Damar has always worked closely with our employer partners, students, awarding organisations and sector bodies to understand how we can best meet their individual needs. This has driven the development of innovative tools and flexible approaches to planning apprenticeship programmes, running recruitment campaigns, delivering learning and conducting assessments. The COVID-19 crisis has tested the resilience of these methods to their limits and it’s fantastic to see how well they have stood up to the challenge. I’m delighted that in the last week, our amazing team has been able to:
- Meet virtually with new employer partners through Microsoft Teams to generate 18 new apprenticeship opportunities.
- Fill 6 apprenticeship vacancies for employers by facilitating online interviews.
- Complete the remote enrolment of 8 new apprentices, using DocuSign.
- Get 6 new apprentices started on their programmes, using our online induction and delivering launch sessions via Zoom.
- Run group webinars, online forums and 1:1 support sessions and reviews via tele/videoconference with our current apprentices.
- Support 9 apprentices to successfully complete by working closely with end-point assessment organisations to keep assessments in place.
- Provide the tools and guidance to allow our business support unit to work remotely and offer seamless continuation of central administrative assistance to colleagues, employers and apprentices.
The coming months will continue to present new and different challenges on a daily basis. Whilst we face many uncertainties, one thing that is not in doubt is that Damar’s truly amazing team of dedicated professionals will continue to work tirelessly to support our employers and apprentices during this difficult time.