Standard
Code
ST0551 v1.1
Maximum Funding
£9000
Typical
Duration
24 months
Level
5
Standard
EPA Price*
£1800
External Quality Assurance Body
Ofqual
End-Point Assessment Requirements
English and maths
Effective from 11 February 2025, the government has removed the mandatory English and maths functional skills requirement for apprentices aged 19 and above who start their apprenticeship training. This change includes apprentices who are currently on the programme.
The new ruling applies to apprentices on programme and all apprentices starting their programmes from February 2025.
Employers and apprentices must agree by 1st April 2025 whether apprentices aged 19 and above on programme will continue studying English and maths.
- Providers must record the decision in the training plan.
- Apprentices must continue their studies until an agreement is made.
It is worth noting that whilst the mandatory requirement for English and Maths has been removed, apprentices and employers can still choose to receive English and Maths training and participate in the associated tests.
For apprentices under the age of 19 at programme commencement, there is still a requirement to undertake Maths and English training and take functional skills tests.
Professional Discussion Underpinned by a Portfolio of Evidence
- The underpinning portfolio of evidence is completed during the on-programme period of the apprenticeship and must be submitted to PAL at Gateway.
- The portfolio must contain evidence related and mapped to each of the knowledge, skills, and behaviours (KSBs) that will be assessed by the professional discussion, typically 20 discrete pieces. The evidence should be qualitative as opposed to quantitative and each piece of evidence is likely to demonstrate more than one KSB.
- As part of the portfolio, the apprentice will be required to submit a case study report based on a case study that the apprentice has completed with an individual child or group of children.
- The portfolio may also contain workplace policies and procedures, witness statements, anonymised annotated photographs, anonymised learning journals, anonymised risk assessments, anonymised case notes, or anonymised referral forms.
- The portfolio should not include reflective accounts or any methods of self-assessment (except for S24 and B6).
- The evidence provided must be valid and attributable to the apprentice; the portfolio must contain a statement from the employer and apprentice confirming this.
- The independent assessor will review the portfolio evidence and use it to identify areas for the professional discussion – it is not directly assessed.
- The professional discussion must last for 90 minutes (+10% at the independent assessor’s discretion to allow the apprentice to respond to a question if necessary).
- The professional discussion will assess the apprentice’s competence against the themes of:
- Legislation and guidance.
- Health and wellbeing.
- Continual professional development.
- Child development.
- Observation and assessment planning.
- The independent assessor must ask at least 8 questions.
- The professional discussion must take place in a quiet room, free from distractions and influence.
- Webinar or video conferencing software can be used for the assessment.
- This method of assessment has fail, pass and distinction grades.
Observation With Questioning
- The observation and questioning of the apprentice completing their day-to-day duties under normal working conditions must take a total of 90 minutes (+10% at the discretion of the independent assessor to allow the apprentice to complete a task or respond to a question if necessary). The observation duration is 60 minutes, and the post-observation questioning duration is 30 minutes.
- The independent assessor should observe the following:
- The apprentice interacting with a group of children through an opportunity or experience for learning, based on the session plan, which will be shared with the independent assessor on the day of the assessment, before the observation begins.
- The apprentice leading or supervising colleagues during this session.
- The apprentice communicating with parents, carers, or guardians of the children under their supervision.
- The independent assessor must ask at least 7 questions following the observation. The questions are to seek clarification where required and to assess the apprentice’s level of competence against the grading descriptors.
- This method of assessment has fail, pass and distinction grades.
Available Resources
- Training provider resource library
- EPA Specification (click to view)
- PAL Guide – Making the Apprenticeship Journey Successful (click to view)
Previous Version
How to engage with PAL.
Engaging with PAL couldn’t be easier. Simply contact us at info@professionalassessment.co.uk or on 0800 1601899. Our senior team will contact you to find out about your requirements in more detail and discuss how we might need to adapt our approach to meet your needs. Once you are happy that PAL is the right fit for your programme, we set up your account, share our library of resources and support you to register your apprentices. You can then rest assured that you have a dedicated team on hand to guide you through your EPA journey and provide a responsive service when your apprentices are ready to be assessed.