For Career Starter Candidates: You must provide acceptable evidence of your qualifications to be approved to apply for an apprenticeship position.

For Current Employees: You need to complete your initial assessment, which evaluates your Maths and English skills as part of the pre-onboarding process. This assessment is mandated by the ESFA: however, it does not serve as evidence. Should you pass these assessments, you are then required to complete the Level 2 Functional Skills exams or provide evidence of achievement of a Level 2 or higher qualification in maths and English while enrolled in the programme.

Day 0-21: Apprentices should use this time to submit their existing evidence or to request evidence from their school or exam board. Apprentices who applied through their employer and were not able to submit evidence during the application stage should submit this now. More details about submitting acceptable evidence and how to submit can be found in the Maths and English (Functional Skills) Evidence Requirements article.

Day 5-40: Apprentices must complete their diagnostic assessment unless their certificates have been accepted. This should be finished by Day 40 to ensure a smooth transition to learning. Apprentices will have access to both asynchronous learning options, which can be completed at their convenience, and synchronous sessions for those who need them. More information about learning can be found in the Functional Skills Learning Support article.

Apprentices will then be contacted regarding an exam booking and should aim to take these exams within the first few months of starting the apprenticeship.

Level 2 qualifications in Maths and English are typically accomplished during secondary education. They are Level 2 (or above) qualifications in Maths and English which is equivalent to GCSE grade A*-C (9-4). For details on acceptable evidence, see the official government guidelines.

No, Functional Skills learning is considered separate and does not count as off-the-job training. This is because although it is related to the apprenticeship, OTJ is only valid if it is developing the particular knowledge, skills and behaviours from the apprenticeship standard your programme is based on.

Apprentices at Level 3 and above must provide a comprehensive evidence pack, including Level 2 qualifications in Maths and English, to meet the apprenticeship standards mandated by the Education and Skills Funding Agency.

Initial Assessments are evaluations taken during the application process to gauge an apprentice's foundational skills. They are not a substitute for the evidence required for Functional Skills qualifications.

Apprentices funded by the Government Levy receive up to three funded attempts at each exam. Additional attempts may require funding through an external provider, where further information will be provided if necessary.