Recommendations & A How to Guide

Apprenticeships and the VCSE Sector

For VCSE support providers:• Produce an easy-to-follow guide for VCSE employers that

shows the process of recruiting an apprentice• Support VCSE organisations with finding a suitable

training provider• Address VCSE organisations’ concerns about

Apprenticeships being exploitative by highlighting the value of Apprenticeships as a training opportunity and emphasising the importance of working with the right training provider to ensure a quality experience for both apprentice and employer

For VCSE employers:• Some Apprenticeships have relatively short-term contracts,

however, creation of an Apprenticeship role should be seen as an investment in a new member of staff that will bring benefits to the organisation in the long-term.

• Although there is an Apprenticeship Minimum Wage, we recommend that VCSE employers pay Apprentices at a wage that is reflective of the level of work and study they are undertaking.

• There are many Apprenticeship training providers and choosing the right provider is important in ensuring that the Apprenticeship experience is of good standard.

For training providers:

• Adapt approaches and training content to meet the needs of VCSE organisations – be flexible.

• Consider offering brokerage to enable organisations to pool and share recruitment costs or to jointly host an Apprenticeship post.

Principles for training providers working with VCSE

organisations:• Offer a flexible approach that takes into account the individual circumstances and delivery structure of the VCSE organisation

• Be supportive of the particular requirements of VCSE organisations and understand that creating an Apprenticeship position and recruitment of an apprentice can be a very large undertaking for a small organisation

• Ensure that recommendations to organisations about the type of Apprenticeship is appropriate and of sufficient quality to meet the needs of that organisation

https://www.gmcvo.org.uk/training-providers-apprenticeships

How to Guide:

Where to find the guide:

www.gmcvo.org.uk/gmcvo-apprenticeships-guide