What do the best training providers have in common? They all use epaPRO. Here's why.

In the apprenticeship ecosystem, the key link between apprentices, employers and EPAOs is you – the training provider.

You may only be responsible for 20% of off-the-job training, but it’s 100% of your commitment to your apprentice – and if you have a reputation for doing it well, employers will trust you to support them.

If your processes for managing EPA don’t provide transparency to stakeholders, ease-of-use for your team, or critical information gets lost between the apprentice programme, gateway and EPA, you need to join 2,000+ other training providers and start using epaPRO.

We’ll explore why in this blog.

What do employers look for in a training provider?

There are many reasons why employers choose certain training providers – of course, the sorts of apprenticeships they can provide training for matter.

However, one major factor is reputation. Even the government advises that employers choose a partner based on “what other employers, apprentices and Ofsted say about them”.

For employers, this can boil down to three key questions:

• Will my training provider ensure my apprentice is receiving a high-quality of training?
• Will they keep accurate records about apprentices, standards and progress?
• Will they be easy to communicate with?

Employers and apprentices will also trust you to lay out the path ahead of them – from the KSBs they will need to gain during the programme, to the evidence they will have to provide to initiate gateway (and eventually EPA.)

You are a critical link between employers, apprentices and EPAOs – and if you want to be more agile and adaptable than other training providers, epaPRO is the missing piece in the puzzle.

8 reasons why training providers should start using epaPRO

• You can give apprentices and employers an unrivalled level of transparency and clarity.

You can give these groups access to the epaPRO platform - and any vital info they need – all in one place. This can include commitment statements, training materials, assessment plans and portfolios – but there’s no limit to what you can upload to support them.

• You can keep every stakeholder on the same page.

If apprentices, employers or EPAOs need to contact you at any time, epaPRO works as a digital meeting place with Teams integration. You’re also within reach with messaging and notifications, which can be automated to update apprentices and employers on key submission deadlines.

• You can make the transition from gateway to EPA seamless.

With all the information in one place – from portfolios to ILR records – and full oversight of gateway submission requirements for your apprentice’s standard, you can ensure that your EPAO partner has everything they need to take the baton for EPA.

What’s more, as so many EPAOs and assessors already use epaPRO, sharing that vital information is quick and foolproof.

• You can do it all at scale

With no user cap on the platform, bulk registering of apprentices and custom forms, you can make the process of apprenticeship management far quicker and more unified.

• You can stay organised and compliant

If you’ve depended on hard copies or Excel spreadsheets in the past, you know how easy it is for sensitive information to go missing. With ISO 27001 & Cyber Essentials Plus accreditation, you can trust data saved in epaPRO to be securely stored, GDPR-compliant and easy to find.

• You can integrate it with your other important apps

epaPRO has a host of helpful connections such as videoconferencing, surveys, email, servers and even Google Maps – but it also integrates fully with BTL Surpass, Aptem and links to ESFA.

• You can count on it to work when you need it to.

epaPRO has 99.9% uptime – meaning you won’t have sudden outages or downtime – and whenever you need support, you can trust an in-house service desk to help you get the most out of the platform.

• You can make informed decisions with data using our powerful reporting dashboard

The more data you have, the more informed your decisions are. With epaPRO’s reporting dashboard, you can drill down into your individual apprentices’ performances to see where things are going well, and where they need support. You can also get the bigger picture with our statistic reports functionality, which shows you key trends, such as pass and fail rates.

Is epaPRO just for training providers?

epaPRO is a universal platform – a one-stop shop that makes EPA management seamless. This means that it doesn’t just help training providers:

• Apprentices can have access to key data and learning materials, upload assessment files, and stay in contact with employers and training providers. They can even organise to meet assessors before EPA, which can calm pre-assessment nerves.
• Employers can work directly with training providers to oversee the apprentice’s progress. They can gain access to bespoke reports, identify skills gaps, and coordinate everything they need to ensure a smooth transition from gateway to EPA.
• EPAOs can rely on all the information about the apprentice journeys and standards they are managing to be reliable, up-to-date and easy to access. When it comes to organising EPA, notifying assessors and apprentices and providing certification, automation and a single hub platform save them hundreds of hours.

Want to see it for yourself, for free?

All you have to do to see how epaPRO will transform your training provider is to book a demo with Libby, message hello@epapro.co.uk or call 01223 785635.