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2 min read

What is an apprenticeship and how will my business benefit?

Overview

An apprenticeship is a job with paid work experience with accompanying assessment and skills development programme. Apprenticeships offer benefits to the employers and individuals giving valuable hands-on experience to the apprentice and can provide your business with a boost to skills and help improve productivity.

Hiring an apprentice can also help increase employee satisfaction, reduce staff turnover and reduce your recruitment costs.

Provider Led User Journey | Using the Apprenticeship Service (pdf 2,000kb)

Who are they for? 

Anyone over the age of 16 can apply for an apprenticeship. You could offer an apprenticeship to grow your business by taking on a new member of staff or you can use apprenticeships to develop your current employees.

How do apprenticeships work?

An apprenticeship is essentially a job with training. If you take on an apprentice they will work in your business with on-the-job training, which helps the apprentice to develop the specific skills needed for your workplace. In addition to working in your business, the apprentice would need to spend at least 6 hours per week completing off-the-job training which can include study time, project work and shadowing.

Some apprentices may need further support, for example, if they need training in English and maths. As the training provider we can work with you as the employer to agree how the off-the-job training is delivered to limit the impact on the day to day running of your business.

What are my responsibilities as an employer taking on an apprentice?

As an employer taking on an apprentice, you need to ensure that there is a genuine job available which will last the length of the apprenticeship, which is a minimum of 12 months. The role must offer the opportunity to help the apprentice gain the knowledge, skills and behaviours needed to complete their apprenticeship. You are also responsible for paying the apprentice’s wages.

We can talk you through the process and the support that we will offer during the apprenticeship. To find out more, contact us and ask to speak to a member of our Employer Engagement Team.

The benefits – firsthand!

“Taking on two apprentices during a pandemic might have seemed like a really bad idea. Not so for our Federation! Our apprentices have been a godsend, working hard to meet their apprenticeship standards whilst bringing a wealth of enthusiasm and energy, that has helped to boost our staff team throughout the past 15 months.

Both of our apprentices have been a fantastic asset to our schools and, I can honestly say, I don’t think we would have navigated the upheaval of the pandemic as smoothly without them!

The support and encouragement we’ve received from SS&L has also been excellent and I would definitely recommend them and the whole apprenticeship process to anyone looking to improve and increase their current team.”

Tamsyn Richardson-Aitken
Office Manager, Croscombe CofE & Stoke St Michael Nursery & Primary Federation

“For a small primary school with incredibly tight budgets apprentices are a vital and important support. I have found the apprentices to be very well suited to the role and the recruitment process with SS&L is seamless and trouble free. In the last two years the quality of the applicants has gone up another notch, with the wide range of skills they have bringing something really special to our school.”

James Webb
Headteacher, Abbas and Templecombe Church of England Primary School

What apprenticeships are available?

We offer a variety of apprenticeships such as business administration & customer service, childcare, teaching assistants, animal care and leadership & management. We also offer traineeships in any sector.

How will you find me an apprentice?

Our video guide explains how we can find your perfect apprentice, with our free recruitment service…

What happens when the apprenticeship is completed?

There are a number of possibilities when the apprenticeship ends, as an employer you can offer the apprentice a permanent job in your workplace, but there is no requirement to do this. Offering a permanent role has a big benefit to you as an employer, as you will have invested time into developing them during the apprentice and they will know your business, how you work and how they fit in.

In most cases the apprentice will continue their apprenticeship and progress to the next level with you or another employer to gain a higher-level qualification.

Whatever the outcome, your organisation will have benefitted from the fresh perspective, new ideas and enthusiasm that so often comes from employing an apprentice.