Apprenticeship programmes
 Apprenticeships are increasingly being recognised as the gold standard for work-based training. Already, more than 130,000 employers within GB offer Apprenticeships. They have now become the favoured vehicle for introducing trainees to the technical aspects of modern business. As such, they are receiving increasing funding support from government.
The format of all UK apprenticeships was thoroughly reviewed across all business sectors during 2010. As a result, new elements have been introduced by Parliament to more closely reflect the current needs of employers within the individual sectors of the economy. These developments apply from April 2011 to all new apprenticeship programmes.
BENEFITS TO EMPLOYERS
The benefits derived from Apprenticeship programmes include:
- Help you build for succession in your business
- Save time and money by undertaking training, mainly within the workplace, on procedures directly related to your organisation with minimal disruption to work activities
- Create cost savings by exploring practical ideas for operational improvements and possible IT applications
WHAT IS INVOLVED
Each Apprenticeship programme combines a range of training courses specified by the industry sector's Skills Council to cover the requirements of a specific work activity.
The new format for Apprenticeships includes the following mix of learning activities that combine to achieve the full apprenticeship qualification:
- A practical, skill-based qualification that demonstrates competence in a specific work activity
- A technical qualification covering the knowledge underpinning the selected work activity
(the above two elements covering practical skills and the supporting knowledge may be combined into a single qualification)
- Personal learning and thinking skills (PLTS), which are usually embedded within the competence-based course
- The development of essential personal skills with a qualification, such as Key Skills, in most cases covering literacy and numeracy and frequently IT.
- Details of employment practices within the specific industry or sector (ERR)
The required mix of courses constitutes the "Framework" for that particular apprenticeship qualification. Each framework now incorporates nationally recognised qualifications that meet the full requirements of the QCF and the government's new Specification of Apprenticeship Standards for England (SASE) Regulations, introduced in the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning (ASCL) Act 2009, to apply from 6th April 2011.
Delivery of the training combines practical work activities 'on the job', with regular 'off the job' training for the key skills and technical elements of the programme. This will normally involve between a half day and a full day per week, depending on the apprenticeship being undertaken.
SKILL LEVELS
The qualifications required for an Apprenticeship are available at three levels:
- Level 2 - Intermediate Apprenticeships (equivalent to five good GCSE passes)
- Level 3 - Advanced Apprenticeships (equivalent to two A-level passes)
- Level 4 - Higher Apprenticeships
At each Level the apprentice must demonstrate a base level of ability at communication and numeracy and possibly in other key skills, such as IT, depending on the industry' sector's requirements.
APPRENTICESHIP TRAINING AVAILABLE FROM PILOT
We provide apprenticeship programmes covering the key essentials of both office and shop floor work for manufacturing, retail and service industries, commerce and the public sector. These embrace the following work activities
- Business and Administration
- Customer Service
- Engineering
- Food Manufacture
- Health and Social Care
- Information Technology for IT Users
- Logistics Operations
- Management & Team Leading
- Manufacture
- Retail
To match employer's individual requirements, we offer an integrated range of services from which to select whichever elements fit with current operations. These cover:
- Recruitment - Screening appropriate existing employees who will benefit from undertaking an apprenticeship and help identify new employees for your final selection
- Resourcing - Management of the complete apprenticeship training programmes in line with current qualification requirements, from enrolment through to obtaining the Certificates and securing all relevant, available support funding
- Training -Delivery of all elements of the qualification
- Guidance - Providing personal support and pastoral care for all those on PILOT apprenticeship programmes
In the last ten years PILOT has successfully delivered over 8,000 nationally accredited workforce qualifications - under the government's Train to Gain initiative and other nationally approved programmes - all of them key components of Apprenticeship frameworks.
For details of specific apprenticeship programmes please contact Pilot 
Return to the list of categories of accredited courses
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