Cycle employers come together to develop apprenticeship standard
Posted on in Business News , Cycles News
A group of retailers and suppliers have submitted a draft proposal to the Institute for Apprentices in a bid to develop a new cycle maintenance apprenticeship standard.
Spearheaded by the Association of Cycle Trades (ACT), ATG Training and Cycle-R, a Cycle Mechanic Trailblazer group consisting of over 10 employers in the cycle industry has been formed to create the two new Apprenticeship Standards - Cycle Mechanic and Senior Cycle Mechanic. The majority of the group is formed of independent retailers, with some additional representation from larger retailers, key suppliers and members of the cycle industry's trade body.
The new standards build on the content of the already established and successful cycle maintenance apprenticeship, which has had input from international brands and training providers making it a universally agreed standard.
The draft proposal has now been submitted to the Institute for Apprentices so no more contributions can be made to the content. The proposal will be reviewed by the Institute and, if accepted, will become the new standard for cycle maintenance apprenticeships going forwards.
Previously, the cycle maintenance apprenticeship frameworks were more engineering led, but the new standards, which are employer led, will better reflect the reality of what it means to be a cycle mechanic. The aim of the new standard is to take the best of the current successful apprenticeships and add to it the rest of the skill set that is needed to work in a modern cycle workshop, including customer service, administration, retail skills, team working, use of POS systems and a knowledge of current legislation, as well as the technical skills of cycle maintenance.
Within the Senior Cycle Mechanic apprenticeship there is provision to cover further mechanical skills as well as management and team leading skills, how to run an efficient workshop and retail shop, how to coach and mentor others, how to plan and run promotions and how to ensure compliance with all legislation.
The upcoming introduction of the Apprenticeship Levy will see all businesses with a wage bill greater than £3million contributing money to a levy pot to be used to pay for apprenticeship training. With these changes coming into force it is more important than ever to ensure that the highest quality training is being delivered.
Suzanne Read, Head of Cycles at ATG Training commented "I think it is vital that the previously successful Apprenticeship Frameworks are updated to reflect the needs of the cycle industry and to include aspects that historically have only been covered in an ad hoc basis. I am confident that within the Trailblazer group we have a good cross section of the industry and in conjunction with the ACT and other Training Providers we can create something of true value to the industry within the new Apprenticeship Cycle Mechanic and Senior Cycle Mechanic Standards."
The current apprenticeship standard will continue to be delivered as normal by ATG Training until a new standard is agreed. If you are interested in taking on an apprentice, contact ATG Training by emailing info@atg-training.co.uk or call 01296 737 800.