2 Nov 2021
Throughout 2021 meetings took place with employers and specialist trainers, with support from the Institute of Refrigeration and City & Guilds, to review the RACHP "Trailblazer" apprenticeship originally developed by an employers’ group in 2021-2015 and approved for delivery in 2015. In 2021 the first successful new Apprenticeships have been awarded.
The Occupation Standard and Assessment Plan below will set the requirements for government-funded Apprenticeships at Level 3 and are aligned to the Engineering Council requirements for Engineering Technician. The documents follow the mandatory requirements of Government funded Apprenticeship programmes. The review has identified some areas for amendment to ensure that the apprenticeships continue to meet employer needs, are practical to deliver and provide a consistently high standard of assessment across centres.
Input is now sought from a wider group of employers of apprentices on the proposed changes as part of industry consultation. The documents showing proposed changes are available for download from these links. The deadline for the consultation is 15th December 2021.
If sufficient support for changes is received by employers these changes will be proposed to the approvals body The Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education and in due course the changes will be introduced to training centres and assessment bodies.
For more background on the Apprenticeship please see https://ior.org.uk/careers/apprenticeship-trailblazers
We also expect to hold a webinar later in the year to review the proposed changes and industry feedback.
28 May 2025
Lots to discuss at the "enough" retail workshop on commercial refrigeration and food chain emissions reduction on 27th May
22 May 2025
IOR has published its latest Education Guidance Note in the series, this time focusing on Coaching as a way of employers supporting engineering and technician development. The Guidance Note (16) gives a guide to understanding the benefits of coaching, how this differs from mentoring and includes a useful list of organisations who can offer help with setting up coaching schemes or offer coaching.
21 May 2025
IOR members showed their support for the Cold Chain Federation (CCF) campaign to recognise the Cold Chain as part of the UK's critical national infrastructure, as they attended the CCF's reception at the Houses of Parliament on 20th May.
8 May 2025
Expert in climate change adaptation Tim Fox will deliver a keynote talk at the IOR’s Adaptation 2025 conference detailing why cooling is now a “mission critical” service, essential to public health, food security, global commerce, and economic well-being.
7 May 2025
Watch this webinar on catch-up, which focused on implementing technologies and operational strategies capable of significantly reducing greenhouse gas emissions across the European retail sector.