Here nursery employers will find a selection of useful links and resources on how to access and support apprentices and offer work placements in early years settings.
Plan for Jobs – Accessing Funding through Skills Initiatives
Did you know that more funding has been made available to your nursery business between September 2020 and January 2021 for apprenticeships and other government-funded schemes? Watch our recorded webinar to help you benefit from Government support available in these difficult times.
The “Plan for Jobs” contains a number of measures and incentives to encourage employers to take advantage of the skills development opportunities available from the ESFA and other government departments. These incentives position skills as the catalyst for driving economic growth; enabling employers to secure the highly-skilled workforces that are needed to prosper.
At the same time, the new announcements provide confidence to individuals that high-quality apprenticeships, Traineeships, T Levels, and the DWP Kickstart programme, can give them the knowledge and experience to propel their careers forward.
Apprenticeships
The digital Apprenticeship Service (AS) – to access the incentives, employers of all sizes will need to be registered on the digital Apprenticeship Service (until recently only levy paying employers had to be registered).There is a whole series of YouTube videos hosted by ESFA giving support on the Apprenticeship Service.
Setting up an Apprentice Service Account – What you need to set up an apprenticeship service account
Providers can assist SMEs to set up their AS account. If no provider is involved, this helpline can also offer support and advice:
National Apprenticeship Service Helpline
Telephone:
Monday to Friday, 8am to 8pm.
COVID-19: New break in learning flexibility – How to use pause & stop in the apprenticeship service
T levels
This is a package of support for employers, delivered by SDN on behalf of the Department for Education. They are holding specific webinars aimed at employers including one for Education and Childcare in September 2020.
ESFA Business update
The ESFA Business Update is a monthly round up of apprenticeship information and news for businesses.
Redundancy Support Service for Apprentices (ReSSA)
A new service was launched in August to support apprentices who have been made redundant, or who are at risk of redundancy.
Apprentices that have been made redundant without completing their apprenticeships and those at risk of redundancy can now access support from the Redundancy Support Service for Apprentices (ReSSA).
ReSSA enables individuals to access free online information and telephone support, helping apprentices to connect with national and local support services, including financial, legal, health and well-being and careers advice services. The service will also help redundant apprentices identify new apprenticeship and employment opportunities and, where they are eligible, complete their current apprenticeship.
The service is made up of three main elements:
- Providing apprentices with advice and guidance on the impact of redundancy
- Signposting apprentices to local and national support services
- An apprenticeship vacancy sharing service to make redundant apprentices aware of new opportunities