Educational Rationale for Subcontracting

The educational rationale for our not-for-profit delivery of high-quality training and development to learners, in conjunction with employers, is based on proven benefits.

Utilising the partnership model allows Swatpro to provide a breadth of education provision across the South West region in order to meet local needs. The partners are chosen to provide sector expertise within a specific geographical location.

The model also provides us the opportunity to share best practice across the training providers that work alongside us, to better support our learners.

The South West is the largest region in England but with a population of approximately 5 million people, about one-third of habitants live in settlements of less than 10,000. The rural nature of the region does mean that transport links are increasingly important – yet the infrastructure does not meet the needs, with public transport described as patchy and expensive.

Because some learners can find it difficult to travel to work and attend educational settings, we have adopted a pragmatic approach to our delivery to better meet the needs of learners and employers, through the use of training provider partnerships.

Currently, the majority of our learner base is aged 24 and over, and we are planning to raise the profile of the DfE Career Starter Apprenticeships initiative across the organisation. This will allow us to focus on the needs of the 16-18 age group as they start their careers. We are Matrix accredited and are well positioned to provide the information, advice and guidance that sits alongside the educational delivery.

The locality agenda through, Local Skills Improvement Partnerships, shows that some of the main requirements for skills are in health & social care, engineering, construction – all of which are covered within Swatpro’s education provision.

There is a well-recognised need for health and social care staff, with recruitment a particular concern. An increasingly aging population, in greater numbers, across the region means that skilled staff are extremely important to the sector. Swatpro and its partners aim to help meet this challenge through its Level 2 to Level 5 apprenticeship provision to care homes and NHS Trusts.

One of our partners provides specialist training and development, which is under-represented at a national level, within the creative industries. Based in Bristol they are well able to serve an area that is prominent within the TV / film / media sector.

Another of our partners provides early years education in the Exeter region, as a more densely populated and industrialised area, it has a greater demand for pre-school childcare provision to allow parents to go to work. As an employer-provider, they are able to give excellent opportunities and skills development to apprentices in this area.

Working with large employers (NHS Trusts, Police) and micro-businesses allows Swatpro to provide career advice, guidance and opportunities for progression to apprentices. This sits alongside personal development, which is structured and delivered through our eLearning platform courses. These modules are freely available to all learners and partners. The need for development of soft skills has been highlighted in the LSIP reports and our training reflects this requirement.

We share best practice amongst partners regarding delivery to SEND learners, along with safeguarding to better support learners through their education. We aim to make wider opportunities more available to SEND learners through the introduction of additional English and maths flexibilities for this community.

It is through the use of our educational rationale in using partner organisations to deliver apprenticeships that we are able to meet the needs of the local priorities, supporting the skills and knowledge required by employers.

Our goal is to provide high-quality education within the South West region, measured across the partnership, by Quality Achievement, Retention and Pass Rates. We also measure the appropriateness of our delivery through quantitative levels of employer and learner satisfaction and qualitative feedback that we receive.

As an organisation we aim to see learners progress on to better paid jobs, increased responsibility within their roles, and/or undertake higher levels of training. These are all monitored and reported on.

To achieve our aims in supporting apprentices and employers, as an organisation we adopt different delivery models for work-based provision, ensuring a flexible sector-based and region-based approach.

Delivery is sequenced and agreed with employers, and the intended curriculum is personalised to the learner – including the pastoral care which aims to support the learner develop at a personal level.

Partners will provide skills- and knowledge-based training within a classroom, or workshop, based setting. This allows apprentices to work collaboratively and network with others in the same industry; important for developing the contacts frequently required in a sector.

With the rural nature of the region, delivery is also provided online, through the use of video-conferencing facilities (either group delivery or 1:1). Online delivery is also available from our e-Learning platform that provides training modules on subject specific knowledge (for example, accountancy or health care) to more generalised topics on presentation skills and mental wellbeing.

Skills and knowledge content is also delivered in the employer workplace, allowing apprentices to link the programme to their job role.

We evidence the effectiveness of our subcontracted provision by a number of methods, including:

• A Self Assessment Review (SAR) and Quality Planning, which is created, reviewed and agreed with all partners, with the aim of improving andragogical practice.
• Analysis of survey feedback from employers and learners. This shows that they value the individualised approach, along with the access to experienced, knowledgeable and supportive tutors.
• Measurement of learner pass rates, which currently stand at over 99%.

By using subcontracted provision through our network of partners, we provide targeted improvements for individuals, employers and the region. This rationale has been scrutinised and approved by the Governance Board, who have requested that a signed copy be uploaded to our website for learners, employers and stakeholders to view.

From improved numeracy and literacy skills, personal development leading to better mental health and well-being, to increasing the career prospects for individuals, our educational rationale supports our learners.

With a wider focus, our partner provision provides longer-term regional skills development leading to improved economic circumstances