About Swarm Training
Apprenticeship training that starts with your business
Swarm Training is an independent apprenticeship training provider and Community Interest Company working with employers across England.
Some of the businesses we work with are taking on an apprentice for the first time, while others are already using apprenticeships to develop existing employees or bring new skills into different parts of the organisation. Whatever the starting point, our approach is to understand your business priorities and what you need people to be able to do in their roles. Once we understand that, we can look at whether an apprenticeship is the right fit and, if it is, which programme would be most useful. We can also explain what funding is available and the practical side of getting started.
Our values of compassion, family and impact are at the core of everything we do. They shape the way we work with learners and employers, as well as the way we approach our role in the wider community.
Support for employers as well as apprentices
The training itself is only one part of making an apprenticeship work. Alongside the tutor supporting your apprentice, you will have a dedicated Account Manager who gets to know your organisation and remains a regular point of contact. Your Account Manager will meet with you as often as is useful, giving you the opportunity to discuss learner progress and feedback, as well as any changes or priorities within the business that may affect current or future training needs. This relationship is also an important part of how we gather feedback and make sure employers and learners are receiving the support they need, and that the training remains useful in the workplace.
We are very proud of the successes we have been recognised for including our most recent Ofsted inspection, where we were rated Good, with Outstanding judgements for Behaviour and Attitudes and Leadership and Management, and our current apprenticeship pass rate of 99.1%.
Training that works around the job
One of the differences with Swarm Training is that we do not work to academic term dates, so apprentices can start when both the employer and learner are ready. Our training is also delivered remotely, which makes it easier to organise learning alongside the normal working week and means apprentices do not have to travel regularly to a training centre.
When assigning tutor caseloads, we ensure these are limited, so they have more time to get to know each apprentice, understand their role and see how the things they are learning relate to the work they actually do. Every apprenticeship has a defined standard, so there are clear requirements that need to be covered. However, within those requirements there is plenty of scope to make the learning relevant to the business and the apprentice’s day-to-day role. A tutor might use a live project, a problem the apprentice is dealing with at work or responsibilities they already have as part of the learning. As our tutors all have professional experience in the areas they teach, they are also able to bring their own workplace experience into those conversations too.
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Apprenticeships for different parts of your organisation
Many of the apprenticeship programmes we deliver are useful across a wide range of sectors. Our current areas include:
Business performance and operations
Business administration, project management, business analysis, improvement and supply chain.
Customer engagement
Customer service and sales.
Finance and accounting
Accounts, accounting and payroll.
Marketing
Content, multi-channel marketing, events and market research.
People and talent
HR and recruitment.
We also deliver sector-specific apprenticeships in:
Education
Estate agency
Retail.
Because of this mix, we often support several teams within the same organisation rather than working with just one department or job type.
Sometimes an apprenticeship is not the answer
We would always tell you if an apprenticeship is not right for your needs rather than try to make one fit where it does not belong. There will be occasions when a shorter course, a different type of training or another form of development is more appropriate.
We work with other organisations that can help in those situations.
So if we think another route would suit your skills needs better, we will explain why and, where appropriate, introduce you to one of our partners.
A Community Interest Company
Swarm Training is a Community Interest Company, which means the commercial work we do also allows us to put something back into the communities around us.
Our community work includes helping schools improve their understanding of apprenticeships and routes into employment, supporting environmental projects and contributing to the development of start-up businesses.
For employers, our CIC status can also contribute to wider social value or responsible procurement objectives. For us, however, it is simply part of how Swarm Training was set up and how we have continued to operate.
Start with what your business needs
You don’t need to know which apprenticeship you want before you speak to us.
In fact, you don’t need to know whether an apprenticeship is the answer at all.
Tell us what is happening in your business and what you would like to improve. We can take it from there and help you understand the options, look at suitable routes and explain what funding may be available.