Marina and Boatyard Operative Standard
End Point Assessment (EPA)
The Marina and Boatyard Operative level 2 apprenticeship is a great start to a very rewarding career.
The standard has been determined by both a diverse range of employers who manage marinas and / or boatyards. This employer group consists of small, medium and large sized employers, including British Marine, who represent the industry.
Marina and Boatyard Operatives deliver a variety of operations and services that include vessel handling such as lifting, launching, high pressure washing off and the storage of vessels ashore and the berthing and movement of vessels on the water in accordance with company policy.
Operatives must work in a safe manner, complying with relevant legislation, regulations, codes of practice and other information and guidance. This will help ensure the safety of vessel users, staff and visitors, along with ensuring the safety of vessels and property within the marina /boatyard confines.
In performing their role, Marina and Boatyard Operatives will:
- use a range of equipment,
- engage with customers and other staff, external contractors/suppliers, and visitors, in a polite and helpful manner.
Marina and Boatyard Operatives conduct regular maintenance activities and checks around the marina/boatyard and this may include work on:
- pontoon systems,
- buildings,
- storage cradles,
- along with maintenance and checks within public areas and wider facility buildings.
Certain Marina and Boatyard Operative tasks require team working, for example boat lifting. Working under your own initiative and lone working outside of normal office hours, whilst acting as the sole representative for the site / organisation is an expected aspect of the operatives role. Depending on the size of the marina/boatyard, operatives usually report to the site manager or departmental line manager.
The Marina and Boatyard Operative standard has a selection of specialisms which the apprentice and employer can choose the most appropriate. The specialisms are in
- Chandlery and Retail,
- Fuel and Pump out,
- Rigging,
- Lock and Bridge Operation.
British Marine are an Ofqual recognised End Point Assessment Organisation (EPAO) and are listed on the Apprenticeship Provider and Assessment Register (APAR) for this standard.
The Marina and Boatyard End Point Assessment Plan details the assessments that must be undertaken during the gateway period of up to 4 months. The apprentice must meet all requirements of the assessment plan to successfully pass the end point assessment and complete the apprenticeship. It is possible to achieve a 'Merit' grade in this standard. For full details from the Institute of Apprenticeships, please click here.
To aid in this journey we have created a series of resources to help plan and prepare for end point assessment.
Apprentice
Getting ready for end point assessment might seem a little daunting at first, which is why we have created a series of resources to try and support you in preparation for it.
You will receive access to all the resources we have developed to support you as soon as you are registered with us for EPA.
Marina and Boatyard Operative Assessments - at a glance:
The end point assessment is made up of different assessment methods. From the point of being confirmed as in 'Gateway', you have up to 4 months to complete these assessments.
As the end point assessment organisation chosen to complete these with you, we will schedule the dates to be met for each step of your EPA with you and your employer. Your training provider will be kept up to date with this information also.
Click the image below to see detail.
The assessments for Marina and Boatyard Operative are:
Method 1 - Observation.
Your observation is carried out at the workplace and must include the specialism you have chosen. We will provide you with a guide on how observations are carried out and what you should consider when preparing for your observation.
Method 2 - Professional Discussion.
We provide you with a structured guide for your Apprentice Record of Achievement (AROA), which must be submitted with your other documentation on entry into 'Gateway.' Think of this like a portfolio of what you have done in your role. The AROA is used by the assessor to direct the professional discussion.
We will provide you with supporting resources on what a professional discussion is and how to undertake one. Included in our resources will be mapping documents to show the knowledge, skills and behaviours to be met in each stage.
Grading for this standard is as follows:
Employer
Marina and Boatyard Operative is one of a selection of unique apprenticeship standards which have specialism routes to choose from.
You and your apprentice will need to select the specialism that suits your environment / workplace with the training provider. This specialism is what the apprentice, alongside the core requirements, will be assessed on at end point.
The assessments start with a 3 hour (+- 10%) workplace observation and then moving to a 60 minute (+-10%) professional discussion. Both assessments can take place on the same day at the work place, providing the apprentice has a 90 minute break between them.
For the Marina and Boatyard Operative standards' Gateway requirements, your apprentice will be required to complete an 'Apprentice Record of Achievement' (AROA). This is much like a portfolio of evidence to show competence against the apprenticeship standard. The AROA must be submitted to the EPAO at Gateway, it is not graded but instead used to direct the Professional Discussion assessment.
The support we offer:
Whilst these assessments may seem daunting, we have a highly trained team of assessor's who know how to make an apprentice feel at ease. Alongside this we have provided:
- a clear guide as to the layout and requirements of the AROA,
- guidance on the observation and professional discussion,
- a mapping matrix for each assessment to show the knowledge skills and behaviours to be achieved,
- and mock questions to practice for the professional discussion.
Our guidance works alongside the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Educations (IfATE's) assessment plan on what knowledge, skills and behaviours need to be met via each assessment method.
Early engagement between British Marine, the employer, provider and apprentice is key to giving you and your apprentice/s the best possible support towards EPA.
Once your apprentice/s is / are registered with us for EPA, we will be in touch and supply all resources for both you and the apprentice/s to aid in planning and preparation for EPA.
Training Provider
Undertaking the boatbuilder standard with us means access to resources and support to aid in your preparation of the apprentice.
Communication is a key part of our relationship with you, we want to make sure you are included every step of the way. We want to collaborate with you and the employer to create a seamless journey for all the apprentices from registration to certification.
All our resources can be found on our LMS system, ACE360, along with copies of relevant policies and procedures for you. These include but are not limited to,
- Reasonable Adjustments
- Assessment Policy and Procedure
- Complaints and Appeals
Our dedicated email, will have someone available to answer your queries within 24 hours, or by the next working day if weekend or bank holiday period. If you need us sooner, you can call us on 01784223718 or 07584563285
FAQ
‘Gateway’ is the term used for the time between the completion of your training period with the training provider and getting ready for EPA.
You, your employer and training provider decide when you are ready to enter gateway, at which point all gateway requirements must be met. Your training provider will aid you in preparing the necessary documents for this.
These apprenticeships offer more specialised knowledge and skills and are equal to A levels.
We call this ‘reasonable adjustments’. Reasonable adjustments are something you should discuss with your training provider and employer as soon as possible. If you have any adjustments applied, for example, extra time in exams / tests then your training provider can make an application for this adjustment to us. We will review the request and supporting evidence and confirm if adjustments can be applied. If you want to know more about what counts as a reasonable adjustment, please speak to your training provider or contact us on
You can also find more information about reasonable adjustments here: Support for apprentices with a learning difficulty or disability (apprenticeships.gov.uk)
Whilst we have provided you with many supporting resources to aid in your preparation for EPA, it is still good practice to ask your employer and / or training provider
- to support you in gathering materials towards portfolio's (if required),
- to help you undertake mock assessments or mock tests,
- to explain anything about your assessments you are not sure about,
to aid you in identifying what projects / work is available to plan your assessments. This applies to:
- Boatbuilder - Project Portfolio,
- Marine Engineer - Professional Report,
- Marina and Boatyard - Observation
Talking about your end point assessment early and continuing to talk about and prepare for it will only help you when it comes to the real thing.
Your results will be shared after each assessment has taken place with feedback and within set timescales agreed at your planning meeting. Your final results will be with you within 15 working days from your final assessment.
FAQ
Please contact us as soon as possible if you believe your apprentice/s needs any reasonable adjustments, we can walk you through the process around these with your training provider. Further guidance on what reasonable adjustments are and how we apply them can be found here: End-point Assessment Reasonable Adjustments Guidance / Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education
It can occur when an apprentice has the opportunity to develop quicker and therefore be ready for their EPA sooner than thought. If this happens, we suggest that you speak with your training provider. We also suggest you do some mock assessments if these haven't been done yet.
Whilst it must be an apprentice’s own work and the apprentice that undertakes each assessment, support from you in invaluable.
You may need to join their assessments as the employer expert, noted above. You may need to aid in the creation of their AROA, for example, writing a witness testimony or signing off competency.
You can help them by carrying out mock assessments, thinking ahead about the observation they can do for their EPA, enable them to have access to everything they need to show. For example, having the right vessel to lift out of the water (core requirement), having a yacht to prepare for rigging and de-rigging (Rigging specialism).
We will give you and your apprentice a set of resources to aid in preparation for and going through EPA.
The planning meeting is the first meet with the independent assessor, apprentice, and you. We will extend the invite to your training provider as well.
The assessor will provide you with details of the assessments, set your date/s for the observation and professional discussion with you and the apprentice. This is a great opportunity to ask questions, for the apprentice to get to know a little about their assessor and aid in making them feel a little more comfortable.
Please note we require notice as per our assessment policy and procedure if the dates agreed cannot be met.
We will provide you with this information from the start of your journey through EPA with us.
Planning meetings can last around an hour.
Yes, the aim is that the same assessor will be responsible for conducting all the assessments for the apprentice, unless circumstances out of our control do not allow this. In this case we would keep you fully informed and make decisions to change with you and your apprentice.
FAQ
The sooner you notify us that we are the chosen EPAO for your apprentice/s the better, but at least 6 months prior to entering 'Gateway' helps with planning and allocation of assessors.
We can make sure that everyone gets all the resources available nice and early as well as engaging with both the apprentice and employer to introduce ourselves and open up communication.
Please follow the our reasonable adjustment policy and procedure and use this form to apply.
We ask you to this as soon as possible.
We have a wide range of support materials available for each standard. These include Assessment Specifications, Toolkits, Mock Assessments and more.
All support materials come at no extra cost and can be accessed through ACE360.
The support material varies depending on the requirements of each standard.
We offer support materials for training providers, employers and apprentices.
The Marina and Boatyard Operative is a face to face workplace observation, the professional discussion can be carried out on site the same day, if agreed by all.
We do offer remote assessments for the Professional Discussion if required to be completed on a different day. If remote, we use Microsoft Teams to carry these out.
All assessments venues must meet the requirements of secure and safe assessment. We will work with everyone to determine the best place and time for these.
Re-sit or re-take interviews, presentation and / or discussions will take place remotely via Microsoft Teams, unless special arrangements have been agreed. Observations will continue to be face to face.
As the End Point Assessment Organisation, we will apply for the certificate, and this will be delivered to the address stated on our management information when the apprentice was registered with us. Should you need to amend the delivery address, you can do this directly or let us know and we will update for you.
Any re-sits or re-takes are scheduled with our admin team in line with the requirements of the assessment plan, and our guidance provided to you. We will always work to book the dates for these that best suit the apprentice and employer.
British Marine is committed to providing an excellent End-point Assessment service.
British Marine supports improvement in assessment quality and decision-making, however we recognise that from time-to-time situations arise where an apprentice considers that they might have grounds for an enquiry about results, an appeal against a decision related to that End-point Assessment, or a compliant in relation to the end-point assessment service provided.
Please follow our complaints and appeals policy and procedure regarding this.
Useful Information
Employers looking for an apprenticeship training provider, please click here to search providers for the boatbuilder standard.
Looking for an apprenticeship vacancy in Boatbuilding, try these sites, dedicated to apprenticeship vacancies:
