BIS publishes Apprenticeship Trailblazer final report
Sarah Morgan
08 November, 2015
The Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) has published its final Trailblazer Apprenticeships evaluation report covering January 2014 to March 2015.
The Apprenticeship Trailblazer standards show what an apprentice will be doing and the skills needed by industry and job role. The standards were introduced in October 2014 as a way of considering the recommendations from employers with regards to the quality and relevance of training offered by training providers like Firebrand. As a result, the BIS has recognised that businesses, rather than the government, are best-informed to decide the standard of training given to apprentices.
So far, 187 standards have been published (with 160 in development), ranging from Advanced to Higher and Degree Apprenticeships – including Firebrand’s Software Developer and Network Engineer frameworks.
The report has revealed the strengths associated with the Trailblazer model:
• The evolutionary approach of building the standards on the best of what was already in place under current standards was believed to be the best way forward in many sectors
• Trailblazer employers feel greater ownership due to the flexibility of adapting their training model to what works best in their sector
• Employers that have invested in – and engaged with – developing the standards are assured that the skills and competencies are relevant to their organisations and thus can drive up the quality of Apprenticeships in general
A number of potential risks were also highlighted, however, including:
• Standards or assessments may require further refinement, as some early Trailblazers sought to meet a short timescale for development rather than a desire to ‘get it right’
• Potential for confusion and duplication of standards for the same job roles in different sectors