When apprenticeships changed from frameworks to standards I could see the benefits, from the Trailblazers writing the knowledge, skills and behaviours needed, to having an independent End-Point Assessment Organisation (EPAO) confirm that the apprentice is competent.
I decided that an EPAO was something I wanted to be involved with. My work history included early years, through being a NNEB Nursery Nurse and owning two successful day nurseries; as a teacher and assessor teaching early years, children and young people’s workforce, and play work; more recently supporting a nursery chain start a training provision and a university with their higher-level apprenticeship offering; as well as being a foster carer. Developing an EPAO seemed like a natural progression, and encouraging people to progress with their careers and knowledge is something I have always been passionate about.
SS Educational Services Ltd, or SSES for ease, stands for our values, which are Support – Skilled – Excellence – Success. This defines how SSES works positively with employers and training providers from introduction to completion.
‘Deciding what standards SSES would deliver was one of the easier parts of the process. I knew we were going to be a niche EPAO, focusing on one area, and the decision was to be able to offer End Point Assessments (EPAs) for all standards related to Early Years, Children, and Young People.’
The standards that SSES are/will be delivering the EPAs for are:
- Early Years Practitioner Level 2
- Playworker Level 2
- Early Years Educator Level 3
- Youth Support Worker Level 3
- Early Intervention Practitioner Level 4
- Children, Young People and Families Practitioner Level 4
- Children, Young People and Families Manager Level 5
- Youth Justice Practitioner Level 5
- Early Years Lead Practitioner Level 5
- Youth Worker Level 6
- Special Educational Needs Co-ordinator Level 7
- Play Therapist Level 7
Over the next few weeks SSES plan to publish a series of blog posts discussing each standard in more detail.
Suzanne
