The Richard Review, an independent report on apprenticeships commissioned by the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS), recommended a move to end-point assessment for three reasons:
- A more holistic assessment at the end of an apprenticeship would allow apprentices to be assessed once they had gained the maximum experience possible.
- Assessment at the end of training gives employers and providers much more control over the design and structure of the on-programme training of the apprentice.
- End-point assessment also frees up providers from continuous assessment allowing them to focus more on training and learning.
End-point assessment is a process of ensuring that the apprentice (the learner) undertaking the Apprenticeship Standard has sufficient knowledge, skills and behaviours within their area of work as determined by the employer group, formerly known as the Trailblazer Group who designed the Apprenticeship Standard and Assessment Plan.
The registered End-Point Assessment Organisation (EPAO) and their End-Point Assessors (EPAs) & Lead End Point Assessors (LEPAs) must be independent of, and separate from the employer/training provider, essentially to ensure quality and to mitigate conflict of interests.
Once the apprentice completes their on-programme delivery and assessment, a decision will be taken as to whether they are ready to undertake the end-point assessment, known as the ‘Gateway’. How this is determined will be down to the approved Assessment Plan that supports the Apprenticeship Standard.
In most cases, the end-point assessment will be graded thus providing an outcome to show the apprentice is fully competent and productive in their occupation.