The reputation of apprenticeships is under threat from an “assessment car crash,” the chief executive of the Association of Employment and Learning Providers (AELP) has said.

The latest figures from the Department for Education, released earlier this month, show that of the 325 apprenticeship standards currently approved for delivery, 89 still do not have an end-point assessment organisation in place. This represents 27 per cent of the total.

Concerns are so great that the AELP is intervening to try and avert what their chief executive Mark Dawe is calling the “EPA car crash”.

The membership organisation for training providers has launched a consultation around what it sees as the main areas of challenge, which they say can be summed up in “four Cs”: clarity, consistency, capacity and costings.

Warning lights 'flashing strongly'

Mr Dawe said considerable sums have been invested by the sector in setting up end-point assessment organisations but there is an urgent need to build capacity or risk compromising quality.

He added: “The warning lights on end-point assessment have been flashing strongly for over two years but the authorities have buried their heads in the sand and now the horror stories are starting to appear.

“If the assessment car crash happens, the damage to the reputation of apprenticeships among employers and young people could be far worse than anything else that has happened under the reforms so far. None of us wants this to happen.”

Will only affect “a small handful” of apprentices

A spokesperson for the Department for Education said there is little to be concerned about, adding: “99.97 per cent of apprentices who are expected to reach their gateway review within the next 12 months are covered by an end-point assessment organisation.

“These are a crucial aspect of apprenticeship reforms, giving employers assurance that apprentices have been independently assessed as job-ready at the end of their programme.”

Sir Gerry Berragan, chief executive of the Institute for Apprenticeships, added that “only a small handful” of apprentices are due to finish their courses in the next 12 months without an assessment in place.

He added: “End-point assessment is a new and important feature of apprenticeships and we know that employers, providers and assessment organisations are working hard to adapt to this and deliver a high-quality service to apprentices.

“We are aware that this can provide challenges. We have recently reviewed our processes and are working with employers to ensure all apprentices can undertake end-point assessment at the appropriate time.”

This is an edited version of an article in the 23 November edition of Tes. You can read the full version here. To subscribe, click here. To download the digital edition, Android users can click here and iOS users can click here. Tes magazine is available at all good newsagents