AI Governance FrameworkHow We Keep Our AI Accurate
A published framework documenting how Apprentis maintains knowledge accuracy, governs updates, and verifies quality in a fast-changing UK apprenticeship policy environment.
26
Knowledge items with defined update schedules
20
Standard test questions run before every deployment
48h
Maximum time from policy change to live AI update
6
Step verified pipeline from detection to deployment
Governance is not optional when young people's futures depend on accurate guidance
Apprentis operates in a regulated, fast-changing environment. The young people who use our platform are making decisions about their futures — sometimes without anyone else to ask. That means the information our AI gives them is not a product feature. It is a duty of care. This document sets out the governance framework we have built to honour that responsibility.
Accuracy as a duty
A young person told the wrong minimum wage may not challenge their employer. Wrong information here has real consequences.
Transparency by default
We publish this framework publicly so anyone can understand how we maintain accuracy and hold us to the standard we set.
Systems, not intentions
Good intentions do not keep a knowledge base current. Defined processes, named owners, and regular verification do.
The most dangerous AI failure is the one users cannot see
Most conversations about AI risk focus on what a model might do wrong intentionally. But there is a quieter risk: an AI that was accurate when built, and has since become wrong as the world changed around it. No drama. No warning. Just a confident answer that is no longer true.
Risk: Manageable
AI that does not know
Says it does not know. Directs the user to an official source. The user knows to look elsewhere. Transparent and safe.
Risk: High: Silent misinformation
AI with drifted knowledge
Gives a confident answer. The answer is wrong. The user has no reason to question it. This is the failure mode governance is designed to prevent.
Risk: Medium: At least detectable
AI citing an old year
Says it is using 2023/24 guidance. The information may be wrong but the user has a signal that something might be off. Detectable but still unacceptable.
In the UK apprenticeship space alone, more changed in 2025 than in the previous five years combined. New governing bodies, new funding rules, new qualification frameworks, new minimum wages, new apprenticeship routes. An AI built in 2024 and left unchanged would be materially wrong on multiple points by early 2026. Without governance, drift is inevitable.
Every fact the AI uses is documented, sourced, and scheduled for review
Every fact the Apprentis AI draws on is documented in our Knowledge Base Governance Framework. Each item has a confirmed current value, an official source, an update frequency, and a named owner. Nothing in the knowledge base is undated or unsourced.
Regular Updates
Items that change on a defined schedule. Failure to update these creates legal and reputational risk.
Monthly / Quarterly / Annual review
Stable Content
Items that rarely change. Legislative foundations, process guides, and structural content.
Annual review
Gaps and New Areas
Missing knowledge identified through testing and policy monitoring. Prioritised Critical, High, Medium, and Low.
As identified and prioritised
Verified facts as of March 2026
The following are verified facts currently in the knowledge base, confirmed from official government sources.
| Area | Confirmed Position | Source | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wages from 1 April 2026 | Apprentice/16 to 17: £8.00/hr. 18 to 20 post first year: £10.85/hr. 21+ NLW: £12.71/hr. | gov.uk/national-minimum-wage-rates | Verified |
| Minimum duration from Aug 2025 | 8 months for new starts (was 12 months). 187 OTJ hours minimum floor. RPL cannot reduce below 187. | DfE Funding Rules 2025/26 v3 | Verified |
| English and maths: 19+ from Feb 2025 | Apprentices aged 19+ at start can opt out of Functional Skills. Pass not required to complete apprenticeship. | DfE Funding Rules 2025/26 | Verified |
| Level 7 funding from Jan 2026 | Levy funding restricted to ages 16 to 21 at start (up to 25 with EHCP or care leaver). Ages 22+ must be self funded by employer. | DfE Funding Rules 2025/26 v3 | Verified |
| Foundation Apprenticeships from Aug 2025 | New Level 2 route. 4 sectors: Construction, Engineering and Manufacturing, Digital, Health and Social Care. Employer incentive up to £2,000. | find-employer-schemes.education.gov.uk | Verified |
| Skills England from June 2025 | Replaced IfATE on 2 June 2025. Moved to DWP on 16 September 2025. URL: skillsengland.education.gov.uk | PM written ministerial statement Sep 2025 | Verified |
| Growth and Skills Levy from April 2026 | Replaces Apprenticeship Levy. Apprenticeship Units launched (1 to 16 weeks, 30 to 140 hours). Units are for ages 19 and over who are already employed only. Levy expiry 12 months (was 24). Co investment for levy exhausted rises to 25%. | gov.uk / skillsengland.education.gov.uk | Verified |
| Care leaver bursary | £3,000 paid in three instalments of £1,000 at 60, 120 and 300 days. Tax free. Excluded from Universal Credit calculations. | DfE Funding Rules 2025/26 | Verified |
| 16 defunded apprenticeship standards from March 2026 | New starts immediately capped at 75% of each provider's 2024/25 delivery volume. Baseline defunding: 1 September 2026. Funding completely ceases: 17 December 2026. Standards include: Team Leader (L3), Operations Manager (L5), Chartered Manager (L6), and 13 others. | gov.uk/government/news/major-employment-drive (DWP, 16 March 2026) | Verified |
| SME full funding for 16 to 24 year olds from August 2026 | Non levy paying SMEs receive full government funding for apprentices aged 16 to 24. Zero co investment required for this age group. Co investment (25%) still applies for apprentices aged 25 and over at SMEs. | gov.uk Growth and Skills Levy guidance | Verified |
Key 2026 Policy Timeline
The UK apprenticeship system is undergoing its most significant reform in years. This timeline covers the key dates every user, employer, and provider needs to know.
Level 7 age restriction
Levy funding for Level 7 apprenticeships restricted to ages 16 to 21 at start (up to 25 with EHCP or care leaver status). Employers of those aged 22 and over must self fund.
16 standards immediately capped
New starts on 16 apprenticeship standards capped at 75% of 2024/25 volume. Providers with no previous starts: zero new starts permitted. Existing learners unaffected.
Growth and Skills Levy launches
Replaces Apprenticeship Levy. First 7 Apprenticeship Units available (19+ and employed only). Levy expiry reduces to 12 months. Co investment for levy exhausted employers rises to 25%.
SME full funding
Non levy SMEs receive full government funding for apprentices aged 16 to 24. Zero co investment required for this age group. DfE Funding Rules 2026/27 published.
16 standards defunded
Funding removed from Team Leader, Operations Manager, Chartered Manager, Coaching Professional, and 12 other standards. No new starts from this date.
Funding ceases completely
All remaining funding for the 16 axed standards ends. Providers must have completed or transferred all learners by this date.
Timeline verified 19 March 2026. Source: DWP, FE Week, gov.uk. For the latest updates always check gov.uk or skillsengland.education.gov.uk
Six steps from policy change to accurate AI response
A governance document is only as good as the process that keeps it current. We have defined a six-step pipeline from policy change detected to AI giving users the correct answer. Maximum time for critical items: 48 hours.
Key architectural note: Apprentis is built on a RAG (Retrieval Augmented Generation) architecture. This means the knowledge store is separated from the model. Updating content does not require retraining or redeploying the model: it requires updating the knowledge store and running the test suite. This is what makes a 48-hour critical update window achievable.
Policy monitor identifies a change from official sources
Sources checked on the schedule defined in the governance framework. A written summary is sent to the KB Owner: what changed, source URL, date effective, which KB items are affected.
KB Owner identifies affected items and drafts updated content
KB Owner reviews the change summary and identifies exactly which rows in the governance framework are affected. Confirms the change is final and not still in consultation.
Second reviewer checks draft against original official source
A different person from the drafter checks the content against the original official source. Signs off in writing with their name and date. No self sign off permitted.
Engineer updates the knowledge store with verified content
Engineer updates the RAG knowledge store with the verified content. Every document carries a verified date as metadata so the AI can surface it.
Full 20 question test suite run against staging environment
All 20 questions must return a passing answer before proceeding. Any fail returns the update to Step 2 with a documented reason.
Deploy to production and confirm live with spot check
Engineer deploys to production and runs a spot check of the specific question related to the change. Sends a one line confirmation to the team.
Every update must pass all 20 questions before going live
Before any knowledge update is deployed to production, we run a standard set of 20 questions against the AI in staging. All 20 must pass. Any single fail sends the update back to Step 2 of the pipeline. There is no partial pass.
Correct rates by age and year of apprenticeship
8 month minimum, 187 hour floor
Opt out correctly explained for 19+
Age restriction from January 2026
New Level 2 route, sectors, incentive
Skills England, not IfATE. DWP, not DfE.
Isle of Man is not England
Adversarial and currency signal tests
The currency signal test: Question 20
This is the most important test in the suite. It asks: what date was the information you just gave me last verified? The three possible outcomes:
| Result | What the AI Does | Why |
|---|---|---|
| FAIL | Cites an academic year (e.g. 2023/24 or 2025/26) | Years become stale immediately. An AI citing 2023/24 in 2026 is signalling it is out of date. |
| FAIL | Gives policy facts with no date or source signal at all | Silent misinformation. The user has no reason to question a confident answer. |
| PASS | States verified date AND acknowledges information may change AND directs user to official source | Correct behaviour. Transparent, helpful, and defensible. |
Non-negotiable. Applied to every deployment without exception.
These two rules govern how the AI communicates policy information to users. They are not guidelines. They are requirements built into the system prompt and tested in every deployment cycle.
01
The AI must never cite a funding rule academic year in conversation with users
Years like 2023/24 or 2025/26 become stale the moment a new year begins. If the knowledge base is current, there is no need to cite a year.
If you ever see this:
"The funding rules I'm sharing are based on the 2023/24 academic year guidance...": this is a P1 incident. Report it immediately via the platform.
02
The AI must always give a currency signal when providing policy information
An AI that gives policy facts with no indication of when they were verified is the most dangerous failure mode. Users have no reason to question a confident answer.
Correct AI behaviour:
"This is based on guidance verified as of March 2026. For the latest official figures, always check gov.uk or contact your training provider directly."
How to report an issue: If you see the Apprentis AI citing an academic year, giving policy facts with no date signal, or providing information that appears outdated, please report it immediately via the feedback button in the platform or email info@apprentisapp.co.uk. We treat these as priority incidents with a 48-hour resolution target.
We will never claim our AI is perfect. We will always claim our process is rigorous.
The policy environment we operate in is too dynamic for any AI to ever be perfectly current at all times. What we can commit to is a system for staying as current as possible, a process for catching and fixing errors quickly when they occur, and the transparency to be honest when something goes wrong.
Published framework
This document is public so anyone can read it, understand it, and hold us to the standard we set for ourselves.
48 hour critical response
Critical policy changes (wages, legal rules, funding restrictions) are updated within 48 hours of publication. No exceptions.
Continuous improvement
This framework is versioned. Each version reflects what we have learned. Version 2 is already in development, informed by independent governance architecture expertise.
"A nervous 16-year-old at midnight, on their own, trying to figure out their future deserves an AI they can trust. That is who we built this for. That is the standard. It always was."
— Iyioluwa Adesan, Founder, Apprentis
This framework evolves as our understanding deepens
Governance is not a document you publish once. It is a living system. Each version reflects new learning, new policy changes, and improvements to our architecture and process.
International Standards Alignment: This framework is designed in alignment with ISO/IEC 42001:2023, the international standard for AI Management Systems. We do not currently hold formal certification but are actively working towards full alignment as part of our Version 2 development.
Content Governance Framework
Knowledge base governance document (26 items), six step update pipeline, 20 question test suite, two hard rules, update calendar through March 2027. Published March 2026.
Authority Architecture Layer
Adds architectural governance informed by independent expert input. Authority boundaries, action gate verification, accountability mapping, immutable audit trail, and board level governance protocols. Governance embedded from the first design meeting, not the last testing sprint.
Annual Review Cycle
Full framework review each August, aligned with the DfE Funding Rules publication and the start of the new academic year. Minor updates published as policy changes warrant throughout the year.
Download the Full Framework
The complete Apprentis AI Knowledge Accuracy and Content Governance Framework: knowledge base schedule, update pipeline, test suite, hard rules, and ISO/IEC 42001:2023 alignment mapping.
Questions about this framework? Email us or use the feedback button in the platform. We read everything.