Director of Learning and Skills

Success rates for apprenticeships have been increasing each year as the LSC and Ofsted drive providers to raise standards.  ATG Training’s success rates for 2008/9 are looking very good, particularly the number of apprentices completing their programmes within the specified time limit.  This has been achieved by investment in technology for the assessor teams and a better approach to caseloads and visit frequencies.

I wonder whether the high numbers of completions was influenced by the lack of funding for 2009/10 – providers may have accelerated the programmes of many apprentices to ensure their completions were funded.

Whilst encouraging, the participation in skills for life courses needs to be considered alongside the numbers of Britons who are considered illiterate or innumerate, numbers which are far too high in some areas of the country.  There is still a great deal of work to be done to ensure that students do not leave compulsory education with less than an acceptable level of literacy and numeracy.  It should not be left to FE or work-based learning to develop what 11+ years of schooling has failed to address.  Many employers are shocked at the levels of literacy and numeracy among prospective apprentices and the fundamental education that is required before skills-based training can begin.