Last month, the Propertymark Qualifications team remotely delivered the first ever end-point-assessment for a Junior Estate Agent apprenticeship, using its team of experienced independent assessors and a newly created technology platform.

After completing the end-point-assessment, Charlie Maidment of Fox & Sons in Southampton became the first ever qualified Junior Estate Agent. This marks a major milestone for apprenticeships in the property industry.

Due to COVID-19 restrictions requiring staff to work from home, there was an opportunity to fast forward plans to trial and roll out remote assessments, fulfilling a long-term ambition for the organisation.

The Propertymark Qualifications team worked closely with their e-assessment provider to design a bespoke virtual assessment platform, recreating the controlled test environment necessary for regulated end-point-assessments.

The Junior Estate Agent apprenticeship process initially began in July 2018 when the Institute of Apprenticeships approved the Junior Estate Agent apprenticeship standard.

It was the culmination of work from a group of prominent employers within the estate agent industry.

With the support of the Institute of Apprenticeships, the group were committed to creating a new vocational apprenticeship for the industry, engaging with potential training providers, and planning ahead for the eventual end-point-assessments.

Gary Elliott, Assessment Manager, Propertymark Qualifications, said:

“We are delighted that Charlie passed and she was overjoyed she completed her apprenticeship to become the first ever Junior Estate Agent. What makes this a particularly great achievement is that Charlie had been furloughed in the four months running up to her assessment, so to succeed in her exam while being away from the workplace is very impressive.

“There has been a lot of interest in the Junior Estate Agent Apprenticeship, and we delivered further assessments in August. Potentially we have up to 150 apprentices over the next 12 months, from an expanding group of training providers.”