Off-the-Job Training Hours — The 20% Requirement Explained

Off-the-job training (OTJ or OJT) is learning that happens away from your normal day-to-day work duties. It is a mandatory component of every apprenticeship in England and a condition of the apprenticeship funding your employer receives.

The purpose of off-the-job training is to ensure that apprentices receive dedicated learning time — time specifically set aside for acquiring new knowledge, skills, and behaviours relevant to the apprenticeship standard. Without this requirement, there would be a risk that apprentices simply work as cheap labour without receiving the structured training that distinguishes an apprenticeship from ordinary employment.

For electrical apprentices on the Installation & Maintenance Electrician standard (ST0152), off-the-job training encompasses everything from formal college attendance to online study, manufacturer training, supervised practice of new skills, and directed research. It is broader than most apprentices realise — and understanding what counts (and what does not) is essential for meeting the requirement without stress.

Meeting the off-the-job training requirement is also a gateway condition for the End Point Assessment. If you cannot demonstrate that you have completed sufficient off-the-job training hours, you cannot progress to the EPA and complete your apprenticeship.

On 1 August 2025 the way off-the-job training is measured changed. The long-standing "20% of paid hours" model was replaced with a fixed total number of hours set for each apprenticeship standard by the Department for Education (DfE). Which rule applies to you is determined by your apprenticeship start date — and it stays fixed for the whole programme.

A few details matter under the current rules. The practical training period must run for a minimum of eight months, and there is an absolute floor of 187 hours below which off-the-job training can never be evidenced for any standard. Standards that started during August to December 2025 used lower transitional figures; from 1 January 2026 the full Annex C total is mandatory for new starts. Because the total is fixed, apprentices can front-load their hours — once the full total is banked, the provider may stop recording further off-the-job time while the apprenticeship continues to gateway and the End Point Assessment.

For apprenticeships starting from 1 August 2025, the DfE sets a fixed minimum number of off-the-job training hours for each standard in Annex C of the apprenticeship funding rules. Below are the figures for the main electrical standards. Your college or training provider assigns you to a standard — if you are unsure which one applies, ask them.

Source: DfE Apprenticeship funding rules 2025/2026, Annex C. Figures are the minimum off-the-job hours for the whole apprenticeship. If you are a college-linked apprentice, your provider holds the authoritative required-hours figure for your programme.

If your apprenticeship started before 1 August 2025, the older 20% rule applies to you for the whole programme — so this section still matters for many current apprentices. Under it, at least 20% of an apprentice's paid working hours are spent on off-the-job training, calculated over the total duration of the apprenticeship rather than on a strict week-by-week basis.

What 20% means in practice: If you work a standard 37.5-hour week, 20% equals 7.5 hours per week. If your contract is 30 hours per week, 20% equals 6 hours per week. Over a 4-year apprenticeship on a 37.5-hour week (approximately 48 working weeks per year, accounting for holidays), this works out at roughly 1,440 hours across the programme.

Flexibility: The 20% is an average over the entire apprenticeship. Some weeks you may do more (for example, during block-release college weeks), and some weeks less (for example, during intensive project periods at work). As long as the overall total reaches 20% by the time you approach the gateway, you are compliant — but the expectation is that off-the-job training is spread reasonably throughout the programme rather than left to the final few months.

Who tracks it: Both you and your training provider are responsible for tracking off-the-job training hours. Your provider will review your hours at regular progress review meetings (typically every 6 to 12 weeks) and flag any shortfall. You are responsible for recording activities that happen outside of formal college sessions — online study, shadowing, manufacturer training, and directed reading.

The official definition of off-the-job training is: learning which is undertaken outside of the normal day-to-day working environment and leads towards the achievement of an apprenticeship. It can be delivered at the apprentice's normal place of work (the employer premises) provided it is clearly distinct from normal work duties.

The following activities count as off-the-job training for electrical apprentices:

Understanding what does not count is equally important. The following activities are excluded from the off-the-job training calculation:

The grey area between "learning something new" and "doing your normal work" can sometimes be confusing. A good rule of thumb: if you could not do this task before your apprenticeship started (or before this training session), and it is relevant to the apprenticeship standard, then it counts. If you are repeating a task you already know how to do, it does not count — even if you are getting better at it through repetition.

For apprenticeships starting from 1 August 2025, working out your off-the-job requirement is simpler than it used to be — you read it off your standard rather than calculating a percentage.

Step 1 — Confirm your start date: Off-the-job rules follow your start date for the whole programme. If you started before 1 August 2025, use the older 20% rule (about 7.5 hours per week on a 37.5-hour contract). If you started from August 2025, use the fixed-hours method below.

Step 2 — Find your standard's fixed total: Each standard has its own off-the-job total set by the DfE. On the Installation & Maintenance Electrician standard (ST0152) it is 1,066 hours for the whole apprenticeship; on the Domestic Electrician standard (ST1017) it is 626 hours. Your provider can confirm which standard you are on.

Step 3 — Set a weekly pace: Divide your total by the number of working weeks in your programme to get a comfortable pace. For example, 1,066 hours over a 4-year programme with roughly 48 working weeks per year (about 192 working weeks) is around 5.5 hours per week — but you can front-load this and bank it early.

What you record: Your college or training-provider days usually make up a large share of the total and are logged centrally by the provider. Your job is to capture everything else — online study, shadowing on new work, manufacturer training, toolbox talks that teach something new, and directed practice — so your full total is evidenced.

Don't lose track: Because it is a single total to reach, the danger is quietly drifting behind without realising it. A couple of study sessions on Elec-Mate, a toolbox talk, or an hour of directed reading each week adds up quickly — and the tracker keeps a running tally so you always know how many hours remain.

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Elec-Mate OJT Tracker logs your off-the-job hours automatically. Every study session on the platform is recorded.

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Recording off-the-job training hours is not just about keeping a total — it is about providing evidence that the training happened, what it covered, and how it relates to the apprenticeship standard. This evidence is reviewed by your training provider at progress reviews, checked at the gateway stage before the EPA, and may be inspected by Ofsted.

What to record for each activity: Date and time of the activity. Duration (how many hours). Description of what you did. What new knowledge, skills, or behaviours you gained. How the activity links to the apprenticeship standard criteria. Any evidence (certificates, screenshots, notes, photographs).

Traditional methods: Many apprentices use a paper log or spreadsheet provided by their training provider. These work but are tedious to maintain, easy to fall behind on, and difficult to verify. If you lose the log or forget to update it for several weeks, reconstructing your hours from memory produces unreliable records.

Digital tracking with Elec-Mate: Elec-Mate's OJT Tracker eliminates the tedium of manual recording. On-platform activities (courses, quizzes, flashcards, mock exams, EPA Simulator sessions) are logged automatically with timestamps and descriptions. Off-platform activities (college days, site-based training, manufacturer events) can be added manually with a few taps. Each entry is categorised by activity type and can be tagged to apprenticeship standard criteria. The tracker calculates your running total, weekly average, completion percentage against your standard's fixed total, and projects when you will reach 100% at your current pace.

Evidence collection: Beyond the hours log, Elec-Mate allows you to attach evidence to each entry — a photograph from a training session, a certificate from a manufacturer course, a screenshot of a completed quiz, or a note from a mentoring session. This evidence strengthens your OTJ record and links naturally to your apprentice portfolio.

Ofsted inspects apprenticeship training providers and pays specific attention to off-the-job training. During an inspection, Ofsted may review individual apprentice OTJ records, interview apprentices about their training experience, and assess whether the training provider is ensuring that apprentices receive their required off-the-job training time.

What Ofsted looks for: Evidence that off-the-job training is planned, delivered, and documented. That the training is meaningful and directly relevant to the apprenticeship standard — not just box-ticking. That apprentices can articulate what they have learned through their off-the-job training. That employers are providing the required time. That the training provider monitors OTJ compliance and intervenes when apprentices fall behind.

Why it matters to you: If your training provider receives a poor Ofsted rating partly due to inadequate off-the-job training records, it reflects on the quality of your apprenticeship. Employers and future assessors may question the robustness of your training. Conversely, well-documented OTJ records support your credibility and demonstrate your commitment to professional development.

Ofsted-ready records: Elec-Mate OJT Tracker generates records that meet the standard Ofsted expects: detailed activity descriptions, links to apprenticeship standard criteria, timestamps, evidence attachments, and compliance tracking. If your training provider or Ofsted asks to see your OTJ evidence, you can produce a comprehensive, organised record in seconds rather than scrambling through incomplete spreadsheets.

Your employer has specific responsibilities regarding off-the-job training. These are not optional — they are conditions of the apprenticeship funding agreement that your employer signed.

Providing time: Your employer must release you for the off-the-job training your apprenticeship requires, within paid working hours. This includes releasing you for college or training provider sessions, allowing time for directed study, and supporting learning activities on the employer premises.

Paying for training time: All off-the-job training time must be paid at your normal hourly rate. Your employer cannot deduct pay for college days or study time that forms part of the off-the-job requirement.

Supporting learning on site: Good employers go beyond the minimum requirement. They expose apprentices to a variety of work types, pair them with experienced electricians for mentoring, encourage attendance at manufacturer training events, and create a learning culture where asking questions and seeking feedback is normal and encouraged.

Monitoring and review: Your employer should participate in regular progress reviews with the training provider, discussing your off-the-job training hours, the quality of your learning, and any barriers to meeting the off-the-job requirement. If work pressures are preventing you from getting enough OTJ time, your employer and training provider should agree a plan to address this.

If your employer is not meeting their obligations: Talk to your training provider first. They have a contractual relationship with your employer and a responsibility to ensure the apprenticeship agreement is being followed. If the training provider cannot resolve the issue, contact the ESFA apprenticeship helpline or the National Apprenticeship Service for advice. Document specific instances where OTJ time was denied or pay was deducted for training days.

Elec-Mate's OJT Tracker was purpose-built for electrical apprentices. It takes the hassle out of off-the-job training hour tracking and ensures you always know where you stand against your standard's fixed total.

Automatic logging: Every minute you spend studying on Elec-Mate — courses, quizzes, flashcards, mock exams, BS 7671 run-through, EPA Simulator, AM2 Simulator — is automatically logged as off-the-job training time. No manual entry needed for on-platform activities.

Manual entries for off-platform activities: Add college days, toolbox talks, manufacturer training, shadowing sessions, industry visits, and directed study with a few taps. Each entry captures the date, duration, description, and activity category.

Activity categories: The tracker organises your hours into categories: college/training provider, online learning, practical skills practice, shadowing/mentoring, manufacturer training, industry events, directed study, and other. This categorisation provides a clear picture of the breadth of your off-the-job training experience.

Compliance dashboard: See your total hours, percentage against your standard's fixed total, weekly average, and projected completion date at a glance. A traffic-light indicator shows green (on track), amber (slightly behind), or red (significantly behind). Weekly notifications remind you to log any unrecorded off-platform activities.

Evidence attachments: Attach photographs, certificates, screenshots, or notes to any entry. This evidence feeds into your portfolio and creates Ofsted-ready documentation.

Integration with other Elec-Mate features: OJT hours from the tracker are automatically reflected in your portfolio, linked to the relevant apprenticeship standard criteria, and included in the gateway readiness dashboard. When your employer and training provider review your progress, everything is in one place.

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Elec-Mate OJT Tracker automatically logs on-platform study time, categorises activities, tracks completion against your standard's fixed total in real time…

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