Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

Personnel Today

Register
Log in
Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+

ApprenticeshipsLatest NewsLearning & development

Apprenticeship provider accused of misleading employers and students

by Jo Faragher 4 Dec 2019
by Jo Faragher 4 Dec 2019 The provider specialises in social care apprenticeships (picture posed by models)
The provider specialises in social care apprenticeships (picture posed by models)

An apprenticeship provider to the care sector has received a damning report from Ofsted after it was discovered that many employers using its services were not aware of the requirements of the programme.

In its report, Ofsted found that “many” of the apprentices attending training with Care Assessment Training Services (CATS) did not know they were apprentices or why they were on an apprenticeship programme.

Apprenticeships

How to employ an apprentice 

Apprenticeship agreement 

It said the provider had made “insufficient progress” in ensuring it met all the requirements of successful apprenticeship provision.

“Leaders and managers do not use integrity when recruiting apprentices,” it said. “For example, apprentices on the level 5 programme complete their courses early but remain on programme until the planned end date. Many apprentices do not know that they are apprentices or why they are on an apprenticeship programme.”

It also found that the majority of those on level 2 and level 5 programmes did not receive sufficient time to complete their off-the-job training, which is supposed to account for 20% of their time.

It criticised the company for not holding leaders to account on the quality of the programme.

Ofsted added: “The external scrutiny of policies, systems or quality arrangements does not exist. Consequently, leaders and managers have been slow to put changes in place. For example, leaders and managers were right in identifying that they were too slow in recruiting assessors. As a result, apprentices do not receive the full support they need throughout their apprenticeship.”

Apprentices were frequently not made aware of their end-point assessment, and were not prepared effectively for their professional discussion and tests.

Ofsted’s inspection of the provider also found that apprentices were often left to research new topics without having received the basic knowledge beforehand, and when planning the curriculum, assessors at the company did not consider apprentices’ levels of English and maths skills.

Despite the lack of adequate provision, some of the apprentices trained by CATS had developed new skills, the report noted.

Some had used electronic translation tools to communicate with non-English speaking residents, for example, while those on level 5 schemes had chosen topics that would complement their own roles and help service users.

Ofsted also found that training on safeguarding made “reasonable progress” and was at an appropriate level, although apprentices at level 5 were more aware of how to report safeguarding concerns than those at lower levels.

Sign up to our weekly round-up of HR news and guidance

Receive the Personnel Today Direct e-newsletter every Wednesday

OptOut
This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

At the time of inspection, CATS had 102 apprentices on apprenticeship programmes, mostly studying for a care qualification. Almost three-quarters of these were at levels 2 and 3, 20 were on level 5 and six were studying business administration at levels 2 and 3.

  Organisational Development opportunities on Personnel Today

Browse more Organisational development jobs

Jo Faragher

Jo Faragher has been an employment and business journalist for 20 years. She regularly contributes to Personnel Today and writes features for a number of national business and membership magazines. Jo is also the author of 'Good Work, Great Technology', published in 2022 by Clink Street Publishing, charting the relationship between effective workplace technology and productive and happy employees. She won the Willis Towers Watson HR journalist of the year award in 2015 and has been highly commended twice.

previous post
Main parties’ migration policies pose threat to NHS staffing
next post
Soldier mistaken for colleague wins race discrimination claim

You may also like

Restaurant tips should be included in holiday pay

21 May 2025

Fewer workers would comply with a return-to-office mandate

21 May 2025

Redefining leadership: From competence to inclusion

21 May 2025

Pay awards in real terms could fall for...

21 May 2025

Ryanair demands flight attendants pay back salary increase

21 May 2025

Consultation launched after Supreme Court ‘sex’ ruling

20 May 2025

Uncertainty over law hampering legal use of medical...

20 May 2025

Black security manager awarded £360k after decade of...

20 May 2025

Employers ‘worryingly’ ignorant about stress risk assessments

20 May 2025

UK and EU agree to collaborate on ‘youth...

19 May 2025

  • 2025 Employee Communications Report PROMOTED | HR and leadership...Read more
  • The Majority of Employees Have Their Eyes on Their Next Move PROMOTED | A staggering 65%...Read more
  • Prioritising performance management: Strategies for success (webinar) WEBINAR | In today’s fast-paced...Read more
  • Self-Leadership: The Key to Successful Organisations PROMOTED | Eletive is helping businesses...Read more
  • Retaining Female Talent: Four Ways to Reduce Workplace Drop Out PROMOTED | International Women’s Day...Read more

Personnel Today Jobs
 

Search Jobs

PERSONNEL TODAY

About us
Contact us
Browse all HR topics
Email newsletters
Content feeds
Cookies policy
Privacy policy
Terms and conditions

JOBS

Personnel Today Jobs
Post a job
Why advertise with us?

EVENTS & PRODUCTS

The Personnel Today Awards
The RAD Awards
Employee Benefits
Forum for Expatriate Management
OHW+
Whatmedia

ADVERTISING & PR

Advertising opportunities
Features list 2025

  • Facebook
  • Twitter
  • Instagram
  • Linkedin


© 2011 - 2025 DVV Media International Ltd

Personnel Today
  • Home
    • All PT content
  • Email sign-up
  • Topics
    • HR Practice
    • Employee relations
    • Learning & training
    • Pay & benefits
    • Wellbeing
    • Recruitment & retention
    • HR strategy
    • HR Tech
    • The HR profession
    • Global
    • All HR topics
  • Legal
    • Case law
    • Commentary
    • Flexible working
    • Legal timetable
    • Maternity & paternity
    • Shared parental leave
    • Redundancy
    • TUPE
    • Disciplinary and grievances
    • Employer’s guides
  • AWARDS
    • Personnel Today Awards
    • The RAD Awards
  • Jobs
    • Find a job
    • Jobs by email
    • Careers advice
    • Post a job
  • Brightmine
    • Learn more
    • Products
    • Free trial
    • Request a quote
  • Webinars
  • Advertise
  • OHW+