Part 4: Apprenticeships Schedule 4: Institute for Apprenticeships
Paragraphs 1 and 2 insert new provisions in Part 1 of the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009 (the 2009 Act).
	Section ZA1 establishes the Institute for Apprenticeships (IfA) as a body corporate and introduces new Schedule A1 to be inserted in the 2009 Act.
	Section ZA2 sets out the general duties and matters to which the IfA must have regard when performing its functions. These matters include the reasonable requirements of industry, employers, and apprentices, and to ensure good value for money and the quality of the standards and assessment plans the IfA approves.
	Further such matters can be included in a written notice given by the Secretary of State, in which the Secretary of State may set out specific areas for the IfA to take into consideration when performing its functions. The Secretary of State can only write once a year, or after a change of Government.
	Under subsection (6), education or training provided in the course of an approved English apprenticeship is automatically within the IfA’s remit. The Secretary of State may also issue directions or make regulations which bring other matters relating to education and training within the IfA’s remit (subsection (7)).
	Section ZA3 enables the IfA, upon request, to provide the Secretary of State with advice and assistance about the latter’s functions relating to English apprenticeships.
	Section ZA4 enables the Secretary of State, by direction, to delegate further apprenticeship functions to the IfA which are currently exercised by the Secretary of State.
	Section ZA5 enables the Secretary of State, by regulations, to confer new functions which relate to English apprenticeships.
	Section ZA6 requires the IfA to provide the Secretary of State with an annual report at the end of each financial year, to describe what it has done during the year, including how it has met any written requests from the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State can also ask the IfA to provide reports on any other issues which relate to its functions. Each report must be laid before Parliament by the Secretary of State.
	Section ZA7 enables the Secretary of State to direct the IfA to take certain action or stop acting in a certain way where the Secretary of State concludes that the IfA has failed to fulfil its duties or has acted or is proposing to act in an unreasonable way. Section ZA8 provides that any direction made under the above provisions must be in writing and must be complied with by the IfA.
	Paragraph 3 of the Schedule substitutes a series of new provisions in the 2009 Act in place of existing section A2.
	Section A2 requires the IfA to publish standards for sectors which it thinks appropriate, and for each standard to describe the sector and the outcomes which each apprentice will be expected to achieve to successfully complete the apprenticeship. It also states that the IfA must publish an assessment plan for each published standard, which sets out how each standard will be assessed. The plan must also set out how each assessment will be quality assured.
	Section A2A provides further detail about how standards and assessment plans should be drafted: they must be drafted by a group of persons who have been approved by the IfA. The IfA can provide advice and guidance to this group whilst they are preparing the standard or assessment plan.
	The IfA must publish the criteria which it will use to decide whether to approve or reject a group who wish to develop a standard and assessment plan, and the criteria it will use to approve or reject the standard and plans themselves. It may also take into account other matters outside the published criteria in individual cases where appropriate.
	Section A2B provides that the IfA must quality assure the assessment of a person’s attainment of outcomes (which are set out in the standard to which the assessment plan relates). The section provides that the IfA will approve proposals for others to carry out this quality assurance role, or it can carry it out itself.
	Section A2C provides that if the IfA is concerned that any apprenticeship assessment is, or could become, unsatisfactory it can carry out a review of the assessment, or arrange for someone else to carry out a review. Once the review is completed, the IfA can make arrangements with a view to improving the quality of the assessment in question. If the proposed changes are not followed or the IfA is concerned that the quality of assessments is or may become unsatisfactory, the IfA can report their concerns to the Secretary of State, or others. Such a report may contain recommendations and may be published by the IfA.
	Section A2D enables the IfA to establish a committee to advise it on the functions given to the IfA under section A2B and A2C and any other matters that the IfA asks it to. A majority of the members of the committee must be people who appear to the IfA to have experience of the assessment of education or training.
	Section A2E provides that the IfA must regularly review standards and assessment plans to make a judgement about whether any changes are needed or whether the standard or plan needs to be withdrawn. It must make public information about when the reviews will take place.
	Section A2F provides that the IfA must publish all revised standards and plans. Those revisions must have been prepared by an approved group of persons and approved by the IfA.
	Section A2G provides that the IfA must ensure that all standards and assessment plans (other than revised standards or assessment plans) have been scrutinised by an independent third party before they are approved. The IfA must take the views of the third party reviewer into account when exercising its functions. Revised standards and plans do not have to be reviewed by a third party, but they can be if the IfA thinks it is appropriate. The IfA can decide to reject a standard or assessment plan without first seeking a third party view.
	Section A2H provides that the IfA must publish and maintain a list of its published standards and assessment plans, including when each comes into force. Any entry on the list in respect of a revised standard or assessment plan must give a description of the cases to which the revised version applies.
	Section A2I provides that the IfA will own the copyright for all standards and assessment plans in circumstances where another person had, before they were approved, a copyright or interest in that standard or plan.. The right transfers at the point where the IfA approves the standard or assessment plan. The IfA must make sure that any standards or plans which have transferred to them under this provision are made publically available and subject to any appropriate conditions.
	Paragraph 9 inserts a new Schedule A1 after Schedule 1 to the 2009 Act.
	Paragraphs 2 and 3 of the new Schedule provide that the IfA will consist of a Chair, Chief Executive and between 4 and 10 other members appointed by the Secretary of State. Each non-executive member can, on terms determined by the Secretary of State, be appointed for a maximum of 5 years at a time and can be reappointed. They can resign by giving written notice to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State can remove them if they are unfit or unable to carry out their duties or if they are absent from the IfA’s meetings for longer than 6 months without the IfA’s permission.
	Paragraph 4 provides that the IfA must pay its non-executive members remuneration, allowances, expenses and a pension if required to by the Secretary of State. If a non-executive board member leaves the board, the Secretary of State can ask for them to receive compensation from the IfA if the Secretary of State considers there are special circumstances.
	Paragraph 5 provides that the Secretary of State will appoint the first Chief Executive (CEO), having consulted the Chair. Subsequent CEOs will be appointed by the IfA, having consulted the Secretary of State. The CEO cannot be appointed for more than one five year term at a time but is able to reapply or be appointed for more than one term. The CEO and other staff appointed by the IfA are civil servants. The IfA will determine how many staff it appoints and what their terms and conditions are, with agreement from the Secretary of State.
	Under paragraph 6 the Secretary of State and the IfA may enter into agreements in relation to the Secretary of State providing staff, accommodation or services. Under paragraph 7 the IfA can set up committees and those committees may set up sub-committees. The IfA is able to change what a sub-committee has been asked to do or decide to dissolve it. All committees must include at least 2 members of IfA staff. The IfA can pay remuneration, allowances or expenses to members of committees, with agreement from the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State can require the IfA to review its committees and the work they are carrying out on its behalf.
	Paragraph 8 makes provision allowing the IfA to regulate its own meetings and procedures. Paragraph 9 provides that the IfAs functions can be carried out by IfA board members, IfA staff, IfA committees or any other person that the IfA asks to do so. However, the IfA cannot ask a committee which is not made up of a majority of IfA staff or any other person to carry out its functions in relation to publication of standards and assessment plans, the preparation of standards and assessment plans, reviews of published standards and assessment plans and transfer of copyright of standards and assessment plans.
	The IfA can ask others to carry out additional functions which have been conferred or delegated to it by the Secretary of State, if the directions or regulations which gave those functions to the IfA allow it.
	Paragraph 10 provides for the IfA’s supplementary powers. They can provide information or advice and can co-operate and work jointly with others in relation to their functions. They can carry out research which relates to their functions. They can take any other action they think is necessary to carry out their functions, unless it is prohibited from doing so by legislation.
	The IfA cannot borrow money. It cannot lend money, form, participate in forming, invest in or become a member of a company or form, participate in forming or become a member of charitable organisation, without agreement from the Secretary of State.
	Paragraph 11 provides that the IfA must keep proper accounts and provide a statement of account each year. The Statement of accounts must comply with any directions from the Secretary of State about the information it must contain, how the information should be presented and how it should be prepared. A copy should be sent to the Secretary of State and Comptroller and Auditor General by the end of August each year. The Comptroller and Auditor General must certify and report on each of the accounts and send a copy of the report and a certified statement to the Secretary of State. The Secretary of State must then lay a copy of each of statement of account from the IfA and each report and certified statement from the Comptroller and the Auditor General before Parliament.
	Paragraph 12 makes provision about the IfA’s seal and documents authenticated under it.
	Paragraph 13 provides that the Secretary of State can make grants to the IfA, or provide the IfA with any other kind of financial assistance, subject to any conditions the Secretary of State sees fit to apply.