Nick Mapletoft, the Principal & CEO of the University Centre Quayside (UCQ), believes the Education & Skills Funding Agency (EFSA) and the Institute for Apprenticeships have to take responsibility for the drop in apprenticeships.
A fiasco was caused by the EFSA, when it launched the non-levy tender contracts last year. This was also the start of a catalogue of errors by the government body.
Having abandoned the first round of procurement entirely, after everyone had tendered, it then prioritised the contracting of the re-tendered non-levy on the amount of funding potential providers requested, rather than on track record of provision.
This resulted in many new providers being unable to meet the targets they put in their tender. It was simpley because they neither had the demand nor the experience.
No wonder the EFSA had to rethink the awarding process. Especially after it gave a contract to a provider that had gone bust a couple of months prior, while colleges with ‘good’ and ‘outstanding’ rankings missed out.
Ironically, further impact has been caused through the interference of the Institute for Apprenticeships (IfA) in what is meant to be an employer led initiative.
Despite the Chartered Management Degree Apprenticeship (CMDA) being one of the few new standards employers want, the IfA has proposed a drop in the funding rate from £27,000 to £22,000. This has resulted in more than 150 employers appealing against the proposed change, with not a single employer supporting it.
The problems caused by this uncertainty mean that providers cannot effectively plan their provision. Furthermore, providers operate in a market that works to an average profit margin of four percent. Yet the EFSA withholds 20 percent of funding until the apprentice successfully achieves their apprenticeship; when this includes a degree, this can be more than four years from the start of the course.
Only 20 percent of British managers have a formal qualification in management.
This is a major factor in us falling behind other G7 nations in terms of productivity. You would think that the two bodies tasked with getting the best out of apprenticeships would be helping employers. Instead all they seem to do is erect obstacles.
Read the original article on Training Journal.