Apprenticeship Support Consultancy Service

2016 Edition

Consultancy Support Our Consultancy Team offer colleges’ support in order to assess current delivery, identify local market opportunities and develop their strategy to grow Apprenticeship provision. Our experts facilitate and design a bespoke solution to support members through various stages of the improvement and growth journey. The intention being to empower them to build the necessary structures, capacity and long term, sustainable relationships with employers that will be required in order to meet this growth agenda. To encourage growth it will be essential for colleges to work far closer with employers and reflect the labour market in general. It may be prudent for providers to consider ways of working together collaboratively in the form of regional groups or subsidiaries.

Choose the service you require Our service are designed in modules, with the aim to help colleges grow provision dependent on what the requirements they need. Colleges can look at our menu of stages and choose to commission modules individually or as part of an overall solution.

Establishing an approach to growing Apprenticeship provision Module One In order to match the volume of growth necessary and to have a greater impact across a region, it may be appropriate for colleges to work together to form project consortiums that will enable an offer to be built of the necessary scale and effectiveness. This approach will allow all taking part to benefit as part of a larger geographical or regional offer and also mean efficiencies could be gained through economies of scale. However, your college’s approach to Apprenticeship provision may already be at an advanced stage, including existing and well established collaborative arrangements. Or perhaps the geography or local labour market does not lend itself to this style or approach. Either way, our Consultancy Team can help. Independent Approach

Collaborative Approach

We focus on working with the individual college to help transform and grow their provision.

The AoC Create Consultancy Team will facilitate discussions between colleges exploring collaboration and long term alliances that will enable regions to respond in the form of a combined approach.

For individual colleges reviewing their approach to apprenticeships and exploring their business model, AoC Create Consultants will support this process. This will include legal expertise and advice on the different delivery models that are suitable.

It is anticipated that this stage will be conducted via a variety of face to face meetings Chaired by an AoC representative, with the aim of establishing the makeup and composition of a joint project consortium.

Legal advice will be built into the process in order to offer qualified guidance on how to build new delivery vehicle, joint company or subsidiary. To find out how AoC Create can help your institution contact the Consultancy Services Team on

020 7034 2639

[email protected] Visit us at

aoc-create.co.uk/consultancy

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Identifying and building an Apprenticeship offer

Employer Engagement Strategy

Module Two

Module Four

In order to determine the appropriate offer, the AoC Create consultancy team (in partnership with RCU) will produce a report detailing the performance of the college(s), current specialisation and strengths, all provision in the region including competitor analysis and the skills need based on the LEP priorities and the labour market.

Engaging effectively with employers is essential to achieve growth in Apprenticeship provision. We will work with the college to design a comprehensive employer engagement strategy, reflective of local labour market needs and the impact of the Levy.

What are the strengths of the college? What is the local geography and demography? Using the RCU LMI / Apprenticeship tool, the current landscape of Apprenticeship provision will be assessed and the detailed framework of an offer to employers will be designed.

A business development strategy will be developed detailing the employer ‘journey’, its value chain and the process of engagement with providers. The AoC Create Consultants will be able to advise on how to respond to commercial queries, how to build an action plan and how to implement a process of review and improvement. Vital to building commercial relationships will be the process of creating and publicising employer advocates, to further build on these early collaborations by sign posting examples of success stories and good practice - setting positive precedents that are attractive and will appeal to others. Shaping an environment that is ready for and conductive to business growth.

Building capacity and capability

Further staff training and development

Module Three

Module Five

Establishing innovative delivery models that are lean, efficient and an attractive proposition to employers.

AoC Create Training and Development team will be able to provide additional training for both management and delivery staff, tailored to support the strategic development, implementation and embedding of Apprenticeship provision going forward. Our training will empower and enable individuals and teams to make the necessary changes in relation to structure, staffing, skills, systems, funding and processes to deliver a positive and improved outcome to the organisation.

Independent Approach

Collaborative Approach

Working with the individual college to design and build the necessary structures, staffing models, pricing and marketing strategy necessary.

The AoC Create Consultancy Team will work closely with the new joint delivery organisation to develop the structures, staffing models, pricing and marketing arrangements necessary to establish a unified and consistent approach.

Increasing capacity and building capability.

We use current sector experts as facilitators who will be able share the latest knowledge and introduce tools and best practices used in the sector. The training will also ensure a process of continual personal and professional development that is in line with up to date policy changes.

How will the process of increased engagement and collaboration work and what are the mechanisms? 4

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Process Flow Chart

Deliverable Outcomes

• All college engagement with AoC Create will start with an initial face to face meeting during which the consultancy team will determine what the institution wishes to get out of the process. E.g. what is their ambition or end goal – in what way are they looking to improve?

• If appropriate, facilitation of a regional collaborative delivery model, enabling colleges and employers to work together efficiently and effectively to achieve a growth. • The identification of an offer, including areas of specific focus and a clear outline of what the provision will look like in practice. • Identification of the structures necessary to deliver to this agenda, in terms of staffing, organisational development, delivery models and legal considerations. • The development of an employer engagement strategy to achieve growth. • The fundamental transformation and growth of employer engagement and the building of sustainable long term relationships. • The delivery of new revenue streams to increase profitability and protect long term viability. • A process of continued personal improvement through the training and development of delivery staff and management that will ensure quality is kept high and the use of best practice.

• After which a review or health check will be undertaken via a process of data analysis and onsite consultation. The use of the RCU online tool will be triggered at this stage to help determine an overall picture of geographical work based learning provision. • Following the completion of the review work and data analysis, a proposal and implementation plan will be designed that conforms to the scope of the college ambition and original aims of engagement. Extra support can be built in at this stage to provide training and onsite guidance during the implementation of the plan. • Monitoring visits can be set up to provide continuing support and mystery shopper processes put in place to test new processes standards.

Cost and Timescale

Initial engagement to assess ambition and end goal Does the college wish to work collaboratively in the region or continue independently? What are they looking to achieve?

(if not already purchased) Fixed fee based on a minimum of three days plus expenses which will be charged at cost. Pricing to include a 12 month subscription to the RCU Apprenticeship tool (should the college not already pay for an annual subscription). Delivered by a team comprising of a minimum of two consultants..

Health check of current provision with use of RCU online tool Where are the gaps, what are the colleges’ current strengths and where are the skills needed?

Proposal and Improvement Plan A fixed fee based on the findings from the health check and data analysis. Number of days to be agreed following the outcome of the previous review stage. Delivered by a team comprising of a minimum of two consultants.

Proposal and improvement plan - where to build capacity and capability Designing and a plan to build the organisational and staffing structures necessary to deliver the volumes and quality of provision efficiently. What are the key areas that they need support in? E.g. module one, two, three, four or five

Additional support and implementation assistance Employer engagement, compliance, structures, training etc. Follow up site visits and ‘mystery shopper’ testing

Health check of current provision with use of RCU online tool

Additional Support To be agreed once the content of the proposal and improvement plan has been discussed, agreed and signed off. Support could range from short, intense training for sales staff of between 1 – 5 days, through to a longer term commitment to help directly with the implementation process over a number of months. Follow up visits and ‘mystery shopper’ testing to be built in on a day rate basis. The AoC Create Training Team will also be able to provide ongoing, regular support for management and delivery staff.

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Contact us To find out how AoC Create can help your institution contact the Consultancy Services Team on

020 7034 2639

[email protected] Visit us at

aoc-create.co.uk/consultancy

AoC Create, 2-5 Stedham Place, London WC1A 1HU 020 7034 2608 | [email protected] | www.aoc-create.co.uk Join our conversation:

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