 2017]

The Apprentice Academy (N.D.) ‘Apprenticeship FAQ’s’, < [Accessed: 20 February 2017]

The National Archives (2011) ‘Supporting your apprentice’, < [Accessed: 20 February 2017]

Last Updated: 22/02/2017 at 14:19