We Are Listed On The Register Of Apprenticeship Training Providers (RoATP)
Skills4Stem Apprenticeships
Apprenticeships are a great way to progress in work and life and a great way for employers to improve the skills base of their businesses. They work for people of all ages and backgrounds and can transform lives.
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An apprenticeship is a way for all individuals aged 16+ who are in employment, to gain new skills and qualifications while working. Hiring apprentices helps businesses to grow their own talent by developing a motivated, skilled and qualified workforce.
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Depending on the sector and job role, an apprenticeship can take anything between one and five years to complete.
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Apprenticeships are available in a wide range of industry sectors with employers from large national companies to smaller local companies. They are available at intermediate, advanced, higher and degree level, covering more than 170 industries and 1,500 job roles, including digital media, business improvement techniques, nursing, cyber security, engineering, finance, costume design – no matter what the needs of your business or how niche the services and products are that you offer, there will most likely be an apprenticeship to suit your business.
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Apprenticeships are suitable for both new employees as well as for existing staff. Even those who already hold a degree can benefit from accessing apprenticeship funding to gain new skills.
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Most of the training is on-the-job at an employer’s premises, working with a mentor to learn job specific skills in the workplace. Off-the-job training is provided by Skills4Stem and may be delivered through day release, block release, on-line/remote learning or a blend of different methods.
Levy & Non-Levy Payers
Levy Payers
The apprenticeship levy will only affect organisations with a pay bill more than £3m. It will be calculated based on the total annual UK pay bill and the % of employees living in England. The vast majority of employers will not be eligible to pay the levy and these employers will continue to benefit from generous government support to pay for apprenticeship training.
Non-Levy Payers
Employers who do not pay the levy, and those who want to invest more in training than they have available in their digital accounts, will benefit from significant government funding to support their commitment to apprenticeships. Non-Levy paying employers will make a financial contribution called ‘co-investment’. This is calculated based on the government investing 90% of the cost of the apprenticeship training and the employer investing 10%.
Levels Of Apprenticeship
Skills4Stem Delivery Methods
Gamification: Game-based Assessment
Face-2-face trainer led classroom sessions*
Blended online Learning
Interactive Webinar
Coming soon! Virtual Reality & Augmented Reality Learning Tools
*We can provide regular face-2-face training sessions in-house, at a location of your choice or at our office(s). Please note: We have trainers available UK-Wide, but travel costs may be applicable.
What Are The Costs?
Choose one or more apprenticeships and call us to get a more detailed estimate of how much you will spend on apprenticeships every month. If you are not a levied employer, you will only have to pay 10% of the cost and the government will pay the rest.
*Please note: if the candidate does not pass the end point assessment the employer will be liable to pay Skills4Stem the outstanding 20% of the fee via invoice.
Wages For Apprentices
Employers are able to decide how much they wish to pay an apprentice as long as it meets the National Minimum Wage for apprentices.
These rates are for the National Minimum Wage from April 2017;
Apprentice – £3.50
Under 18 – £4.05
18 – 20 – £5.60
21 – 24 – £7.05
25+ – £7.50
What Are End Point Assessments (EPA’s)?
The end-point assessment is separate to any qualifications or other assessment that the apprentice may undertake during training. The apprentice will not be able to achieve the apprenticeship without passing the end-point assessment.
The assessment should include a minimum of two different assessment methods.
End point assessments give assurance that the apprentice possesses the knowledge, skills and behaviours to be fully competent in the occupation.
End point assessments are undertaken by an independent third party who has had not been involved in the training or line management of the apprentice, and who is on the Register of Apprenticeship Assessment Organisations.
Apprenticeships For Existing Staff FAQ’s
Accessing apprenticeship funding and training to support your existing staff is a fantastic way to develop new skills, boost motivation and retention.
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The expectation is that apprentices are employed for a minimum of 30 hours. In exceptional circumstances, this could be 16 hours per week.
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No. Apprenticeships are available to anyone aged 16+ who is eligible to live and work in England. There is no upper age limit for apprenticeships.
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From May 1st, 2017, Employers will be able to use funds in their digital account or access government co-investment support to train any eligible individual to undertake an apprenticeship at a higher level than a qualification they already hold, including a previous apprenticeship. The apprenticeship must be linked to their job, the learning must be materially different to any qualifications they already hold and you must evidence that the repeat or lower-level apprenticeship is supporting the apprentice to acquire new skills and knowledge.
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Not necessarily. The government asks that the apprentice must be genuinely learning new skills to the benefit of the wider economy.
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You will not be required to change any of the terms or conditions of employment for an existing member of staff who becomes an apprentice. You will be required to create and sign an Apprenticeship Agreement.
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All apprentices must be paid at least the Apprenticeship National Minimum Wage relevant to their age. Existing employees that become an apprentice would maintain the same terms and conditions of employment, with the addition of the Apprenticeship Agreement.
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There is a single test for whether apprenticeship training can be funded through the English system: whether the apprentice’s workplace, which is their main place of employment, is in England. If this is the case, employers will be able to use funds in their digital account to pay for training, or access government co-investment, regardless of whether the apprentice lives in England or not.
How To Recruit A New Apprentice
‘Recruit an apprentice’ has replaced apprenticeship vacancies as the official government service for posting and managing apprenticeship vacancies in England.
This system is a free service and allows training organisations to post vacancies on behalf of employers to be viewed and applied for by candidates using our ‘Find an apprenticeship service’.
The ‘Recruit an apprentice’ system currently only allows training providers and employer providers with a direct contract to post vacancies, however by summer 2017 all employers will be able to post their own vacancies. This means there will be a central place for candidates to search for all apprenticeship vacancies and employers and training providers can benefit from the huge volumes of traffic on the GOV.UK website.