Amber Healthcare Personnel Limited

Amber Healthcare Personnel Limited (operating as Oxford Applied Training) Monitoring visit report

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Name of lead inspector: Peter Cox, Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection dates: 16 and 17 February 2022

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Type of provider: Independent learning provider

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Address:

Unit C2 Grange Court Business Park Barton Lane Abingdon OX14 3NB Monitoring visit: Amber Healthcare Personnel Limited, 16 and 17 February 2022

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Context and focus of visit

From October 2018, Ofsted undertook to carry out monitoring visits to all newly directly funded providers of apprenticeship training provision which began to be funded from April 2017 or after by the Education and Skills Funding Agency and/or the apprenticeship levy. This monitoring visit was undertaken as part of those arrangements and as outlined in the ‘Further education and skills inspection handbook’, especially the sections entitled ‘Monitoring visits’ and ‘Monitoring visits to providers that are newly directly publicly funded’. The focus of these visits is on the themes set out below.

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Context and focus of visit

Amber Healthcare Personnel Limited, operating under the name Oxford Applied Training (hereby known as OAT), is an independent learning provider. Formerly a private training company specialising in a range of compliance courses for small and medium businesses, OAT successfully registered to provide apprenticeships in 2019.

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Context and focus of visit

At the time of the monitoring visit, there were 40 apprentices in learning. Of these, nine apprentices studied the level 2 customer service practitioner standard, 10 studied the level 3 team leader/supervisor standard, and eight studied the level 3 business administrator standard. A further five studied the level 3 digital marketing standard and two studied the level 5 operations/departmental manager standard. The remaining apprentices studied information technology (IT) solutions technician standard and payroll administrator standard.

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Context and focus of visit

The provider does not subcontract any of its provision.

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Insufficient progress

Leaders have struggled to resolve issues caused by rapid staff turnover. As a result, they do not have a sufficient understanding of the strengths and weaknesses of all areas of provision. They recognise rightly that quality assurance systems are not yet adequate to improve the quality of training.

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Insufficient progress

Leaders and managers do not ensure that programmes meet all the principles and requirements of successful apprenticeship provision. Staff do not ensure that all employers understand their roles and responsibilities for apprentices’ final assessment. Leaders and managers do not have sufficiently robust measures in place to check that all apprentices are in receipt of their entitlement to off-the-job training. Monitoring visit: Amber Healthcare Personnel Limited, 16 and 17 February 2022 Leaders and managers work closely with local enterprise partners, including the University of Oxford apprenticeships team, to understand and meet regional need.

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Insufficient progress

Leaders and managers have designed apprenticeship programmes to include useful additional qualifications, which enable apprentices to be more competitive when applying for future roles. For example, apprentices within IT technician courses complete the Computing Technology Industry Association qualification and apprentices on team leaderships programmes complete the Chartered Management Institution diploma.

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Insufficient progress

Leaders and managers make sure that most employers are involved successfully in the design of the curriculum. For example, leaders worked with employers to adapt team leader apprenticeships to focus on effective use of time within project management. A few employers value the benefit that programmes bring to their individual business. For example, level 3 digital marketing apprentices use their training to increase their organisation’s web profile and traffic.

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Insufficient progress

While leaders ensure that staff are appropriately qualified and have the requisite expertise for their roles, they do not support staff sufficiently well to help them to develop their teaching skills. Leaders have plans to resolve this issue, but these are yet to be realised.

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Insufficient progress

Staff do not use apprentices’ prior skills and knowledge to plan learning. Staff are not sufficiently aware of apprentices’ starting points and so cannot adequately monitor the progress that they may make. Staff ensure that most apprentices are recruited with integrity.

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Insufficient progress

Most apprentices do not learn new and substantial skills quickly to make good progress or benefit their organisations. A few apprentices develop new knowledge and skills, and so become better at their jobs due to their training. For example, level 3 business and administration apprentices use their understanding of budgeting to improve the financial position of their departments.

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Insufficient progress

Too many apprentices correctly describe training as insufficient and highly disrupted due to staffing issues. In these instances, apprentices have been left without adequate support. This slows apprentices’ progress greatly and a few remain in learning beyond their expected end date. Staff do not ensure that all apprentices receive regular or sufficient feedback about their work. Consequently, some apprentices do not know their progress or how to improve. Monitoring visit: Amber Healthcare Personnel Limited, 16 and 17 February 2022 Staff do not communicate with all employers about apprentices’ progress or learning. Staff do not ensure that on- and off-the-job training are aligned effectively. As a result, many employers are unable to support apprentices, which hinders their learning.

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Insufficient progress

Staff do not help apprentices to develop their literacy and numeracy skills to help them in their job roles sufficiently. Apprentices who need English and mathematics qualifications as part of their programmes do not receive adequate support.

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Insufficient progress

Many apprentices do not fully understand the requirements for end-point assessment. They do not feel well prepared for this final assessment. Too many apprentices are unable to recall any guidance or information about their next steps.

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Insufficient progress

Leaders have not ensured that all policies are in place to help keep apprentices safe. Key safeguarding policies are out of date and make reference to members of safeguarding staff who no longer work within the organisation. Leaders have not completed the required ‘Prevent’ duty risk assessment.

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Insufficient progress

Leaders do not have suitable checks in place to ensure that staff are safe to work with apprentices. They do not ensure that all staff have completed safeguarding training. While leaders have put in place actions to resolve this issue, these plans have yet to be realised.

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Insufficient progress

Apprentices feel safe and understand how to make a disclosure, should this be necessary.

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Insufficient progress

The appropriately qualified designated safeguarding lead uses a suitable tracking system to record and monitor safeguarding concerns. In the very few instances where intervention is required, staff support apprentices successfully. Monitoring visit: Amber Healthcare Personnel Limited, 16 and 17 February 2022 regulates and inspects to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children’s social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Insufficient progress

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Insufficient progress

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Insufficient progress

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Insufficient progress

T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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