The Levy was introduced to employers in England in April 2017 to help fund Apprenticeships and to give employers more say in the level and type of provision available.
Many employers aren’t fully aware that the money, which has by now accumulated in their account can be used to training existing staff who may already have a range of relevant qualifications. Anyone in the business from those at the beginning of their careers to the CEO can use the funds to develop and improve their skills and will be considered an Apprentice for the duration of their course.
Find out more about what the Levy is by clicking here.
The Levy can be spent on Apprenticeship trainingand assessment with an approved training provider and there are 400 different Apprenticeship Standards available to choose from. It cannot be spent on anything else such as wages, travel & subsidiary costs or any other costs associated with training. The new Apprenticeship Standardscover a broad range of professional development courses which have previously not been funded through governmental schemes and the number of people eligible for these places has increased dramatically. For instance, in previous years, any employees with a degree would not be eligible for an apprenticeship whereas now employees with a degree can embark on an apprenticeship course, providing that it allows them to gain substantive new skills and the subject is materially different from their degree.
Many organisations are starting with a full training needs analysis and prioritising Leadership and Management qualifications. The reason behind this is that if the managers are engaged and have a comprehensive understanding of the process and benefits of this type of professional development it will be easier to embed the culture of Apprenticeships into the business. The managers will then support other members of the team and more importantly allow their staff to engage and complete their qualifications.
It has been proven that by offering Apprenticeship training to staff it helps employees to improve their skills and retention. According to data from the National Apprenticeship Service, 92% of organisations that have engaged with Apprenticeships believe this offers more motivated and satisfied workforce and 80% of them have seen a significant increase in employee retention.
At Riverside we are delivering a significant amount of Management Apprentices from level 3 (Team leader/Supervisor) to level 5 (Operational departmental Manager) The most signed up for qualification in 2018 was Associate Project Managerat level 4 and we believe this is because many managers are great people who are excellent at their jobs are promoted to manager without any official or suitable training and development.
Leadership and management is a very broad area, and therefore it is important to recognise that a one-size-fits-all approach to training and development isn’t always the best option. Having specific solutions to your training and development needs can bring tangible benefits to a business.With a leadership and management apprenticeship you have the flexibility to be involved with the design and delivery of the programme. This means the content can be tailored to your exact business requirements, so the apprentices are getting relevant training to develop skills designed around your business need
Developing staff through apprenticeships can generate a real return on investment for many businesses. Apprenticeships are a great way to grow your team while keeping staff costs down, proving to be more cost effective than hiring skilled staff due to lower overall training and recruitment costs.
Additionally, as staff become better skilled and gain greater understanding of the wider business throughout the programme, confidence and independent thinking will develop. This can contribute to the generation of new ideas and suggestions such as improvements to business processes or strategies.
Which, in turn can have a positive impact on productivity and efficiency in the business, thus reducing costs.
Riverside work with employers to look across the business at the current workforce first, before looking at any potential new recruits. Who could benefit from a training programme or needs one to aid their progression or knowledge. Even departments such as accounting (normally a paid for course) look at the Apprenticeship and use your digital pot to fund it.
Finally, a company that is willing to invest in people by supporting apprenticeships is showing a positive approach to Corporate Social Responsibility, which is good for attracting both customers and future high-quality staff.