ENGAGE, INSPIRE &GROW An employer’s guide to ACT
acttraining.org.uk
ENGAGE, INSPIRE &GROW Did you know... if you are an 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?
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CONTENTS This is us....................................................................... 3 Apprenticeships..................................................... 6 Routes & Funding.............................................. 10 Meet our Skills Ambassador..................... 12
ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW
THIS IS US... ACT was established in 1988 with a mission to make a positive difference to businesses by providing outstanding training opportunities. Since then ACT has become a leading training provider in the UK, delivering dynamic training packages designed to meet the needs of employers and their workforce. Over the past 28 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. We have a highly skilled team of assessors and trainers based at locations in England and 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.
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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 the UK including BBC, British Gas, NatWest, Barclays, NHS Health Boards, Accolade Wines, Britvic and Co-Operative 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: > 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
> Provider Award for Social Responsiveness, > Ranked 78th in Sunday Times Virgin Fast Track 100, 2015 Apprenticeship Awards Cymru 2014 > Maintained Investors in People Gold Award since 2012
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ENGAGE, INSPIRE &GROW ACT has been working with British Gas since 2012 to help the organisation recruit and train staff for their Customer Service team. Commenting on the first cohort of learners, Lynda Campbell, British Gas’ Regional Director, said:
We already employ around 1,300 people at our contact centre and we’re pleased to be creating opportunities for young people through this new Apprenticeship programme. Our ten new Apprentices have shown enthusiasm and commitment to the training so far, and we look forward to welcoming them into the customer service team based in Cardiff.
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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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One in five businesses are doing it! Apprenticeships ensure that your workforce has the practical skills and qualifications your organisation needs now and in the future.
1/5
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%
89% OF OUR CLIENTS and learners rate us as excellent!
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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 the National Apprenticeship 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 recruit Apprentices who are under the age of 23 and do not possess a degree level qualification.
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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 what level qualification is right for them.
> 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 Fiona Sinclair, HR Consultant at Darwin Gray said:
To date, Darwin Gray has partnered with ACT on the Apprenticeship Programme on two occasions, with great success. Through regular guidance and support, ACT’s assessors have helped develop the Apprentices into valuable employees that make a positive contribution to our business. Our first Apprentice joined us as a Receptionist and quickly progressed to her current role of assisting our HR Consultancy team.
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ROUTES & FUNDING 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:
Phil Chater studied Leadership and Management with ACT Training. Phil said:
QUALIFICATION
LEVEL
Business Administration
2
3
Customer Service
2
3
Digital Marketing
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.
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Facilities Management
3
Facilities Services
2
Health & Social Care
2
3
ICT Professional Competence
2
3
IT Users
2
3
Management
3
Performing Manufacturing Operations
2
Providing Financial Services
2
3
Retail
2
3
Social Media for Business
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4
5
4
5
3
Team Leading
2
Warehousing & Storage
2
3
ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW
Some of our popular qualifications include:
Leadership and Management These nationally designed training programmes maximize the learning potential and organisational value while maintaining a flexible and dynamic structure for managers. They provide valuable leadership skills such as strategic planning, allocating work, managing performance and dealing with problems. We deliver Level 2 (ideal for team leaders) and go up to Level 5 (suited to department heads).
Business Improvement Techniques This Apprenticeship is relevant to a variety of job roles and gives learners the knowledge and skills necessary to improve any process in their workplace, making it more time and cost efficient, reduce waste of resources and encourage a sustainable, long term change within the organisation.
Performing Manufacturing Operations Extremely popular within manufacturing industry, this programme provides the knowledge and skills needed to perform manufacturing operations safely and effectively, reducing the number of accidents in the workplace and improving the productivity.
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Funding available Whilst you the employer pay your Apprentice a wage, funding is available to cover the cost of the Apprentice’s training. > Apprenticeship programmes are fully-funded to anyone between the ages of 16 and 23 who does not possess a degree or the equivalent.
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. £3.40 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 and over £7.20
21 to 24 £6.95
18 to 20 £5.55
Under 18 £4.00
From April 2016 employers of Apprentices under the age of 25 will no longer be required to pay secondary Class 1 (employer) National Insurance contributions (NICs) on earnings up to the Upper Earnings Limit (UEL), for those employees.
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MEET OUR SKILLS AMBASSADOR We are proud to have rugby legend and pundit 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 employers 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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ENGAGE, INSPIRE & GROW
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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 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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ENGAGE, INSPIRE &GROW
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 get in touch!
Connect with us via social media!
@acttrainingltd
029 2046 4727 info@acttraining.org.uk acttraining.org.uk
/acttraining
@acttraining
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