Plagiarism, Referencing and Using AI Responsibly

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Your apprenticeship is about developing your own knowledge, skills and understanding.

When you submit work as part of your programme, it needs to represent your own learning.

What is plagiarism?

Plagiarism is when you use someone else’s work, words or ideas and present them as your own.

This can include copying from:

• Websites
• Books or journals
• Other learners
• Published resources
• Online assignments or essay-writing services
• AI-generated content that you submit as your own work

Plagiarism can result in your work being rejected and you may be asked to produce a genuine piece of work.

Repeated or serious plagiarism may affect your progress on your programme.

How can I avoid plagiarism?

The simplest way is to make sure your work is genuinely your own.

You should:

• Write in your own words
• Reference information you have taken from other sources
• Use quotations appropriately and identify them as quotations
• Keep track of the sources you use while researching
• Ask your Development Coach if you’re unsure how to reference something

If you’re not sure whether something needs referencing, ask.

Can I use AI?

AI tools can sometimes be useful for learning, but they should support your learning rather than replace it.

Depending on the requirements of your programme, AI may be useful for things such as:

• Helping you understand a difficult topic
• Generating ideas to explore
• Creating revision questions
• Checking spelling or grammar
• Helping you organise your notes

However, you should not simply ask an AI tool to complete your assignment and submit the response as your own work.

Always follow the specific guidance given to you by your Development Coach and programme.

Check what AI gives you

AI tools can produce incorrect or misleading information.

If you use AI as part of your learning, make sure you:

• Check information against reliable sources
• Check references and citations
• Make sure the information is relevant to your question
• Review and edit anything you use
• Follow your programme’s rules around declaring AI use

Protect personal and confidential information

Never put confidential information into an AI tool.

This could include:

• Personal information about people you support
• Patient, service user or child information
• Employer or workplace information
• Passwords
• Confidential documents
• Personal data about colleagues or other learners

If you’re unsure whether information is safe to use with an AI tool, don’t upload it.

The key rule

AI can be a useful learning aid, but your submitted work must demonstrate your own knowledge, understanding and skills.

If you’re unsure about plagiarism, referencing or AI use, speak to your Development Coach before submitting your work.