Advanced Progress Review Practice
January 21, 2027 @ 2:00 pm – January 28, 2027 @ 3:30 pm
If your progress reviews don’t change what happens next, they are records, not reviews.
Progress reviews are one of the most important tools providers have to connect learning, workplace development and the apprentice’s next steps. Too often, they are shaped by compliance pressure rather than apprentice development. In the current apprenticeship market, that isn’t sustainable.
Apprenticeship reforms are shifting expectations, there is increasing scrutiny of off-the-job training, and growing pressure to demonstrate real curriculum impact. Providers need progress reviews that are sharper, more purposeful, and more defensible, without creating unnecessary administration.
Ofsted’s findings reinforce why they matter. Recurring feedback on weaker apprenticeship provision highlights:
- off-the-job training squeezed by workloads
- poor alignment between on and off-the-job learning
- curriculum driven by compliance rather than learning
- apprentices insufficiently prepared for assessment or progression
- progress reviews taking place without employers
This advanced masterclass is designed specifically for experienced apprenticeship professionals who want progress reviews that genuinely move learning forward and stand up to scrutiny.
Across two practical sessions, you’ll learn how to:
- set sharper learning objectives and stretch targets that drive real progression
- connect curriculum intent, off-the-job activity and workplace development
- adapt the depth, pace and focus of reviews for apprentices making different rates of progress, including those requiring additional support or stretch
- turn review conversations into clear decisions, responsibilities and next steps
- Use digital tools (including AI) to strengthen evidence without drowning in paperwork
You’ll come away with practical examples and straightforward changes you can apply immediately. You’ll also receive a certificate of attendance for your professional development records.
About your session
The sessions will be facilitated by Chris Cherry, an SDN Mesma Group specialist in apprenticeship on-programme training and assessment.
Chris has supported hundreds of apprenticeship organisations to develop their approach to progress reviews and will draw on that experience to explore the practical challenges practitioners face and what stronger practice looks like.
This advanced masterclass is designed for experienced apprenticeship trainers, tutors, assessors, skills coaches and mentors who want to strengthen the impact of their reviews. It’s also useful for managers and quality professionals responsible for consistency, quality and improvement across apprenticeship delivery.
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