East Kent Colleges Group is a family of six colleges and nine training centres across East Kent, with the mission to play a leading role for the region in developing the economic and social prosperity of the diverse communities they serve. With Colleges in Ashford, Broadstairs, Canterbury, Dover, Folkestone and Sheppey, and training sites around East Kent, they provide a broad range of study programmes, pathways and vocational skills training.  

The EKC Group Teacher Academy provides training and professional qualification ITEs (Initial Teacher Education courses) to equip teachers with the necessary skills to be highly effective in their teaching roles. As a result, this ensures students receive an outstanding on-programme learning experience.   

We spoke to Simon Bigrigg, Group Head for Teacher Training and Development at East Kent College about their experience with our end-point assessment (EPA) service for the Level 5 Learning and Skills Teacher (LST) standard.  

Q: Tell us about your cohort of apprentices 

A: “We have a current cohort of 11 apprentices in the second year of their apprenticeship. 9 of which are in their Approved EPA period and 2 are due to go through Gateway in September. 

In the first year we have 28 apprentices who are due to go into Gateway after April 2025. 

All of our apprentices are current in-service staff who are teaching at EKC Group Colleges or training centres, across a broad range of subjects and vocational areas including, ESOL / English and maths, Plumbing, Electrical, Media and Creative, Health / Early Years and SEND.  

We plan to start two cohorts of the LST standard in 2024-25, with a total approximate number of 34-35 new apprentices.” 

Q: Why did you choose to work with NCFE for EPA?  

A: “We were looking for a new group to work with for the updated version of the LST standard, and received some positive feedback from a peer organisation and College Groups who recommended speaking with to see what it could offer.  We had an initial meeting with Daryl Rose, NCFE Relationship Manager, which was very positive and provided us with some excellent advice clarity on what NCFE could offer. This helped us to make the decision to register our apprentices and embark on the journey towards Gateway.”  

Q: How have we supported and advised you throughout EPA?  

A: "Daryl has been outstanding in providing us with excellent advice and guidance in various meetings and in email correspondence. He also helped us through the initial registration process and fully supported us in understanding NCFE processes. He provided very efficient training on the SEPA system and advice on best practice of the online Resource Library, as well as guiding us through our first experience of putting our learners through Gateway and requesting EPAs.  Daryl is a fount of knowledge and is highly patient and understanding! If there’s something that he needs to further consult with colleagues about he'll come back to you very quickly with clear and practical information - he has made our transition to NCFE a really good experience so far. "

Q: How has offering these standards impacted your learners? 

A: "The LST standard has enabled our unqualified teaching staff to embark on a funded ITE programme which was recently updated to meet the needs of the FE and Skills sector. Following the standard and the apprenticeship mode of learning, our staff have been able to maximise their career development with the use of the ‘Off-The-Job’ (OTJ) remission hours to enhance their training and skills. All students are making individual and personalised progress and growth as a direct impact of completing the LST programme."

Q: Would you recommend our EPA service to others?  

A: “So far yes we would, your EPA service has been efficient, helpful and friendly, and once we got used to the different systems, we have found it to be a positive working relationship in setting up and processing our apprentices through their end of programme and Gateway. It has been relatively easy to negotiate and agree EPA dates using the booking system and ongoing communication.” 

After speaking with Simon, we spoke with EPA Relationship Manager, Daryl Rose, about the relationship between NCFE and EKC Group:  

“Our working relationship with EKC Group has been incredibly positive. This strong partnership has been instrumental in ensuring apprentices receive the best possible support and resources as they progress through their programmes. It’s been a pleasure to work with Simon and the team and I look forward to continuing working with EKC Group after this first round of EPA.” - Daryl Rose, EPA Relationship Manager at NCFE 

To find out more about how our end-point assessment service can support your apprentices – head to our dedicated page  

For more information on our Learning and Skills Teacher standard, click here