Employer Frequently Asked Questions

The term ‘Apprenticeship’ refers to on-the-job training which typically leads to nationally recognised qualifications, developed by industry. The National Apprenticeship Service supports, funds and co-ordinates the delivery of Apprenticeships throughout England.

Your Apprentice will work as an employee of the company, often spending one day in College. They will complete all the tasks as their job role demands and is within their skill level.

The length of an Apprenticeship depends on the course they are doing and the level of that course. This can range from 12 to 42 months. Apprentices must be employed for the full duration of their training, but they are able to start employment before their programme begins and stay on at the company should you so wish, on completion.

The term ‘Apprenticeship’ refers to on-the-job training which typically leads to nationally recognised qualifications, developed by industry. The National Apprenticeship Service supports, funds and co-ordinates the delivery of Apprenticeships throughout England.

Your Apprentice will work as an employee of the company, often spending one day in College. They will complete all the tasks as their job role demands and is within their skill level.

There is no upper age limit for Apprenticeships, anyone over the age of 16 can start the course.

I have an employee who would like to do an Apprenticeship. Can I still take them on as an Apprentice?

Apprenticeships are not just for school leavers anymore! If you have an employee that wants to develop your skills they can absolutely start an Apprenticeship. This is an excellent way to fill a skills gap and promote staff development. You will need to be willing to release them for one day a week so that they can attend their College course.

The average Apprentice will work between 30 and 40 hours per week. This includes their time at college, whether that is 1 day per week or 1 week per month.

There is a Government incentive grant of £1,000 if you take on an Apprentice aged 16 – 18, or your Apprentice is a care leaver.

If you a company based within the Construction Industry (excluding plumbers and electricians) then you may be able to claim Apprenticeship grants through the Construction Industry Training Board (CITB).

If your organisation does not pay the Apprenticeship levy then for Apprentices aged 16-21 years old, the training fees will be fully-funded.

If you were to employ an Apprentice aged 22 years or older, the government asks that you contribute 5% of their course fees, which may be as little as £100, and they will fund the remaining 95%.*

If your organisation pays the Apprenticeship Levy, your Apprenticeship training will be funded via these funds.

*exemption for 22-24-year-old care leavers/ EHCP

The minimum rate of pay for Apprentices during their first 12 months of training, regardless of their age is £5.28 per hour.

After 12 months of training, the national minimum wage would apply to those aged 19 and above.

We would encourage you to pay more if possible to increase your chances of attracting the best quality candidates, and to compete with other roles that may be advertised at the same time.

All Apprentices are entitled to statutory paid leave – 20 days plus 8 bank holidays. Depending on your annual leave policy you may give them more.

Yes. Like all employees Apprentices are entitled to Statutory Maternity Leave of 52 weeks with Statutory Maternity Pay for up to 39 weeks.

Your Apprentice’s contract will lie with your company and therefore they are considered an employee. Therefore, the pension regulations will be the same as for your other employees.

As Apprentices tend to fall into certain eligibility brackets, we would like to draw your attention to the following:

You must automatically enrol your Apprentice into a pension scheme and make contributions to your pension if they are aged between 22 and State Pension age and earn at least £10,000 per year.

Yes. We understand students are also employees and so will often take holidays that fall within term time, and that fall on College days. This is absolutely fine, we just ask that they email the person taking the course to let them know in advance and make sure they catch up on any work they have missed.

Apprentices will usually attend College for one day a week, excluding term breaks. However, this can differ depending on the Apprenticeship programme. For example, some Apprenticeship courses are delivered in block weeks.

Apprentices are assessed against criteria throughout their programme to ensure they are developing the required competencies.

Throughout their programme Apprentices will be tasked with keeping an online log of their learning. This log is in a diary format, where students can keep track of the 20% off-the-job training requirement and evidence new skills and knowledge. At the end of the programme the Apprentice will complete an End Point Assessment which is the final part of their Apprenticeship. An End Point Assessment can involve;

• A multiple choice online test
• Professional discussion, either face-to-face or via Skype
• Workplace observation

The off-the-job-training can include anything from shadowing a colleague, attending a conference, through to the hours spent in College. Ultimately, it is time that the Apprentice has spent not fulfilling their day-to-day duties, and learning something new or building their skills and knowledge. Hours spent fulfilling this requirement during the working day or for business purposes outside of office hours can be included, however, time outside of this, taken on an Apprentices own initiative, sadly does not count.

For example, if the Apprentice were to read a book over the weekend that related to their course this could not be logged, however, if they have stayed on late to complete an evening course, this is applicable.

N.B Functional Skills or Maths and English cannot be considered off the job training.

As the employer, you are expected to provide your Apprentice with an induction into the workplace and necessary mentoring/supervising in order for them to adequately fulfil their role.

An Exeter College Skills Officer will also set the Apprentice tasks to complete in the workplace and carry out regular reviews approximately every 8-10 weeks. The Skills Officer is also your main point of contact for any queries you may have along the way.

You will release your Apprentice one day a week to the College during term time (subject to their course). When the College is closed, the Apprentice should be allocated study time (which equates to approx. 6 hours per week) and you will receive guidance for how best to facilitate this during your regular Skills Officer reviews.

A team of Training and Recruitment Advisors are here to help you. Please get in touch with the team today.

All Apprenticeship vacancies will be listed on the National Apprenticeship Service site, Indeed and our Exeter College website. We can also promote your role via our social media platforms and via internal communications to our current full-time students, who are looking for their next step. Before we post anything, we will send you a draft of your vacancy advert to review and, once approved, it can go live within 24 hours. You can also be provided with a link to your vacancy, if you wish to share on your own website and social media.

No, you are under no obligation to employ an Apprentice after their Apprenticeship has finished. However, as your company has invested in an individual’s training and development to suit your business, ideally you should want to offer your Apprentice a permanent position.