Off The Job Training

Off-the-job training is a statutory requirement for an English apprenticeship. It's training, which is received by the apprentice during the apprentice’s normal working hours, for the purpose of achieving the knowledge, skills and behaviours of the approved apprenticeship the learner is completing. By normal working hours, we mean paid hours excluding overtime.

To be eligible for government funding all full-time apprentices (those that work 30 hours per week or more) must spend a minimum of 6 hours per week on off-the-job training over the planned duration of the practical period.

“It is not on-the-job training which is training received by the apprentice for the sole purpose of enabling the apprentice to perform the work for which they have been employed. By this we mean training that does not specifically link to the knowledge, skills and behaviours set out in the apprenticeship.”

Ref: Apprenticeship funding rules and guidance for employers, May 2022, page 18

All apprentices spend at least 20% of their time on Off The Job (OTJ) training. Apprentices don’t need to be called away from their job one day a week - in fact, they don't even need to leave the office.

Learn the facts about the Off The Job requirement:

It can happen in the workplace - Off the job training refers to any activity relevant to the job but not covered by day-to-day tasks. Department of Education (DoE) guidelines on Off The Job training state 'It is the activity, rather than the location that determines whether the training meets the funding rules definition'

It doesn’t need to take up one day a week - The requirement is measured as 20% of an apprentice’s working hours over the course of the apprenticeship. It can be delivered as one hour a day, a few days over a few weeks, or a solid block – whatever suits best

How Together Training supports Off The Job training

Our Learning Coaches work with apprentices’ employer mentors, line managers and colleagues to identify job-related activities that qualify as OTJ activity.

These may include:

Classroom-based learning relating to the apprentice’s studies
Shadowing colleagues to gain a wider understanding of their job or the business
Observation of and/or practical assistance with job-related tasks new to the apprentice
Mentoring by a senior colleague
E-learning relating to the apprentice’s studies (built into Together Training apprenticeships)
Peer-to-peer forums (face-to-face or online) to discuss sector- and apprenticeship-related issues
Attending industry-related events with a bearing on the apprentice’s job (conferences, competitions etc.)
Learning Mentors make sure any Off The Job activities are eligible
Apprentices record time spent on Off The Job learning in an online log which our Funding Team submit to the ESFA for verification at the end of the apprenticeship

This will allow you the time to develop new Knowledge,skills and behaviours linked to your apprenticeship

If you are unsure of whether an activity can be regarded as Off-the-Job Training, ask yourself these questions:

Is the individual undertaking this activity signed up to the apprenticeship programme?
Is the activity directly relevant to the apprenticeship?
Is the activity teaching new knowledge, skills and behaviours?
Is the learning taking place in the apprentice’s contracted working hours?