As cars become ever more complex and more reliant on IT, automotive apprenticeships are a vital way of ensuring your dealership has the relevant skills and expertise it needs to succeed in the future. Apprenticeships are a way of ensuring the future success of any business as your staff pass on their skills and experience to the younger generation.
So an apprenticeship – whether an entry-level qualification or any of a number of upskilling training courses – is a vital way of ensuring your workforce is up to date with current and future automotive technology and business practices.
According to the National Apprenticeship Service, employers who invest in apprentices report that the development of new skills leads to a rise in the quality of their products and services, as well as a rise in motivation, productivity and employee retention. The majority of consumers favour using companies that take on apprentices, so it’s definitely worth shouting about the successes of yours.
Apprenticeships cover sales and admin as well as technical careers
A common misconception about apprenticeships is that they’re only for technical careers. This is far from the truth, and our automotive sector apprenticeships also cover business administration as well as customer service, and supervision.
Apprenticeships are for everyone, not just school leavers
Another misconception is that apprenticeships are only for school leavers. While it is the case that many young people take their first steps into the automotive industry via an apprenticeship, skills training doesn’t end there. Apprenticeships are basically training programmes at different levels, and staff members of all ages can access them at many levels right up to senior management courses.
Apprenticeships can help employees become experts in a specialism that interests them, as well as in supervisory and leadership skills. By encouraging your staff to do apprenticeships, you will be creating a highly skilled and highly motivated workforce who will be well placed to secure the future of your business.
You pay just 5% of the training
If your annual wage bill is under £3m a year, you do not have to pay the Apprenticeship Levy. Indeed, the Levy will cover 95% of your apprentice’s training costs. The Levy is funded by employers with an annual wage bill of over £3m, but if they employ apprentices, they can use their own contributions, and sometimes more, to fund their own training.
As an employer, you will pay the wages of your apprentices and provide them with the on-the-job training. You will then agree a payment schedule with the training provider such as Skillnet, and pay them directly. You’ll contribute 5% towards the cost of the required apprenticeship training and the government will pay the remaining 95%.
Skillnet will provide each apprentice with up to 24 weeks off-site training, as well as regular visits or calls from allocated Skills Coaches. Skillnet training will include life skills and personal development planning alongside technical know-how.
Levy-paying employers
If your wage bill is £3 million or more, you have to pay the Apprenticeship Levy. The amount payable is 0.5% of your wage bill, though all employers get a £15,000 allowance to offset against the amount they have to pay. The payments go into the online Apprenticeship Service, which lets you manage your apprenticeship funding and delivery. You’ll be able to see how much is in your account and allocate payments to providers of government-approved apprenticeships.
You can work with training providers to agree on an apprenticeship programme suitable for your business. The levy can be used to pay for the End Point Assessments, but not the registration or certification of non-mandatory qualifications.