Getting started with your apprenticeship

Welcome to your Policy Officer Apprenticeship with The JGA Group! This page will help you get started with your apprenticeship.

On this page:

Apprenticeship overview & delivery model

The Policy Officer apprenticeship programme is an 18-month programme and the standard is made up of 9 core modules. There are also two Apprenticeship Assessment preparation sessions. Seminars are held remotely via Teams or Zoom, supplemented with online learning tools and self-study materials. Progress is recorded via an online tool (OneFile).

Over the course of the apprenticeship, you will need to spend around 20% of your time completing activities which are not part of your day-to-day job role. This is called off-the-job training. If you were aged 16-18 when you started your apprenticeship and do not have GCSE grades A-C/4-9 in English and maths (or equivalent), JGA will provide you with teaching to achieve an equivalent Functional Skills qualification.

Module summary

  • Introduction to policy, including definition, function and value of the policy-making process
  • The learner’s organisation’s values, goals and key challenges
  • Key policy concepts with real-world examples

  • Horizon-scanning
  • Research and evaluation skills, and how to apply them to policy areas
  • Outcomes, impacts, success and progress measures (including KPIs)
  • Commonly-used research methods

  • The key principles of stakeholder engagement and analysis
  • Consultation and engagement planning and best practices
  • Working with stakeholders and interest groups
  • The impact of consultation

  • Understanding and using results from consultations and other data sources
  • Tools and techniques for analysis
  • How to gather and use feedback
  • How to gather, store and analyse data

  • Overview of project and programme management principles, methodologies and tools
  • The importance of achieving value for money in a procurement or commissioning process
  • Negotiation factors and methods
  • The key components of a project plan

Apprenticeship Assessment Preparation 1

  • History, function and activities of the Westminster Parliament and the opportunities for policy professionals to engage in this process
  • The law-making process and how it relates to Parliament and the policy-making process

  • Lobby groups and the lobbying process
  • How organisations influence public policy, and the bounds of legitimate influence
  • Techniques to build convincing arguments and exert power

  • Devolved administrations & legislatures of Wales / Scotland / N Ireland
  • Relationship between devolved administrations and Westminster – structure, which powers are devolved or reserved.
  • How regional devolution has been advanced within England
  • Key powers and functioning of local authorities.
  • How public perceptions can impact on policy-making & implementation

  • Broad processes involved in creating and implementing policy within national and local government, and the wider Public Sector
  • White and Green papers in the legislative process
  • The relationship between central and local government

  • Features of effective and ineffective policy-making
  • Policy as a process and as an outcome
  • Ethical dimensions of ‘good’ and ‘bad’ policy
  • Forms of argument
  • Logical and cognitive pitfalls common to the policy-making process

Refresher and in-depth discussion of preparation techniques, with a focus on the project proposal

View the official apprenticeship standard

Our team

The full team involved in teaching and coaching for the Policy Apprenticeship.

Drew Lindon
Tutor, Skills Coach & Programme Lead

Email
Andrew Wyatt

Andrew Wyatt
Tutor

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Catherine Baker

Catherine Baker
Tutor & Skills Coach

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Janet Court

Janet Court
Tutor, Skills Coach and Progress Advisor

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Phil de Montmorency

Phil de Montmorency
Skills Coach

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Richard Norris

Richard Norris
Skills Coach

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Alex Marshall
Skills Coach

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Terry Williams

Terry Williams
Skills Coach
Progress Advisor

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Jo Larkin

Jo Larkin
Progress Adviser

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Heena Kareer

Heena Kareer
Progress Adviser

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Explaining the roles

There are three key roles in the team which will support your apprenticeship. Some members of staff cover more than one of these.

Your tutor will lead you through your workshops or seminars and deliver a large proportion of the knowledge elements of your apprenticeship with you.

Your coach will meet with you each month to help develop and evidence your skills and behaviours within the workplace. Your line manager will attend part of this session. They will help you gather evidence to demonstrate your overall competency.

Your learner progress adviser will help provide additional support where needed and monitor your progress. You will meet with them, and your line manager, every three months.

Your e-portfolio: OneFile

We use OneFile as our e-portfolio system. This is where your assignments will be set, you will submit your work and you will log your off-the-job training.

Your regular reviews will be stored on here as will some resources for your course. You will complete a learning journal, be able to monitor your progress towards your Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours and refer to your workplace development plan.

Our training video covers all the key features of OneFile you need to know. Visit the Support and FAQs page if you have questions or issues.

Mandatory safeguarding training

The JGA Group is strongly committed to practices that protect children, young people and adults from the risk of abuse, neglect or significant harm. Staff recognise and accept their responsibility to develop an awareness of the risks and issues involved with Safeguarding.

At the beginning of your apprenticeship, you will be asked to complete a JGA Safeguarding learning aim. This will introduce you to key topics within safeguarding, radicalisation and extremism, and british values. This shows as a separate learning aim on OneFile and an assessment plan will be assigned to you with full instructions.

Workplace Development Plan

A Workplace Development Plan will be developed with you, your Line Manager and your JGA skills coach.

This will include specific role related learning or activities to help you achieve the Knowledge, Skills and Behaviours (KSBs) required by the apprenticeship standard.

It will help you to evidence your progress and meet the off-the-job training requirement.

It is a key tool to individualise the apprenticeship to your needs and that of the business.

Programmed activities

Seminars

Regular small group tutor-led seminars, full day or two half days per module

Coaching

Regular coaching sessions with a sector expert; your work mentor/line manager will be invited to the first part

Reviews

Quarterly formal progress reviews in collaboration with your line manager and Learner Progress Adviser

Self-study

Pre and post seminar activities, self-directed learning and learning opportunities within your workplace

Assessment

Apprenticeship Assessment is the process at the end of your programme for you to demonstrate to a third-party assessor that you have acquired the knowledge, skills and behaviours (KSBs) set out in the Apprenticeship standard.

Learner handbook

Alongside this learner zone, the handbook will help you understand the general expectations of how each party to the apprenticeship should behave (you, your employer and us). It outlines the academic code, how to write assignments and what is unacceptable practice and includes the code of conduct which applies to you and all learners on our programmes.

Safeguarding, Prevent, welfare and british values

Paula Wakelin
Paula WakelinSafeguarding & Prevent Officer

There is nothing more important than keeping you safe. If you feel you need to raise a concern about any Safeguarding matter, contact your organisation’s Safeguarding Team, or the JGA Safeguarding team at safeguarding@jga-group.co.uk.

We are committed to working together to create a fantastic learning and work experience and to ensure the highest levels of safety and wellbeing. Expand the toggles to learn more about key support topics.

We are strongly committed to practices that protect you from the risk of abuse, neglect or significant harm. Our staff recognise and accept their responsibility to develop an awareness of the risks and issues involved in safeguarding. All staff and learners should have zero tolerance for abuse, bullying, neglect and violence.

Prevent is about safeguarding people and communities from the threat of terrorism. At the heart of Prevent is safeguarding children and adults and providing early intervention to protect and divert people away from being drawn into terrorist activity.

We provide expert support to help you on your apprenticeship journey. This includes mental health and neurodiversity, careers guidance and academic and financial challenges.

We want to help you achieve your full potential. We offer careers consultancy to ensure you have impartial and constructive information and guidance to help you decide and then to action your career decisions.

We aim to create an equal, diverse, inclusive and respectful culture. All of us contribute towards this culture through our actions and words. JGA aims to address any barriers to equality in our systems, policies and decision making as well as in our behaviour and ways of working.

The Fundamental British Values underpin what it is to be a citizen in a modern and diverse United Kingdom, valuing our community and celebrating diversity.