The Working Knowledge Group Limited

The Working Knowledge Group Ltd Monitoring visit report

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Name of lead inspector: Lowenna Bradley, His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection dates: 21 and 22 February 2024

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Type of provider: Independent learning provider

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Address:

86 Shirehampton Road Stoke Bishop Bristol BS9 2DR Monitoring visit: The Working Knowledge Group Ltd, 21 and 22 February 2024

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Context and focus of visit

Ofsted undertakes to carry out monitoring visits to all newly directly funded providers of apprenticeship training provision funded 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

The Working Knowledge Group Limited is an independent learning provider that trains apprentices nationally, using online technology. It started training apprentices as a subcontracting partner with South West Association of Training Providers Ltd in 2018. It began training the first apprentices as a main provider in January 2023.

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Context and focus of visit

At the time of the visit, there were 25 apprentices studying the level 3 digital marketer apprenticeship standard and four apprentices studying the new level 3 multi-channel marketer apprenticeship standard. All apprentices were adults. Apprentices work with employers across the country, with the majority in the south west, south east and London regions.

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Significant progress

Leaders and managers are clear and ambitious in their aims to provide opportunities for young adults, most of whom have no previous experience of digital marketing, to develop successful careers in this sector. Leaders aim to place apprentices strategically with entrepreneurial businesses that are looking to grow their business. In doing so, leaders realise their vision of creating a successful partnership that adds value to employers’ businesses through the high-quality training they provide to apprentices. As a result, leaders contribute to helping to fill the national skills shortage for digital marketers.

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Significant progress

Leaders and managers recruit employers with integrity to ensure that they are highly committed to supporting their apprentices and understand the benefits they will bring to their business. Leaders and managers undertake a thorough selection process to match the characteristics of apprentices with the culture of their employers. Employers particularly value the support they receive to recruit apprentices and to support them through their apprenticeship. For example, small Monitoring visit: The Working Knowledge Group Ltd, 21 and 22 February 2024 groups of employers join monthly sessions with trainers to ensure they understand what their apprentices are learning. Trainers talk to employers about what opportunities they can provide apprentices at work to enable them to apply their new knowledge. As a result, employers support the coordination of on- and off-the-job training well, to maximise the progress their apprentices make and to add value to

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Significant progress

their businesses through successful digital marketing.

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Significant progress

Leaders and managers ensure that the requirements of an apprenticeship provision are met. Apprentices receive the time they need to complete their apprenticeship training and prepare for their assessments. Leaders and managers ensure that monthly meetings with the apprentice, employer and coach to review the progress that apprentices make are constructive and useful. As a result, apprentices are very clear on what they need to work on to make further improvements. However, this could be recorded more clearly in action plans.

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Significant progress

Leaders and managers know the strengths and areas for development in the quality of provision, and they take appropriate and timely actions to make further improvements. Leaders and managers utilise a wide range of partner organisations, including training provider networks, other training providers and professional bodies to keep up to date with apprenticeship and industry developments. They have yet to formalise any processes for governance arrangements and recognise rightly the added benefits and assurances that support and challenge from an external perspective could provide.

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Significant progress

Leaders and managers have considered carefully the content of their curriculum, the order that they teach, and how they teach apprentices. They work with digital marketing professionals and respond to feedback from apprentices to make continual developments to the curriculum. For example, trainers first teach apprentices fundamental concepts, such as understanding your customer and how best to communicate with them. Then they teach apprentices the methods they can use to measure the success of this communication through analysing data, so they can appreciate what the data measures and why it is useful. Apprentices then learn increasingly technical aspects such as website strategy. Trainers return to the fundamentals to ensure that apprentices understand the context of why they are doing what they are doing.

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Significant progress

Leaders and managers have recruited trainers and coaches with high levels of expertise and current experience of industry, such as established professional consultants and leaders with their own companies. Specialists in their individual fields teach small groups of apprentices in monthly masterclasses and surgeries, as well as in weekly webinars. Apprentices develop the specialist knowledge and skills they Monitoring visit: The Working Knowledge Group Ltd, 21 and 22 February 2024 need, combined with specific constructive and personalised feedback. For example, apprentices learn how to change their website descriptions and evaluate how effective they are in increasing hits from website search engines.

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Significant progress

Coaches provide apprentices with access to high-quality online resources, including videos and workbooks, which apprentices use effectively to deepen their understanding. Apprentices apply what they learn from coaches and these resources in their workplaces. For example, apprentices develop their employers’ brand and simplify the messaging on their websites to better introduce what the business does for their customers.

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Significant progress

Trainers use assessment extremely well to check apprentices’ understanding of new learning. Apprentices present their new knowledge to trainers and peers during surgery sessions. Trainers demonstrate how to give constructive feedback in a way that motivates apprentices to improve. Trainers develop apprentices’ confidence rapidly to critique each other’s work. Apprentices use this knowledge to reflect on their own experiences and to learn about a diverse range of businesses. Trainers ensure that apprentices respond positively to their feedback. They give each apprentice time at the next session to discuss how they have used their personalised feedback to make improvements to their work.

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Significant progress

Apprentices develop substantial new knowledge, skills and behaviours, rapidly and securely. This is because of the training they receive from trainers and coaches and the opportunities provided by employers in very well-coordinated on- and off-the- job-training. For example, apprentices gain the communication, technical and digital skills needed to support their employers to run successful online advertisement campaigns. Apprentices feel confident to use their new knowledge to talk professionally to existing and prospective clients during networking events. Apprentices demonstrate a real enthusiasm for their learning and are rightly proud of the benefits they bring to their employers, including from the early stages of their apprenticeship.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders and managers have suitably trained staff in place to lead on the safeguarding of apprentices. Leaders record and follow up on safeguarding concerns and issues of well-being effectively. Leaders make appropriate checks when recruiting new staff to ensure themselves of their suitability to work with young adults. All staff are trained in safeguarding, ‘Prevent’ duty and wider topics relevant to apprentices, including mental health. Coaches ensure that apprentices receive the information they need regarding safeguarding, radicalisation and extremism, and they understand the relevance of these topics to their work and lives. Monitoring visit: The Working Knowledge Group Ltd, 21 and 22 February 2024 Leaders ensure that staff are up to date regarding specific ‘Prevent’ concerns within the southwest region. However, they have yet to develop a deeper understanding of the different issues across the wider regions where apprentices work.

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Reasonable progress

Monitoring visit: The Working Knowledge Group Ltd, 21 and 22 February 2024 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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Reasonable progress

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Reasonable progress

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Reasonable progress

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Reasonable progress

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

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