Summary of changes affecting NVQs and national training structures

Summary of changes affecting NVQs and national training structures

NVQs in the UK are now going to be replaced with QCF (Qualifications and Credit Framework) awards, certificates and diplomas. As of 2010 this transition is in now progress.

This is a key point - Some awards persist in NVQ format while others have changed to their new formats!

Responsibility for NVQs, which existed primarily with QCA (the Qualifications and Curriculum Authority), is now split, largely managed by QCA's replacement agency, QCDA (Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency), and by OfQual (Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation) with industry sector development responsibilities flowing down to industry bodies via the UK Government Department for Business, Innovation and Skills (BIS), and the Sector Skills Councils (SSCs).

Background

• The (QCA) Qualifications and Curriculum Authority was set up under the Education Act 1997 to develop and regulate the national curriculum, assessments in schools and qualifications.
  
• In 2007 the UK Government established the independent exams regulator, Ofqual, which took responsibility for most of QCA's regulatory functions. QCA subsequently became QCDA (Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency), although QCA remained a legal entity through to at least 2009.
  
• The change of UK Government in May 2010 raised possibilities of wider reviews and further bigger changes, which are still currently ongoing.
  

Below is a Summary of the broader changes affecting UK workplace qualifications:
Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency - QCDA

• The Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency (QCDA) effectively replaced the QCA (Qualifications and Curriculum Agency/Authority).

• Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency - QCDA is responsible for developing the curriculum (subjects/criteria for a learning qualification), improving and delivering assessments, and reviewing and reforming qualifications.

QCF - qualifications and credit framework agency

• The QCF is the curremnt UK framework for creating and accrediting qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.

• The QCF was first formed in 2008 after 2 years of tests. It was initially operated by the then QCA (Qualifications and Curriculum Agency/Authority), and jointly implemented by the QCA (now QCDA - Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency), the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) and Ofqual (Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation).

• The QCF is regulated (in England) by Ofqual (Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation).

• The meaningful words within the QCF name are qualifications and framework. This highlights themov3e towards 'credits' in recent national qualifications strategies, where learners can attain smaller steps more easily than the traditional larger 'units' traditionally associated with NVQs.

• The QCF aims to "...give a wider range of learners the opportunity to get the qualifications they need, in a way that suits them... QCF qualifications are designed with the help of employers so learners can be assured that they're gaining skills that employers are looking for..."

• The QCF also seeks, obviously, to "...help learners achieve skills and qualifications that meet industry needs, and to enable work-based training to be nationally recognised..."

• More significantly as just mentioned, compared to previous systems, the QCF aims to allow and recognise smaller steps of learning than typically have existed in qualifications, and to enable learners to build up qualifications 'bit by bit'.

• The LSC (Learning Skills Council) is, until the LSC ceases and passes its responsibilities elsewhere, responsible for implementing funding, planning and performance measures to support QCF qualifications (in England), and for delivering the 'QCF Service Layer', which stores learners' achievement data from awarding organisations.

• The European Qualifications Framework (EQF) was referenced in creating the QCF. The EQF links European countries' qualifications systems to each other and makes it easier to cross-reference qualifications between countries.

• "Vocational and work-related qualifications are changing to become more responsive to the specific demands of employers and learners. They will be more relevant to employers' needs and more accessible to a wider range of learners. An essential tool in this reform of vocational qualifications is the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF).

• Qualifications and units in the QCF [aim to] reflect the skills that employers want, because employers are [invited and able to become] involved in designing them. The QCF gives you [employers] clarity, choice and confidence in the vocational qualifications system so that you can take a leading role in developing qualifications that are right for your industry.

• The QCF and the larger reform [surrounding NVQs and wider training and development in the UK] are central to the National Skills Strategy 'Skills for growth', which focuses on helping people achieve skills that match the demands of modern work and opens up new opportunities and choices for both learners and employers...

• [The Qualifications and Credit Agency (QCF) guidance refers people to the webpage www.qcda.gov.uk/qcf for case studies examples and further information about the Qualifications and Credit Framework, and goes on to say:
  

"Employer influence is [suggested as being] the key to QCF qualifications...."

[Employers are presented with the following benefits - to employers:]

* have more say on what qualifications are designed - QCF qualifications are developed in response to employers' needs
* have a more appropriately skilled workforce - all QCF qualifications must be approved as robust and fit for purpose
* attract and retain employees by being able to offer nationally recognised qualifications that support progression through your business
* benefit from a more flexible qualifications system - you can shape training around your business needs using relevant QCF units
* understand qualifications more easily - all QCF qualifications have straightforward titles that tell you how long each one takes to complete, its difficulty and its subject matter, so you'll have a better idea of employees' skills.

[Employers are also informed that there are different ways to be involved with the QCF, depending on training needs and existing qualifications situation, and that the relevant SSC - Sector Skills Council is the best contact point by which to achieve this.]

Links:

NVQ Jobs
Assessor Jobs