KEITS Newsletter Spring 2017

Apprenticeship Levy Update

As you know from May 2017, there will be many changes to the way that Apprenticeships are funded. Below is a brief recap with links to more detailed information from the government website …. Levy Paying Employers From 6th April 2017, all employers in the UK with a staff pay bill over £3m per year will be required to pay the newly introduced Apprenticeship Levy which is 0.5% of their pay bill. All employers have an allowance of £15,000 to offset against levy costs, so no levy will be paid on the first £3 million. Example: a company has a wage cost of £4 million in a financial year, 0.5% levy is paid on £1 million giving £5000 to the levy fund, this will then be topped up by government by 20%, giving a total levy pot of £6000. Employers with over 50 employees but under £3m pay bill For employers with over 50 employees, but a staff pay bill of less than £3m per year, a co-investment of 10% of the cost of the apprenticeship will be required by the employer, with the government then fund the remaining 90% of the cost. This will be introduced from 1st May 2017. For employers with less than 50 staff and less than £3m annual payroll For 16-18 year Apprenticeships, no co-investment is required from the employer and there is a £1000 ‘employer’ incentive. For apprentices aged over 19, employer co-investment will be only 10% of the framework/standard value with no upper age limit. Remember, all employers, levy and non-levy paying, receive a £1000 incentive for 16 -18 year olds. This is split into two payments triggered if the apprentice is still ‘in learning’ after 3 months and then again at 12 months. If a learner is 19-24 and has an educational health care plan, or is a care leaver, the employer is also entitled to incentives. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/apprenticeship-levy-how-it-will-work/apprenticeship-levy-how-it-will-work

Please note: existing apprentices who start before 1st May 2017 will continue under the finan-cial arrangements agreed at the outset of their apprenticeships and will not be affected by the Levy. If you have plans to recruit an apprentice before the 1

st May, let the Business Develop-

ment Team know before the 21st

of April and we can arrange for the sign-up. Standards & Frameworks As well as the changes to the funding there are also major changes to the way Apprentice qualifica-tions are delivered. Where the framework changes to a standard, each standard will be allocated a specific level of funding to cover the total cost of the Apprenticeship, excluding functional skills which will have their own separate level of funding. Frameworks will continue for Apprentices, where there is not a standard available as yet. All Apprentices signed up to post after 1st May, will be subject to the ‘new funding regime’ whether they are on the ‘new standards’ or still on an existing framework. https://www.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/562401/Apprenticeship_funding_from_May_2017.pdf

We appreciate that these are major changes, so if you need further assistance please call or email us and a member of our Business Development Team will be happy to help you.

David Rose Chief Executive

Increase in Apprenticeship Wages

Employers please note that from the April 1st the National Minimum Wage for apprentices is increasing .

The rate for Apprentices is currently £3.40 per hour - this will rise to £3.50 per hour from 1st April 2017

The ‘apprentice’ rate is for apprentices aged 16 to 18 and those aged 19 or over who are in their first

year. All other apprentices are entitled to the minimum wage for their age.

http://www.acas.org.uk/index.aspx?articleid=1902 or

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

Skills Funding Agency Satisfaction Surveys

As you may have been aware our learners were asked recently to complete the annual SFA survey on the quality of their apprenticeship. We are happy to say we are nearly at our target response rate set by the SFA, so a big to all the learners that have completed it.

They aren’t finished there. Next, the SFA will turn their attention to employers who will also be asked to complete a survey through Ipsos/MORI on the quality of the training and the support offered by the train-ing provider. Again, as with the learner survey, the SFA require us to meet a ‘minimum’ amount of responses.

The survey period will start on 27th March 2017 and end on 28th April 2017. If, in this time, we haven't reached our target the SFA will then move into the ‘SFA-Led phase’ in which the SFA/Ipsos MORI will now contact those who have yet to participle. Making it very difficult to avoid!

We will contact you once the survey goes ‘live’.

Calling all Employers …………...

City & Guilds Level 2 Award in Emergency First Aid at Work

The Health and Safety (First-Aid) Regulations 1981 require employers to provide adequate and appropri-ate equipment, facilities and personnel to ensure their employees receive immediate attention if they are injured or taken ill at work. This qualification is designed for those who need to be able to undertake Emergency First Aid in a work environment as a first line First Aider. The qualification is valid for 3 years. It just so happens we have some space available on: - 5th April - 7th June - 26th July Price: £75 INC VAT For more information, or to book your place, email kiah@keits.co.uk or call her at Head Office: 0208 327 3800

John O’Conner wins biz4Biz Award for

Best Apprenticeship Scheme We were delighted to be nominated as one of the finalists for the Biz4Biz Best Apprenticeship Award and are really proud to

announce that one of the employers we work with, John O’Conner, was named winner of the award. The Awards ceremony was a glittering night of celebration, where a total of 12 awards were presented at Tewin Bury Farm Hotel in Herts with the event compered by the Rt Hon Michael Portillo. Managing Director, Matt O’Conner said “We are delighted that John O’Conner has been recog-nised for its commitment to Apprenticeships by these awards. Our apprentices are working ex-tremely hard and we are proud of their achievements on our contracts. Our staff are committed to supporting them as well. This year, John O’Conner has been highly commended at the national final of the National Apprenticeship Awards 2016 and is now a Top 100 Employer for Apprentice-ships. This Biz4Biz award really consolidates our apprenticeship success and our contribution to skills development in Hertfordshire.”

Staff News Wishing ‘good luck’ to Emily - a glutton for punishment from KEITS’s Senior Management Team - who is returning to tackle the Virgin London Marathon for a second time having completed it last year. She is continuing to raise money through justgiving.com for the charity Climb - Children Living with In-herited Metabolic Diseases. A charity very close to her heart. Emily will hopefully be cheered on by Louis (if he is well enough), whose brave battle with this illness has spurred her on through the long, lonely win-ter training runs and injuries to support this cause. Good Luck Emily!!

And continuing with our running theme ……… Well done to Rion, one of KEITS Training & Assessment Consultants, who has completed his first half marathon at Headcorn in 2:17 minutes. He trained for the event by running 3 times a week, 5-6 miles, building up to 10-12 miles every Saturday in the months leading up to the event. Well done Rion!!

It’s great to share our learner and employer news, so if you have any ‘success stories’ you think we should know about and would like to share, please email me on christine.sharman@keits.co.uk We will publish a ‘bulletin’ once the levy funding changes have begun to keep you updated on the news and any changes that occur.