1. An introduction to Ofqual
Simon Perks – Policy Manager

2. Outline Role of Ofqual Legal basis What we regulate
Education and qualifications in England
Education context
Awarding Organisations
Qualifications Market
Qualification Content
Regulating Awarding Organisations and their Qualifications
Regulatory model
Risk Based Approach
Taking Regulatory Action
Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation
Set up by the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009
Established Ofqual as statutory regulator from 1 April 2010
Non-ministerial government department – independent
Accountable to Parliament and to the Northern Ireland Assembly
Report to select committees but not directly to ministers
Regulate within a statutory framework
Statutory objectives
General duties
Powers

3. Role of Ofqual

4. What is Ofqual? Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation
Set up by the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009
Regulate within a statutory framework
Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation
Set up by the Apprenticeships, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009
Established Ofqual as statutory regulator from 1 April 2010
Non-ministerial government department – independent
Accountable to Parliament and to the Northern Ireland Assembly
Report to select committees but not directly to ministers
Regulate within a statutory framework
Statutory objectives
General duties
Powers

5. What does Ofqual regulate?
Qualifications in England taken at school and by adults, but not higher education qualifications
Vocational qualifications in Northern Ireland
National Curriculum and Early Years Foundation Stage Assessments in England
Possibility of needing to explain regulated unregulated if asked

6. Ofqual’s statutory objectives
The Apprenticeship, Skills, Children and Learning Act 2009:
The qualifications standards objective
The assessments standards objective
The public confidence objective
The awareness objective
The efficiency objective
The Education Act 2011:
Drafted and implemented by the current government
Designed to give us more powers and make our existing ones easier to use
Allows us to be tougher in protecting the standards of qualifications and confidence in them – including issuing fines if things go wrong
The qualifications standards objective
To secure the standards of qualifications
The assessments standards objective
To secure the standards of national curriculum and early years foundation stage assessment
The public confidence objective
To promote public confidence in qualifications and assessments
The awareness objective
To promote awareness about and understanding of regulated qualifications
The efficiency objective
To secure the efficiency of the qualifications market
Highlight that the 2 acts split across 2 parliaments/governments

7. Why do we need to Regulate?
We want:
Students, parents, teachers and employers to be confident that qualifications and assessments are appropriate and of a high quality
Integrity and efficiency across the qualifications system

8. Education and qualifications in the UK

9. Education and qualifications in England
Education in England
We have compulsory education to 16 and high participation to age 18
New legislation is being introduced to raise the participation age. Compulsory participation in education, training or work up to 18 soon
Participation in higher education has climbed rapidly in the last 10 years. By age 30 around 45%
Universities are autonomous organisations who decide their own entrance requirements, but commonly express their entry requirements in terms of qualifications needed.
Adult Education is less structured but uses Further Education Colleges and private training providers as well as work based learning programmes
There is a market in qualifications not a state monopoly
Qualifications are designed, developed and awarded by regulated Awarding Organisations. They are a mixture of private companies, charities (some organisations have evolved from universities) and sector specialist organisations. Many operate internationally.
Schools, colleges and training providers pay awarding organisations for registrations on qualifications

10. The role of Awarding Organisations
Ofqual itself doesn’t award qualifications
Schools and colleges might award attendance certificates for short courses
But the vast majority of recognised qualifications that learners achieve are issued by awarding organisations, separate and distinct from their school, college of training provider
About 15 million certificates issued annually (5 million GCSE, 2 million A level, majority of rest Vocational)
Ofqual
Awarding Organisation 1
Awarding Organisation 2
Awarding Organisation 3
School 1
School 2
College 1
Training Provider 1
Learners
Learners
Learners
Learners 10

11. Qualifications market in the UK
Compared to other countries there is generally less direct government control, resulting in greater diversity in qualifications and more choices to be made by schools and students
There is no universal end of school examination run by the government
But there are some nationally defined qualifications with an assumption that students will work towards GCSEs at 16, A Levels at 18
Schools and students have choices on the subjects they study and which awarding organisations qualification to work towards in those subjects.
There can be multiple awarding organisations offering the same qualification (for example five awarding organisations offer GCSE English to 16 year olds, each with slightly different syllabuses).
Different Vocational qualifications find favour in specific sectors
Because qualifications are awarded independently from schools, colleges and training providers they support mobility and have national portability
A key part of the regulators role is to secure the standards of qualifications

12. So who decides the content of a qualification?
For qualifications that are the same across Awarding Organisations, there are qualifications criteria that set out the design and content of the qualification:
GCSEs
A levels
Functional skills
For other qualifications unique to individual Awarding Organisations they determine the design and content with reference to relevant Users of the qualification:
Employers and industry bodies
Universities and other education providers
Licensing authorities
Where qualifications are similar but not identical, we expect Awarding Organisations to be clear about what they offering
And qualifications frameworks can help users compare and contrast

13. Comparing qualifications
Ofqual uses owns the qualifications framework overseeing levels and titling requirements across regulated qualifications

14. Regulating Awarding Organisations and their Qualifications

15. Our Regulatory Approach
Control Entry
Organisations
Published Recognition Conditions; high expectations
Qualifications
Accreditation; a detailed check against requirements (not all qualifications, targeted plus sample)
On-going Assurance
Self assessment, annual compliance statement (Board level)
Monitoring visits
Published requirements (conditions and criteria)
Monitor awarding processes code of practice and some qualifications outcomes
Track success (or not) of each organisation at accreditation
Manage Exit
Surrender of recognition
Completing or Handing off of learners/qualifications
Managing the withdrawal of a qualification
Operational and Certification end dates 15

16. Regulating awarding organisations
We recognise awarding organisations
Applicant organisations have to meet our Criteria for Recognition
Once recognised they have to meet our General Conditions of Recognition (regulations) on an on-going basis
Similar to licensing but recognition is voluntary
Awarding organisations can operate without Ofqual recognition
But qualifications from regulated organisations have access to public funding and Ofqual checks give greater assurance to users

17. General Conditions of Recognition
We set General Conditions of Recognition which all awarding organisations must meet
The General Conditions of Recognition
Set the outcomes we expect awarding organisations to achieve
Cover awarding organisation requirements (governance and behaviours) and qualification requirements (design, development, delivery and awarding)
Puts the accountability for delivery with the awarding organisations not Ofqual
The General Conditions of Recognition do not:
prescribe the processes awarding organisations must have
set curriculum expectations
set assessment methodologies
Diverse awarding organisations, Diverse qualifications, One set of regulations for all?
Learner’s right to appeal To allow for reliability issues (human error in marking)
Requiring awarding organisations to publish information so that learners and schools can choose

18. Risk based monitoring
Checking awarding organisations are meeting our regulations
We target resources where it is most needed
We monitoring on the basis of risk:
There is a high likelihood of something going wrong
There is a high impact if something did go wrong
We monitor awarding organisations whole though visits/audits and the standards of the qualifications they deliver

19. Qualifications Monitoring
To ensure that standards are maintained and qualifications are fit for purpose, we carry out a risk-based programme to monitor qualifications across awarding organisations.
Scrutiny
Check and confirm that awarding organisations are safely delivering qualifications. This can involve looking closely at new qualifications or monitoring the delivery of qualifications by the awarding organisations as they are being carried out. End to end reviews – from question paper setting to awarding.
Comparability
This also involves looking closely at qualifications, evaluating assessment practices and comparing student work, across particular sets of qualifications. Cross sectional reviews.

20. Taking Regulatory Action
When awarding organisations don’t meet our Conditions we may:
ask them to address the issue and monitor its progress in doing so
publish evidence that Conditions are not being complied with
giving a direction (enforceable by the courts of law)
place a cap on the fees they can charge for their qualifications
fine the awarding organisations
withdraw their recognition

21. Working with others

22. Contact us If you would like more information
Simon Perks – (0044)
- Policy Manager –
June Marshall – (0044)
Stakeholder Manager -