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First posted in Update 6 September:
ESFA Update further education: 6 September 2023 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
It's very clearly an Ach Rate fiddle so, whilst you are absolutely correct that, without any paperwork to suggest a BIL, the Rules say these learners should be flagged as Withdrawals, this is a clear statement that ESFA don't care what the Rules say when it comes to getting to 67%. I would "print off" (or screenshot, whatever) that bit of Update and add to the evidence files for any learners you are doing it to.
I don't think it's for those switching employers (with >12 week gap) though, just those at the same one?
Seriously?!
A small number of providers have been identified as incorrectly recording a break in learning as a learner withdrawal, which is negatively impacting their QAR. In these cases, the learner has been incorrectly recorded as a withdrawal, even though the learner subsequently returned within the same academic year to their apprenticeship on the same standard, with the same provider and employer.
In this case, providing the learner returned to the same provider and employer within the current academic year, providers should amend their data to record the completion status as a break in learning (“6. Learner has temporarily withdrawn from the aim due to an agreed break in learning”).
So now we can add Breaks in Learning where it's not actually an allowable Break in Learning? If it improves our QAR, I'm happy with that, but how absurd. Thanks Steve, I totally missed that announcement where they described following the rules as "incorrect".
We've got one with same employer, two with 12+ weeks gap between employers.
Ruth Canham-James
DfE Email - Breaks in Learning
Created
Anyone else had an email to their Principal about apprentices who were fully withdrawn in 22/23, and restarted the same Standard in 22/23? The email says it's an error and they should be recorded as Breaks in Learning.
That's extremely misleading, as there are only certain circumstances when a break applies. We have three like this, and all of them fully quit, with no intention of restarting. Several months later, they decided to start again after all (perhaps with a new employer). That doesn't justify using a Break in Learning (though they are all correctly flagged as restarts).
I guess it's good that they're raising it (though of course they don't send you a list of which ones they think are the problem) in case it is a mistake, but to send it to the Principal, with wording that says that it is an error and we need to fix it, it really aggravating. Then I have to waste my time writing an explanation about why I'm not wrong. There's not even an FRM report that would have given us a heads up about this.