1. Recommendations & A How to Guide Apprenticeships and the VCSE Sector

2. 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

3. 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.

4. 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.

5. 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

6. How to Guide:

7. Where to find the guide: www.gmcvo.org.uk/gmcvo-apprenticeships-guide