Apprenticeship support service from Leicester College enables employers to focus on work-based skills training

Leicester College is offering a Levy Coordination Solution Service to strengthen its support for apprentices and allow employers to maximise their return on investment from the Apprenticeship Levy, the way in which the Government funds apprenticeships.

The College team works in partnership with employers where they help to simplify the Apprenticeship Levy fee process. They achieve this by offering free consultation and support services, enabling internal teams to effectively plan and manage the process, ensuring compliance with government rules, coordinating apprenticeship training and managing the apprentices’ academic performance.

Employers in turn, are able to benefit from having a dedicated account manager to guide them through the Digital Apprenticeship Service (DAS) whilst focusing on training and developing their apprentices.

In this way, Leicester College makes a positive contribution to the economic success and growth of the region by focusing on specialisms and priority skills areas and enhancing the employability of all its students and apprentices.

Tina Jivraj, Business Development and Key Account Manager, Apprenticeships Team at Leicester College commented: “Accessing apprenticeship programmes with the benefit of the Apprenticeship Levy is certainly a ‘no-brainer’. Existing staff are able to earn while they learn, and new recruits, who are the future workforce of the organisation, continue to bring increased levels of knowledge and training to the company.

“Leicester College have been working with a number of large key accounts in a range of sectors and we value the time employers spend with the college to ensure they receive a quality training programme.”

Adey Steel Group is one company that is increasingly tapping into the talent pipeline at Leicester College. Robert Hall, Group Operations Director said: “At Adey Steel Group, our apprentices are our future. Training the younger generation in engineering, fabrication and welding is critical to ensuring the long-term future of both our business and the UK’s steel fabrication industry. As our workforce ages and the recruitment of skilled and experienced employees becomes harder, we will need apprentices to carry on producing our quality products for critical national sectors such as rail, energy, housing and infrastructure.

“Adey Steel recognises that having a great apprenticeship provider is key to this success and the team at Leicester College provides the perfect partnership. They do the hard work – helping with recruitment, enrolment, and student welfare – allowing us to get on with the training and development. The College team also helps by smoothing out the levy fee process and paperwork – which can be daunting to smaller businesses!”

Leicester College is the largest apprenticeship training delivery organisation in Leicester, which helps apprentices learn new skills and gain experience to succeed in their chosen career. The College offers wide-ranging expertise to businesses through working with an impressive range of industries.

Apprenticeships at Leicester College are suitable for both school leavers as well as people who already have work experience and all apprenticeships involve studying for a qualification that is relevant to industry as well as on-the-job training.

Robert added: “Our experienced employees also take great delight in training up their replacements. They see their skills being handed to the next generation and take real pride in seeing apprentices develop into hard working and productive workers.

“I would heartily encourage Leicestershire businesses to consider apprentices and choose Leicester College as your apprenticeship provider.”

The College’s dedicated employer engagement team works with local businesses all year round by assisting them in finding the right individual to employ. Businesses that would like to work with Leicester College by hiring apprentices or obtaining more information on traineeships, can get in touch through the online Employer and Apprenticeship Contact form.