Education Glossary By Jennifer Wayte, President of FHT Do you know your Ofsted from your Ofqual? With so many letters floating around in education, it can be very confusing to grasp who’s who and which body does what, particularly for those who are new to this field. I recently approached all of the education bodies and asked them to provide me with a short summary of their role. The following information is based on the responses I received (May 2010) or from the websites of particular bodies. Ofsted (Office for Standards in Education, Children’s Services and Skills) Ofsted is a non-ministerial government department that reports to parliament and was established in 1992. Its role is to inspect and regulate to achieve excellence in the care of children and young people and in education and skills for learners of all ages. In respect of post-16 education and training, Ofsted inspects all government-funded education and training in England, excluding higher education (although it does not inspect teacher training). For further information please click www.ofsted.gov.uk Ofqual (Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation) In England, Ofqual regulates awarding organisations and the academic and vocational qualifications these organisations award (except degrees). Ofqual also regulates vocational qualifications in Northern Ireland, with a line of accountability to the Northern Ireland Assembly. It will also continue to work with the regulators in Wales and Northern Ireland to maintain the three country framework. Ofqual also regulates the statutory assessment arrangements for the national curriculum and the Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS). Ofqual’s role is to set a statutory framework for these assessments, and monitor and report on how they are delivered. Ofqual will therefore be regulating QCDA in its role as the delivery agent for national curriculum tests. For further information please click www.ofqual.org.uk SQA (Scottish Qualifications Authority) SQA is the national body in Scotland responsible for the development, accreditation, assessment and certification of qualifications, other than degrees. It also safeguards the public interest in sound standards of higher education qualifications in Scotland. The SQA is the equivalent of Ofqual and the QCDA in England, Wales and Northern Ireland.
For more information please click www.sqa.org.uk
DCELLS (Department for Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills) DCELLS is the Welsh equivalent of Ofqual and is responsible for education, training and children’s services in Wales. For more information click www.wales.gov.uk/about/civilservice/departments/dcells/?lang=en CCEA (Council for the Curriculum, Examinations and Assessment) The CCEA is the Northern Irelishs equivalent of Ofqual and ensures that all qualifications and examinations offered by awarding bodies in NI are of an appropriate quality and standard. For more information click www.rewardinglearning.org.uk QCF (Qualifications and Credit Framework) The QCF is the unified national qualifications system for England, Wales and Northern Ireland. It approves and distributes the criteria that qualifications must meet to be part of the QCF. It also checks that qualifications, and the bodies that award these qualifications, meet QCF criteria. The Framework is agreed by the QCDA, awarding organisations and - where necessary - regulators and other third parties. For more information please click on www.qcda.gov.uk SCQF (Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework) The SCQF is the Scottish equivalent of the QCF (for England, Wales and Northern Ireland) and assists in making clear the relationship between Scottish qualifications and those in the rest of the UK, Europe and beyond, thereby clarifying opportunities for international progression routes and credit transfer.
For more information please click www.scqf.org.uk
QCDA (Qualifications and Curriculum Development Agency) QCDA is the Secretary of State's chief adviser, supporting delivery of the government's objectives, in particular advising on the curriculum and related qualifications and assessments, and developing and delivering national curriculum (NC) and Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS) assessments. Where remitted to do so by the Secretary of State, QCDA will also have a role in developing requirements for, and supporting the delivery of, national qualifications (also known as public qualifications) such as GCSEs, A Levels, Functional Skills, Foundation Learning and Diplomas. For more information please click www.qcda.gov.uk
HETAC (Higher Education and Training Awards Council) HETAC is the regulatory authority for higher education in Ireland, the successor to the National Council for Educational Awards (NCEA), and is the qualifications awarding body for third-level education and training institutions outside the university sector. It exists to benefit learners and potential learners by setting standards, accrediting programmes and awarding qualifications at all levels of higher education and training.
For more information please click www.hetac.ie
NDAQ (Naitonal Database of Accredited Qualificatons) NDAQ holds details of qualifications that are accredited by the regulators of external qualifications in England (Ofqual), Wales (DCELLS) and Northern Ireland (CCEA). The NDAQ also lists all qualifications accredited by the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA).
Skills for Health This is the Sector Skills Council (SSC) for the UK health sector. Its purpose is to help the whole sector develop solutions that deliver a skilled and flexible UK workforce in order to improve health and healthcare. Skills for Health’s specific aims are to:
• Develop and manage national workforce competences
• Profile the UK workforce
• Improve workforce skills
• Influence education and training supply
• Work with their partners. The 25 Sector Skills Councils which make up the Skills for Business Network are licensed by the Secretary of State for Education and Skills in consultation with Ministers in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Their key goals are to:
• Address skills gaps and shortages
• Improve productivity and performance
• Increase opportunities to boost skills
• Improve learning supply. For more information please click www.skillsforhealth.org.uk
The Skills Active Group (formerly Skills Active) In 2009, with the launch of two new organisations, a Group structure was developed, made up of:
• Skills Active, the Sector Skills Council for Active Leisure, Learning and Well- being , working with the sport, fitness, play work, the outdoors and caravan sub- sectors; • The National Skills Academy for Sport & Active Leisure (England only); • Skills Active Services.
All organisations within the Group work together to ensure that the sector has the professionally trained and qualified staff it needs to deliver the increases in active participation that will ensure the sector’s on-going success and continued growth. Roles within the Group Skills Active’s role is to create a framework of qualifications, training and continuous professional development based on industry requirements and standards. It ensures that employers can access the right qualifications, based on those national standards that have been designed by employers, ensuring their workforce is appropriately trained and qualified. The National Skills Academy’s role is to deliver relevant vocational qualifications, training, and continuing professional development based on the national standards that are recognised by employers. These qualifications and training are quality assured, cost effective and relevant to employers’ needs in England only at this time. Skills Active Services’ role is to develop and deliver commercial products and services to support employers to identify and implement their workforce's skills development and offer tailored solutions to help meet the individual challenges that businesses in our sector face. For more information please click www.skillsactive.com Habia Habia is the government appointed standards setting body for hair, beauty, nails, spa therapy, barbering and African type hair, and creates the standards that form the basis of all qualifications including NVQs, SVQs, Apprenticeships, Diplomas and Foundation degrees, as well as industry codes of practice.
A central point of contact for information, Habia provides guidance on careers, business development, legislation, salon safety and equal opportunities, and is responsible to government on industry issues such as education and skills. For more information please click www.habia.org UKCES (The UK Commission for Employment and Skills) UKCES is responsible for the relicensing process for the 25 Sector Skills Councils. For more information please click www.ukces.org.uk
We hope you can now find your way around the system and know who is who and what they do. After all, they are responsible for the standards being taught, how these standards are taught and the skills that therapy teachers bring to the classroom or clinic.