ENGAGE, INSPIRE &GROW An employer’s guide to ACT
acttraining.org.uk
ENGAGE, INSPIRE &GROW Did you know... if you are a Welsh employer, you and your employees could benefit from a range of services, funding opportunities and accredited qualifications designed to inject talent and foster growth in your business?
CONTENTS This is us....................................................................... 3 Apprenticeships..................................................... 6 Meet our Skills Ambassador...................... 11 Traineeship Work Placements ............... 12 Training and Development......................... 14 Managed Training Services....................... 16
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ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW
THIS IS US...
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ACT was established in 1988 with a mission to make a positive difference to businesses across Wales and the UK by providing outstanding training opportunities. Since then ACT has become Wales’ leading training provider, delivering dynamic training packages designed to meet the needs of employers and the Welsh workforce. Over the past 29 years, ACT Training has developed a range of innovative methods for delivering training, utilising the latest technologies and online resources to enhance the learning experience and meet the needs of both the employer and employee.
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We have a highly skilled team of assessors and trainers based at locations throughout Wales with extensive industry experience. This gives you peace of mind that training and learning is being delivered by an expert who understands the needs, pressures and sometimes unique requirements of your industry.
1. Louisa Gregory, ACT Programme Coordinator and winner of Work-Based Learning Practitioner of the Year, Apprenticeship Awards Cymru 2015 2. Ann Rees, ACT Training Manager and winner of the UHOVI Recognition Award 2015 3. Chris Hughes, ACT ILM Management Trainer and winner of the WorkBased Learning Practitioner of the Year, Apprenticeship Awards Cymru 2016
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acttraining.org.uk
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We love what we do, and, not meaning to blow our own trumpet, we are good at it.
700+
6,500
85%
89%
EMPLOYERS
LEARNERS
SUCCESS
EXCELLENCE
We work with over 700 employers across Wales and the UK including BBC, British Gas, NatWest, Barclays, The Celtic Manor Resort, NHS Health Boards, Radisson Blu, Wessex Garages, Cardiff University and Companies House as well as successful small businesses like Terry’s Patisserie, The Vanilla Rooms and Duck Island.
We train over 6,500 learners a year in over 30 different sectors including Digital Marketing, Leadership and Management, Childcare, Health and Social Care, IT, Finance and Hairdressing to name but a few.
We achieve an average 85% success rate – meaning a very high proportion of our learners successfully complete their training.
89% of our learners rate us as excellent!
Here are some of our recent wins and commendations: > Highly Commended Large Welsh Employer, Business in > Provider Award for Social Responsiveness, the Community Responsible Business Awards 2016 Apprenticeship Awards Cymru 2014 > Provider Award for Partnership Working, Apprenticeship Awards Cymru 2015 > Sunday Times Best Companies in the UK 2015
> Wales and West Utilities Inspiring Young Talent Award, Business in the Community Responsible Business Awards 2014 > Maintained Investors in People Gold Award since 2012
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ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW
ENGAGE, INSPIRE &GROW St Aubin has more than 30 Apprentices pursuing programmes from Levels 2 up to 5 in Childcare Learning and Development. Sue Shepherd Evans said:
We want to ensure staff are fully trained, not only to grow and develop as individuals, but also so they can provide the best possible care to our children. We have worked hard to invest in the abilities of our team, helping each person to grow a wide range of skills. It has been worth every penny. Many of our staff members have remained with us for very long periods of time, and we know that this is down to the training and support that we provide.
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APPRENTICESHIPS Did you know... you can sign up an existing member of staff or recruit a new employee onto an Apprenticeship in your business.
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Apprenticeships ensure that your workforce has the practical skills and qualifications your organisation needs now and in the future.
1 IN 5 BUSINESSES recruit an Apprentice or sign up a current member of staff onto an Apprenticeship programme.
92%
92% OF EMPLOYERS believe that Apprenticeships lead to a more motivated and satisfied workforce.
80%
80% OF COMPANIES who invest in Apprentices reported a significant increase in employee retention.
89%
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One in five businesses are doing it!
89% OF OUR CLIENTS and learners rate us as excellent!
ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW
We all know that Apprenticeships make sense, but did you know that the advantages they bring to your business are enormous. The mixture of on and off the job learning ensures that an Apprentice learns the skills that work best for your business. Benefits that Apprentices can bring to your business include increased productivity, improved competitiveness and a competent workforce:
Improve your bottom line Apprenticeships deliver real returns to your bottom line, helping you improve productivity and be more competitive. Training Apprentices can also be more cost effective than hiring skilled staff, leading to lower overall training and recruitment costs.
Fill your skills gaps Apprenticeships deliver skills designed around your business needs, providing the skilled workers you need for the future. They also help you develop the specialist skills you need to keep pace with the latest technology and working practices in your sector.
Motivate your workforce Apprentices tend to be eager, motivated, flexible and loyal to the company that invested in them. Remember, an Apprentice is with you because they want to be – they have made an active choice to learn on the job and a commitment to a specific career.
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Need help hiring an Apprentice? We are very experienced in recruiting young Apprentices and operate very similar to a recruitment agency meaning we can help you recruit the perfect person. We can help with advertising; including listing vacancies on Careers Wales’ Apprenticeship Matching Service and ACT’s website, as well as the initial sift of applications, ensuring you have a quality short list of candidates to interview. This service is fully-funded to employers looking to recruit an Apprentice.
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The basics An Apprenticeship enables employees to: Learn on the job Achieve nationally recognised qualifications Earn a wage Gain skills Build a rewarding career
An Apprentice can start a qualification at any point of this curve depending on their experience. We will help you and your employee work out whether they should be on a Traineeship, Apprenticeship or Higher Apprenticeship.
> Apprentices are employees within a company and are paid a wage (at least National Apprentice Minimum Wage). > You can sign up an existing member of staff or recruit a new employee onto an Apprenticeship in your business.
> On average, an Apprenticeship takes 12 to 18 months to complete. > An Assessor will visit the Apprentice at their workplace once a month for a minimum of one hour.
> Apprenticeships are available at three different levels: Intermediate (Level 2), Advanced (Level 3) and Higher Apprenticeship (Level 4 and 5).
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ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW
Routes we offer Whether you are looking to recruit an Apprentice, or sign up an employee onto an Apprenticeship programme, we offer the following routes:
QUALIFICATION
LEVEL
QUALIFICATION
LEVEL
Business Administration
2
3
Health & Social Care
2
3
Customer Service
2
3
Clinical Healthcare Support
2
3
Retail
2
3
Healthcare Support Services
2
3
Cleaning & Support Services
2
3
Housekeeping
2 2
Digital Marketing*
4
4
Social Media for Business* Marketing
2
3
Facilities Services
IT Users
2
3
Facilities Management
Team Leading
2
Management Accounting
2
Local Environmental Skills
2
Learning & Development
3
4
3
4
5
3
Advice & Guidance
4
3
Professional Cookery
2
Food & Beverage Service
2
Food Production & Cookery
2
Front of House
2
Kitchen Services
2
Hospitality Supervision & Leadership
3
Children’s Care, Learning & Development
2
3
5
Performing Manufacturing Operations
2
Playwork*
2
3
5
Warehousing & Storage
2
3
Supporting Teaching & Learning in
2
3
Hairdressing*
2
3
Beauty*
2
3
Providing Financial Services
2
3
Barbering
2
3
Business Improvement Techniques
2
3
Schools*
5
*Can be delivered in the medium of Welsh
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Paying your Apprentice Depending on the age of your Apprentice and how long they have been with you, depends on how much you are required, by law, to pay them.
Funding available Whilst you the employer pay your Apprentice a wage, funding is available to cover the cost of the Apprentice’s training. > Our Level 4 and 5 Higher Apprenticeships are fully-funded. > Our Level 2 and 3 Apprenticeship programmes are fully-funded to 16-19 year olds and those over 20 years old who are relatively new to their role.
ACT has been delivering Customer Service Apprenticeship to First Source since 2013. Antony Smeaton, Learning and Development Consultant at First Source said:
Our business is an ever-changing environment that is growing in size and strength. To ensure that we can meet the standards of clients that we are working with, it is imperative that we are always developing
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£3.50 is the National Minimum Apprenticeship Wage. This rate is for Apprentices aged 16 to 18 and those aged 19 or over who are in their first year. All other Apprentices are entitled to the National Minimum Wage for their age: 25 + NLW*
21 to 24
18 to 20
Under 18 Apprentice
£7.50
£7.05
£5.60
£4.05
£3.50
*NLW - National Living Wage
and training our staff to move upwards within the organisation. We believe that our own employees know our business best and wanted to give them the opportunity to learn and develop towards roles they aspire to achieve.
ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW
MEET OUR SKILLS AMBASSADOR We are proud to have Welsh rugby legend Jonathan Davies OBE as our Skills Ambassador. It is not very well known that Jonathan Davies left school with just two O Levels and started his working life as an Apprentice painter and decorator. He now, in his role as ACT’s Skills Ambassador, helps others to bridge the gap into training and employment.
ACT Skills Ambassador, Jonathan Davies OBE said:
I would urge any employers in Wales to take advantage of the range of fully-funded services on offer from ACT. In these tough economic times, it is not only difficult for youngsters to find employment, but it can also be hard for employers to afford to recruit the best staff and to up-skill its current work force to ensure that business remains competitive in this ever changing climate.
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TRAINEESHIP WORK PLACEMENTS Over 12,000 16-18 year olds are not in education, employment or training (NEET) We run a very successful employability programme for 16-18 year olds – this programme is called a Traineeship. Traineeships are a Level 1 qualification and are a fantastic education and training programme that prepares young people for the world of work. Part of the Traineeship programme involves the young person undertaking a high quality full-time or part-time work experience placement. Why not pass on your knowledge to the next generation and benefit from the short or long term placements. You can make a big difference by supporting a young learner who can become invaluable to your business in the future. Work placements are fully-funded and we even provide support with travel costs. We have a pool of young people who are in training with us on our Traineeship programme who need experience of the workplace. These young people are developing the skills that employers want, as well as the positive attitude to work that is required. Many Trainees are trained, developed and moulded into valuable employees and, upon successful completion of
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their Traineeship, have been offered an Apprenticeship position and progressed within the business.
Looking for bright, talented young people to join your business? Consider running a Pre-Apprenticeship programme with us. Our bespoke Pre-Apprenticeship programmes are run collaboratively with employers who are looking to recruit the most talented young people. The programme is short, sharp, high intensity and is aimed at helping you find the right candidate to fill your Apprenticeship positions.
A shorter commitment If you are not quite ready to commit to a work placement then there are other ways you can support young people to help them get ready for employment. In partnership with Welsh employers, we run a variety of activities that encourage, motivate and educate young people on employability and different types of recruitment processes there are so they are able to reach their full potential when it comes to job hunting. These activities often involve just half a day or a fullday of your time and include employer visits, mock interviews, employability workshops, as well as our Employ Me Days.
ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW
ENGAGE, INSPIRE &GROW Terry’s Patisserie founder Terry Williams said:
For smaller businesses like ours the process of recruiting someone new can be quite stressful, in terms of the time it takes to find a candidate with the right skills for you, and the potential impact such decisions can have on your existing workforce as a whole. Having Jason join us as a trainee has been nothing short of a success from our perspective, and has given us the time and space we needed both practically and financially to make the kind of decisions that were right for us in developing our brand further.
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TRAINING & DEVELOPMENT COURSES Our Training and Development provision is designed to actively encourage continuous professional development in the workplace.
Our training courses can be delivered in the workplace or in our state-of-the-art training rooms in our Head Office in Cardiff which includes lunch, beverages, free onsite parking and WIFI too. Our vocational training will be delivered on a one-to-one basis and delegates can start at anytime.
We offer a range of training courses and vocational training in over thirty different subjects from Leadership and Management and IT, to Health and Safety and First Aid.
Our Training and Development courses start from ÂŁ95 per delegate and block booking discounts are available.
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Visit www.acttraining.org.uk/training for a full list of upcoming courses. Alternatively, please get in touch with us to arrange bespoke training sessions.
ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW
As specialists in training, our courses ensure employees meet industry recognised standards and develop skills and qualifications. We offer a range of courses across a variety of sectors and below is just a flavour of the types of courses you and your employees can sign up to:
ILM Qualifications In the past ten years, over one million managers have trusted ILM for their management programme and benefited from these highly-regarded qualifications. We deliver Level 2 (ideal for team leaders) and go up to Level 5 (suited to department heads) from ÂŁ290.
Education and Care One of our most popular groups of courses within the Training and Development provision is the Education and Care courses. We deliver a range of qualifications for the Health and Social Care, Child Care, Playwork, Learning and Development sectors and have helped employers and employees ensure their standard of delivery and care is excellent and above industry standards.
Phil Chater studied Leadership and Management with ACT Training in Tredegar. Phil said:
Getting a management qualification was key to my own professional development and the course gave me the confidence to move forward into a new role.
AAT Whether you have staff who want to move up the ladder or launch a whole new career in accountancy, AAT qualifications will equip them with the expertise and confidence to succeed. ACT is an approved AAT training provider and an approved AAT testing centre. Sign your staff up for accountancy training and/or exams today.
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MANAGED TRAINING SERVICES Our Managed Training Services provision is pan Wales and is designed specifically for Communities for Work (CfW) and Parents, Childcare and Employment (PaCE). Together we are helping to tackle poverty by supporting helping those adults furthest away from the labour market into employment. Our Managed Training Services provision is a specific suite of courses that we have developed that actively encourage sustainable employment by addressing training needs and barriers into work. If you are interested in supporting any of our learners on this programme by offering work placements, employability sessions or any other form of support, then please get in touch.
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ENGAGE, INSPIRE &GROW Tazmin Ford, owner and founder of The Stitching Boutique, is no stranger to ACT. After completing an NVQ (a qualification which is now called QCF) with ACT Training over 26 years ago, Tamzin remembers how valuable her qualification was and how it set her up for working life. By partnering with ACT, Wales’ leading training provider, Tamzin has taken learners under her wing, providing them with vital work experience within the interior design industry.
Vocational qualifications are becoming increasingly popular for small companies like mine across a range of sectors, including interior design. It’s not just those sectors who you traditionally associate with Apprenticeship programmes. There are hundreds out there.
ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW
HOLD YOUR CARDIFF MEETINGS AND CONFERENCES WITH US!
Whether you are planning an intimate board meeting or a large conference or exhibition, we have a range of fullyequipped meeting and function rooms for you to choose from.
We can offer a perfect venue for any business occasion at our Cardiff Head Office.
• Delicious and fresh onsite catering options
• Space to accommodate 5 to 100 delegates • Free onsite parking • Modern and high spec IT facilities • Free wireless high speed internet • Separate dining areas available • Friendly and experienced events team
Contact Laura Collins on 029 2046 4727 acttraining.org.uk
Ocean Park House - East Tyndall Street, Cardiff CF24 5ET www.acttraining.org.uk/our-conference-facilities
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ENGAGE, INSPIRE &GROW Recruit an Apprentice! We all know that Apprenticeships make sense, but lots of employers do not know how to hire an Apprentice. That’s where we come in!
We provide a fully-funded Apprenticeship recruitment and delivery service to help you find and train the perfect candidate.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, CONTACT OUR BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT TEAM TODAY!
029 2046 4727 acttraining.org.uk 18
ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW @acttrainingltd /acttraining
ENGAGE, INSPIRE &GROW Did you know... if you are a Welsh employer, you and your employees could benefit from a range of services, funding opportunities and accredited qualifications designed to inject talent and foster growth in your business?
All information is correct at the time of printing but may be subject to change without notice. For the latest information please visit the ACT website: acttraining.org.uk
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CONTACT US If you are interested in any of our training programmes then please contact our Business Development Team.
029 2046 4727 info@acttraining.org.uk acttraining.org.uk
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