At Northumbria we highly value our relationship with all our partners and are immensely proud of the impact our programmes have on apprentices, organisations and the region. This positive impact is only possible through our mutually beneficial collaborative approach.
We believe the role of the employer is vital in the success of an apprenticeship programme and we are here to support you, as well as your apprentice, throughout the learner journey and beyond.
Please see below for further information of the role of the employer in the apprenticeship programme:
Supporting your apprentice to achieve success
- Ensure their job role is directly related to the apprenticeship standard.
- Allow at least 20% of their normal working time as Off-the-Job Training (OJT) over the planned duration of the apprenticeship practical period.
- Provide a workplace mentor who is able to dedicate sufficient time and effort to support the apprentice and can make provisions to ensure they have the best possible chance of success at End-point assessment (EPA).
- Make provision for both workplace mentor and apprentice to attend regular progress review meetings with their University workplace coach.
- Ensure your apprentices are motivated and encouraged to complete their programme through to completion of EPA.
- Understand your responsibilities by reading the employer handbook.
Apprentice or Employer Changes
In order to keep records up to date and avoid funding issues, you must let the University know where a change in circumstances effects the apprentice as soon as possible.
Examples of changes:
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Changes to the apprentice’s contract or working pattern.
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Changes to the apprenticeship duration.
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Break in learning – an apprentice may request to take a break in learning from their apprenticeship if they plan to return to the same programme at a later date. The reason for the break could include medical treatment, parental leave or leave for other personal reasons. Your apprentice must discuss this with you and it is expected that the duration of the break will be agreedbetween the apprentice, you as employer and the University as training provider. A break in learning must be recorded where there is no plan for any active learning to take place within a calendar month and the training plan updated accordingly.
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Where an apprentice is made redundant, the University is required to make reasonable efforts to find the apprentice a new employer. You or the apprentice must forward their redundancy notice for the evidence pack.
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When an apprentice withdraws from the apprenticeship, i.e. the apprentice is no longer employed by you and has withdrawn from their programme (not redundancy).
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Change in programme where the apprentice starts a new role with the same employer and requires a different apprenticeship programme and the provider remains the same.
More information can be found in the Education and Skills Funding Agency funding rules ‘Change of circumstance’.
Coaching
Apprentices will be allocated a Workplace Coach employed by the University. The Coach will carry out an initial skills assessment prior to the programme starting and will conduct progress reviews with your apprentice and their workplace mentor to ensure they are on track to successfully complete their programme. The Coach is one of the main links between the University, the apprentice and the workplace.
Workplace Mentor
As the apprentice’s workplace mentor you are also playing a key role in supporting your colleague to develop the knowledge, skills and behaviours aligned to the apprenticeship standard, and to effective perform in their role.
Progress review meetings
Progress review meetings are an essential element of an apprenticeship programme to ensure apprentices are supported and progressing on the programme as expected.
They also provide you as the employer an update on the progress of your apprentice and the opportunity to recommend activities in the workplace that the apprentice could be signposted to which will help them achieve the knowledge, skills, and behaviours and learning outcomes of the apprenticeship programme.
Progress review meetings involve the apprentice, the workplace mentor) and University workplace coach.
The meetings must take place at least four times per year, usually every 12 weeks but this may vary depending on the programme delivery pattern. We will aim to hold at least one meeting face to face where possible but the majority will be virtual.
Discussions from meetings will be documented and stored so there is evidence of the end- to-end student journey, e.g. goals set, additional support signposted and subsequent actions taken, learning achieved, i.e. what can the apprentice do today that they couldn’t previously.
Progress review meetings do not only support apprentices on their learning journey but they also form part of the evidence of engagement with the programme for funding purposes. If an apprentice fails to attend reviews and otherwise does not engage, the University is obliged to interrupt their studies and suspended funding.
Records from these meetings will be used for ESFA audit and Ofsted inspection purposes.
Aptem
Aptem is the University’s Apprenticeship Management System which supports both employers and apprentices for the duration of the programme, allowing you to complete all apprenticeship tasks in one place. Key features and benefits include being able to:
- View and sign the Apprenticeship Agreement and Training Plan
- Monitor the progress of each apprentice and view each individual learning plan
- Have full oversight of the apprenticeship journey and planned hours
- Accept, view and complete progress review meetings
Learners on our apprentice programmes have full access to all Northumbria University services delivering learning, careers and wellbeing support services:
Our Careers team also offer Services to Employers.
Page last reviewed: 11 November 2026
