This document discusses reforming apprenticeships in the UK. It outlines that the goal is to tackle youth unemployment, improve productivity, and provide good value for public money by increasing quality and simplifying apprenticeships while giving employers more ownership. It identifies ten "thorny issues" around the new apprenticeship standards, pricing, funding non-levy paying employers, ensuring quality, incentives and payments, and establishing new delivery organizations. It concludes that while policy details are important, wider environmental factors beyond any single policymaker's control could impact success or failure, and a climate of perpetual change and uncertainty could prove the greatest disincentive.

1. Apprenticeship Reform
We’re going on a bear hunt…..
1. What are we hunting for?
2. Stumble, trip - ten thorny issues
3. What lies beyond the forest?

2. Uh-uh!
A forest!
A big dark forest.
We can't go over it.
We can't go under it.
Oh no!
We've got to go through it!
Stumble trip! Stumble trip! Stumble trip!

3. 1. What are we hunting for?
• The target…..
- 3m starts during this Parliament
• and the point.
- Tackling youth unemployment
- Improving productivity
- Providing good value for public money
- Increasing quality
- Simplification & employer ownership

4. 2. Stumble, trip - ten thorny issues

5. Thorny issues : Products and Prices
1. The product: New Apprenticeship Standards
 Relevance
 Reputation
 Policy coherence
2. The price - including cash contributions
(choice/no choice) and 20% off the job
requirement

6. Thorny issues : Funding and Quality
3. The 98% - non levy paying employers
4. Ensuring quality & probity: Definitions and
mechanisms
5. Relative incentives – rates, payments, evidence
 Funding caps and incentives : age, level and and sector/occupation, additional needs
 Profiling of payments : balance between starts, on programme and completion
 Audit requirements – in particular re. employer cash contributions (from the 98%)

7. Thorny issues : Delivery Infrastructure
6. How many will fall at, or even before, the first
hurdle?
7. And how will the new kids on the block cope?
Eg. Universities, employer providers, end point assessors
8. Sub-contracting : the devil in disguise or a knight
in shining armour?

8. Thorny issues: Reputation and timing
9. Apprenticeships’ reputation with young people
and those who advise them
10. Sequencing and synchronisation – of the various
elements of Apprenticeship reform.
“…..playing all the right notes, but not necessarily in the right order"

9. 3. What lies beyond forest?
• There is a world beyond Apprenticeship reform
• Politicians and policy makers are not all-powerful
• At micro level incentives & disincentives drive behaviour
(intended/unintended; absolute/relative; within/without)
• But while the fine detail is important wider
environmental factors will have a significant impact
• Some factors are beyond our control – but others are not
• A climate of perpetual change, uncertainty, missed
deadlines and a culture of blame could prove to be the
greatest disincentive of all

10. We’re going on a bear hunt.
We’re going to catch a big one.
What a beautiful day!
We’re not scared.
Michael Rosen, 1989
Gillian Miller
Regional Director
Association of Colleges
Gillian_Miller@aoc.co.uk