A reasonable adjustment relates to an adjustment that helps to reduce the effect of a disability or a physical or mental health condition, which may place the apprentice at a disadvantage compared to others.

Employers, training providers and EPAOs must make reasonable adjustments to ensure apprentices with disabilities or physical or mental health conditions aren’t substantially disadvantaged during training, assessment or when doing their jobs.

During the End-point Assessment the types of adjustments offered may include, but aren’t limited to, changes to elements such as:

• The location and timing of the assessment
• The format, wording or type of assessment activity
• The availability of support personnel for additional needs
• The availability of adaptive software or hardware, or specialist equipment.

These adjustments should mirror the types of reasonable adjustments and additional support that the apprentice has received from their employer and/or training provider during their apprenticeship programme.

Autoexel will support apprentices by ensuring that:

• The reasonable adjustments provide apprentices with the opportunity to demonstrate attainment against occupational competence.
• The assessment is reliable, and any person using the apprenticeship certificate to identify an individual’s competence can have confidence in their skills and abilities.
• The assessment process is rigorous and fair, and the assessment activity is valid.
• The assessment is practically able to operate within available resources, following the application of any reasonable adjustments.
• Facilities and time allow apprentices to use any commercially available mechanical, electronic or other aids in order to demonstrate achievement, so long as they reflect the apprentice’s normal ways of working and do not give the apprentice an unfair advantage.

It is the employer, with input from the training provider and the apprentice, who must apply to Autoexel for reasonable adjustments to be applied to the End-point Assessment.

The process should begin as soon as the employer is aware that the apprentice is likely to need to access reasonable adjustments for the End-point Assessment and the application for reasonable adjustments must be made before the apprentice enters the End-point Asessment gateway.

Details of how to apply are in our policies and procedures, or contact support@autoexel.org.uk for an informal chat.