If you think of school leavers when you think of apprentices, think again. Apprenticeships are far from limited to career starters, with new generation programmes tailor-made to bring out the best in accomplished managers

Making the most of your managers makes perfect sense: already demonstrating great skills and embodying your business values, why risk them taking their talents elsewhere? The Team Leader / Supervisor Level 3 Standard enables employers to upskill their best staff and keep them in the business

Leading the way
Ahead of the curve is Virgin Active UK with over 100 colleagues – including sales managers, personal training managers, operations managers, group exercise managers and assistant general managers – studying the Team Leader Supervisor apprenticeship.

Offering this apprenticeship in a bid to recruit more of its senior management population from within the business, Virgin Active is working in close partnership with Active IQ to assess this qualification in small, phased groups.

Virgin territory
Facing its first encounter with the End-point assessments process, Virgin Active UK turned to Active IQ for support. “Active IQ stood out for its impartiality and professionalism,” says Jeanette Hartley, Virgin Active UK apprenticeship manager. “The team demonstrated a rigorous process which, combined with its renowned integrity and reputation for excellence, helped shape our decision.

“We identified a skills gap among our management population and wanted to develop their knowledge, skills and behaviours,” explains Jeanette. “The transformation by the time they reach their Team Leader Supervisor End-point assessment is incredible to witness. Active IQ shares our ethos and values and brings a friendly, flexible approach, endless energy and complete commitment to tailoring the assessment for our managers.”

Train to retain
“Our ultimate aim is to keep our best talent in our business by management progression from within Virgin Active,” says Jeanette. “This bespoke apprenticeship programme appeals strongly to talented managers looking to further their career.” Both employers and apprentices gain from this approach, as the apprentice brings improved ability to their day-to-day job, while locking in their new skills through using them at work.

Begin with the end in mind
“Apprenticeships have evolved considerably over the last few years, with more in-depth content and more challenging assessments,” explains Jenny Patrickson, Active IQ managing director. “Knowing what's expected at the End-point Assessment at the beginning of the process is vital, as the first successful Virgin Active cohort has shown.

"We developed Apprentice and Employer Toolkits when we recognised the need for focused support to navigate the changing landscape of apprenticeship delivery and assessment.”