“Approximately 67 percent of people in England said that they gave to charity in 2023/24, compared with 82 percent in 2013/14. In the provided time period, the share of people giving to charity has gradually declined, reaching a low of 63 percent in 2020/21”. (Statistica UK, 2025) 

 

More focus is needed on this ……………………… so, 

The Apprentice Minimum Wage is set to rise on 1st of April 2025, from £6.40 to £7.55 per hour. At Fareport, we believe that employers should look beyond this if they want to recruit and retain the best apprentices. 

 

https://www.gov.uk/national-minimum-wage-rates 

 

This change reflects the government’s commitment to ensuring fair wages for apprentices as they gain essential skills in the workplace. 

 

 

 

Apprenticeships are much more than completing a standard or achieving a qualification. They are an excellent way of gaining workplace experience, understanding how a business works, improving personal and social skills and starting or progressing in a career in a chosen field. 

 

Read more here: The top reasons to recruit an apprentice 

 

 

Apprenticeships benefit employers and individuals by boosting skills and improving productivity. An apprenticeship is a job with training. It is a way for existing or new employees to learn and gain valuable skills, knowledge and behaviours while they work. Apprenticeships are available across 170 industries. Businesses of all sizes and sectors can offer an apprenticeship through Fareport and they normally last anything from 12 months to 2 years. 

 

Have you spoken to your teams recently who are on apprenticeship programmes? 

All learners on an apprenticeship are entitled to time for off the job training, to support their qualification. This is an area that can cause real confusion for employers and learners. What does Off the job training even mean? How will we fit this in around the demands of the role? 

 

Let’s try to explain how it works. 

We know that many people have questions or thoughts when they see the word ‘apprenticeship’. 

 

 

If you’ve had a thought similar to this, read on. We hope we can answer some questions you may have in this blog. 

 

Training Assessment (sometimes called Training Needs Analysis or TNA) is the process of identifying the gap in employee training and related training needs. TNA is used to identify performance requirements and the knowledge, skills, and abilities needed to achieve the requirements of the role. When setting up an apprenticeship, accurate TNA allows you to identify the learning areas that support the employer to plan meaningful off the job training and the provider to develop an appropriate training plan. 

Ok, so you’ve been told you need to pass one of these elements to proceed, and you don’t know where to start. 

 

Start any preparation early by speaking to your trainer about the expectations and know what you are aiming for. What do you need to do? 

Ok, so you’ve been told you need to pass to proceed, and you don’t know where to start. Does this sound familiar? Start any preparation early by speaking to your trainer about the expectations and know what you are aiming for. What do you need to do? 

Seems simple, doesn’t it? There are a wide range of reasons that some apprentices leave their programme early or fail to complete. Through working with thousands of apprentices we know that an effective partnership between the training provider and the line manager can mean the difference between success and failure. 

4 strategies to get value from your Apprenticeship Levy in a Retail environment 

As a line manager your role is crucial to the success of the apprenticeship. Without line manager support most apprentices will not fully benefit from doing an apprenticeship and in some cases will struggle to complete their programme. 

 

At Fareport Training we realise that this can be daunting for many busy managers, with almost 1 in 2 managers saying they do not feel confident in supporting their apprentices. We are here to help you and ensure that your apprentice gets the maximum benefit from their apprenticeship programme.