Apprenticeship guidance for supporting adults
This guidance is aimed at teachers, personal advisors, social workers and carers, who are supporting care-experienced young people to plan their futures.
Apprenticeships vs. Higher Education
Apprenticeships have long been considered the ‘back-up’ option next to going to university. In fact, most Further Education colleges still push all young people on a Level 3 qualification to apply for university, whether it’s the best option for them or not.
The apprenticeship landscape has changed incredibly over the last 10 and even 5 years, with more and more employers seeing the value in offering vocational pathways, to share the wisdom of experienced staff with a new generation of workers. Employers are also waking up to the wildly untapped potential of under-represented groups like care leavers, who, through their life experiences, build incredible resilience, empathy and independence – skills which are an asset to any workforce.
To give young people the maximum opportunity to thrive, we need to inspire them to consider all potential progression routes and equip them with the tools and information they need to make informed choices about their future, including apprenticeships.
Debunking common misconceptions about apprenticeships:
An apprenticeship is having a real job AND studying alongside it. Yes, there is study time incorporated into the qualification, but it is a challenging undertaking that requires focus and dedication from the young person and is by no means the easy road.
What next?
Ensure that the young person has a Pathway Plan in place.
Working on a Pathway plan with a young person is the perfect opportunity to broaden thoughts and ideas about their options. Often our imaginations are limited to what we’ve seen other people do, so encourage young people towards inspiring content like this, to help them expand their awareness of what is possible. Talk about your own career path with the young person, connect them with other people you know who work in a range of sectors, encourage them to attend job and apprenticeship fairs and browse websites like the Care Leaver Covenant, to link with supportive employers, who might offer work experience placements to build their CV.
If the young person in your care is planning to stay in education, this must be written into their Pathway Pan because it forms an agreement between the care leaver and their local authority about what kind of support they will receive (financial, books, equipment etc.). Having this written in the pathway plan is evidence of the support the Local Authority have agreed to provide.
The Pathway Plan is a collaborative document that should be created with the young person and reviewed and updated at least every six months. A young person can request a review at any time. Pathway Plans should be written before a young person leaves care, so that the right support is in place before they turn 18 and and transition from education.
When a young person you support wants to apply for a job or apprenticeship
Direct them to these Propel into Work webpages created by Become, specifically for care-experienced young people:
Lots of employers are looking to diversify their workforce so that the organisation better reflects the variety of people in our society. Some applications will have a box you they can tick to share that they’re care-experienced. Sharing they’re care experience in a job application is completely they’re decision, there is no obligation to tell anyone. However, there can be advantages to disclosing their care experience to employers (who should keep the information confidential):
- There may be additional support and funding for them to access, for example, the Care Leaver Bursary for apprentices
- Some employers and local authorities ringfence opportunities for care-experienced young people or guarantee an interview, this will be clear on the job advert
- You can help them frame their care background as a positive attribute to support their application, for example: “As someone with lived experience of the care system, I am very independent, resilient and empathetic and can quickly adapt to new and changing circumstances; qualities which I know are essential for all professional roles but will be especially valuable in this position.”
Additionally, if they feel comfortable, they could talk about it in their interview, so that the employer/training provider can ensure that they receive all the support and resources available to them throughout the application process and once they start their role. You could help them to practice how to talk about their care experience in a way they feel comfortable with, and they feel in control of.
Become X Amazing Apprenticeships downloadable guide
A guide for teachers and careers advisers supporting care-experienced young people who are considering apprenticeships.
Become partnered with Amazing Apprenticeships, a leading organisation in the education sector promoting the benefits of apprenticeships and technical education, to create a guide for teachers and careers advisers supporting care-experienced students to access apprenticeships.
The guide sets out 10 themes with useful links and activity ideas for educators to use within their settings to provide additional support and understanding around the apprenticeship application process, and some of the wraparound support services available through local authorities and government.
Free workshops for young people, coming soon!
Become’s Propel into Work service is developing free employability workshops with young people, for young people, which professionals will be able to book for groups of care-experienced young people aiming for apprenticeships, vocational opportunities and jobs.
Please email [email protected] if you’d like to be notified of when the workshops launch.