Transcript Colleges and Providers
British Council
The UK National Qualification System
April 2014 Geoff Fieldsend [email protected]
www.britishcouncil.org
All images © Mat Wright 1
Skills purpose:
To enhance the quality of skills systems by encouraging closer links between education, employers and policy makers in the UK and worldwide.
A devolved approach
The UK system is difficult to accurately describe in detail because:
• Each of the four jurisdictions in the UK (England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland) are organised more or less separately. • Even within each ‘country’, the systems for schools, universities, and Vocational Education and Training (VET) – whilst they overlap - work in different ways and with different institutions. • The public sector – and its institutional infrastructure - is not directly responsible for the vast majority of training that takes place in the workplace.
• The UK as a whole is part of the wider European Union single market which means many workers receive their education and training abroad.
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Who does what? Government and Agencies Specialist Bodies Colleges and Providers
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The Workplace
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Functions and Institutions
Government and Agencies
Policy Funding Regulation and Inspection
Specialist Bodies
Research and evaluation Setting skills standards Qualifications and programme development
The Workplace
Recruitment Workforce development Skills deployment
Colleges and Providers
Teaching and delivery Assessment and grading Information, advice and guidance www.britishcouncil.org
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Government and Agencies
Policy Department of Business Innovation and Skills (BIS)
Skills policy separate from both the Department for Work and Department of Education with the intention of increasing the focus on economic growth.
Funding Skills Funding Agency
BIS Agency funding over 1,000 colleges, private training organisations and employers with more than £4 billion each year; includes apprenticeship funding.
Regulation and Inspection Ofqual
Independent Agency reporting to Parliament; responsible for maintaining standards in both academic and vocational qualifications. Regulates by recognising and monitoring organisations that offer qualifications and assessments. Maintains national qualifications frameworks.
Ofsted
Independent Agency reporting to Parliament: inspectors observe and gather evidence about the quality of teaching with a view to assessing the effectiveness of providers .
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Specialist Bodies
Research and evaluation Setting skills standards Qualifications and programme development UK Commission for Employment and Skills
BIS Agency with UK accountability led by top employers and trade unions providing policy proposals and in depth research. Funded the Employer Ownership Pilot and other employer led initiatives.
Sector Skills Councils
Independent bodies historically responsible for occupational standards and apprenticeships frameworks. Future in doubt with rise of new ‘Industrial Partnerships’ and withdrawal of government money.
Professional Bodies
Employer led and sponsored organisations that set skills standards; also develop qualifications outside the state system.
Awarding Bodies
Develop qualifications to meet learner and employer needs often based on standards. 76 recognised bodies but many very small and three – Pearsons, City & Guilds and Cambridge Assessment - account for over half the market.
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Colleges and Providers
Teaching and delivery Assessment and grading Information, advice and guidance Colleges and Training providers
Choose which awarding organisation to use and apply to them for approval; develop and deliver training programmes based on qualifications units.
Colleges and Training providers
Assess against the qualification specification.
Awarding Organisations
Sample assessments to assure validity; issues certificates to successful learners
National Careers Service
New body managed by the Skills Funding Agency informs people about jobs, training, and careers; stimulates demand for further education, work based training and higher education
Colleges and Training Providers
Support learners to make the right choice of course
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The Workplace
Recruitment Workforce development Skills deployment Employers
Being able to access a labour market with the right skills boosts the employment rate
Employers
Develop current workforce to be more competitive and reduce recruitment costs
Individuals
Invest in their own learning to enable them to progress and enjoy fulfilling careers
Trade Unions
Improve life chances through access to learning. Work in partnership to open access to the entire workforce regardless of employment status or educational background.
Employers
Ensure jobs designed to maximise potential contribution of workforce skills and thereby enhance productivity
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But things can fall apart...
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...unless there is a focus Specialist Bodies Government and Agencies
EMPLOYMENT and PRODUCTIVITY
Colleges and Providers The Workplace
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