Unemployed Learner during EPA Period

P163 The apprentice must be employed until the end-point assessment is completed. The only exception is where the apprentice has been made redundant and we are funding the apprenticeship to completion. Consideration must be given to the potential time needed for any re-sit and/or re-training prior to re-taking the end-point assessment so the apprentice remains employed during this time.

Hi Martin West - a follow up to this if you don't mind

If a learner has been made redundant within 6 months of Apprenticeship End Date, they are permitted to complete EPA funding by the ESFA.

If the EPA however requires the learner to draw on real life/work-based examples during their EPA period, it is essentially then ultimately up to the EPAO to decide if the learner can complete EPA or not?

I have always thought that it may be difficult depending on the standard being undertaken for some providers to continue the Apprentices programme to completion and that for some the best course of action is to assist the Apprentice in finding a new employer so that they may complete their Apprenticeship.

The funding rules only say you may continue their apprenticeship training without being employed under an apprenticeship agreement.

In these circumstances:

P303.1 You can continue to deliver the apprenticeship’s training as long as all the remaining elements, including the end-point assessment, can be successfully delivered.

There are two parts to this, the continued delivery of all the remaining elements of training and undertaking the EPA and for either it may be impractical to complete the remaining elements as this is dependent on the resources available, the requirements of the standard and the EPA.

Par 303 indicates that for some it may not be possible to successfully deliver the remaining training or EPA and for this reason I say that finding a new employer may be the only option.

HTH