Can new apprenticeships help boost Scottish education?

The Herald Scotland

21-05-2025

What are Foundation Apprenticeships and how do they work?
Introduced in 2015 with an initial cohort of around 350 young people, Foundation Apprenticeships are qualifications for school pupils that combine traditional academic learning with extended periods of workplace learning. Many Foundation Apprenticeships are also delivered in partnership with colleges, with courses typically incorporating NC or NPA qualifications and SVQ units.
According to Skills Development Scotland, the courses are intended to 'help young people gain valuable, real-world work experience and access work-based learning while they're still at school.'
During the first few years of the FA programme courses were only available at SCQF level 6, which is broadly equivalent to the achievement of a Higher; however, courses at levels 4 and 5 have also been developed, and have proven popular amongst young people.
Typically, a Foundation Apprenticeship lasts for two years and has no formal exam, with students instead assessed on an going basis and often in real-world contexts.
At SCQF level 6, available FA programmes include Civil Engineering, Creative and Digital Media, Food and Drink Technologies, Social Services and Healthcare, and more.
At levels 4 and 5, courses are available in the areas of Automotive, Construction and Hospitality.
When were they introduced and how many are completed?
Foundation Apprenticeships were introduced in 2015 with a cohort of around 350 young people. Initially offered only at SCQF level 6, a pilot programme has since explored the expansion of the FA qualification to levels 4 and 5.
According to a 2023 report for the Scottish Funding Council and Skills Development Scotland, the success rates for full achievement of Level 6 Foundation Apprenticeships was very low in its first year – just 37.3% - but increased over the next three years and reached 47.9% in 2019. Students who achieve some sort of recognition of their learning, but do not pass the full apprenticeship are recorded under the heading 'partial achievement'. When these young people are included, the 2019 combined success rate stands at around 80 percent.
Data for those enrolled in 2020 reveals a decline in both the full and partial achievement rates, and an increase in the number of participants who managed 'no achievement' – however, the full impact of Covid on this cohort remains unclear.
At levels 4 and 5, pilots for which were held between 2019 and 2021, the number of young people managing full achievement of the FA is higher, but so is the proportion recorded as entirely unsuccessful.
At present, the Scottish Government states that it funds around 5000 Foundation Apprenticeships a year, but in each of the last three academic years fewer than 1300 school leavers had secured the qualification.
A 2022 report into Foundation Apprenticeships by Education Scotland found that 'full programme attainment rates vary significantly between local authorities and providers, and across subject frameworks.' It added that 'too many young people do not attain the full programme, and receive only component or partial elements of the award.'
Unfortunately, up to date information in this area has not been made available, so it is impossible to know the current full and partial completion rates for the programme.
So the data suggests that improvements are required?
Absolutely – and the 2022 Education Scotland report (which was based on a review carried out between March 2020 and November 2021) reached the same conclusion.
The document noted a range of strengths and successes from the initial years of the programme, pointing out that 'almost all' senior phase pupils had the opportunity to apply for a Foundation Apprenticeship, and that effective and equitable recruitment strategies are found across the country. Strong and collaborative relationships between schools and partner organisations were also highlighted, although the report did state that this has not been achieved universally.
The content of lessons and activities were praised in the report, as was the model of ongoing assessment that underpins the programme. The authors also noted that attainment and progression rates had been improving.
However, a significant number of issues were also raised throughout the report. Challenges included 'stubborn' patterns of gender stereotyping, a lack of awareness amongst 'teachers, parents, carers and young people', limitations imposed by 'technical incompatibility between school and college systems', the lack of any 'clear structure' for evaluating and improving the programme, and more.
Of particular concern – if not huge surprise – is the observation that some Scottish teenagers, whose education has been hugely influenced by the structures and demands of traditional exams, are 'insufficiently prepared for undertaking competency based assessment' of the type required in the much-discussed 'real world'.
Case study: Aberdeenshire
The Foundation Apprenticeship programme across the area is managed by a specialist central team, and at school level the courses are properly timetabled alongside all other senior phase subjects, although more than 60 percent of provision is delivered through colleges and other providers. Officials link this partnership approach, alongside improvements in their mentoring model and the use of a one-year delivery model, to the council's ability to massively increase uptake of Foundation Apprenticeship opportunities for students.
In 2018/19, fewer than 30 young people across 17 Aberdeenshire secondary schools chose to begin a Foundation Apprenticeship; for the current academic year, the number was 800, but this number was limited by available funding. The council says that there was sufficient demand for 1000 new programmes this year had the money been available.
One of the ways in which schools measure pupil attainment is through something called Insight data, which awards points for the different qualifications achieved by pupils. Across the whole local authority, pupils who gain at least one Foundation Apprenticeship attract an average of 70 percent more points, which is far too large an increase to be accounted for by the new qualifications alone. Officials believe the figure reflects a positive impact on wider attainment rates and link this to observed improvements in pupils' levels of engagement.
When surveyed, 19 percent of Level 6 Foundation Apprentices said that it programme had helped improve their attendance, while for those working at levels 4 and 5 the figure was almost twice as high at 35 percent. A majority at both levels reported having felt more engaged in their overall learning.
Foundation Apprentices were more likely to go on to higher education, and the numbers going into Modern Apprenticeships after school was nearly four times higher than for those who had not participated in the programme.