The Joint Awarding Body Quality Group for Health and ...



The Joint Awarding Body Quality Group for Health and Social Care and Children’s Sectors QCF FAQ

|Scope: |

|Information supplied in this document has been developed through the partnership of Awarding Organisations offering a range of QCF qualifications in the Health|

|and Social Care and Children’s Workforce |

QCF

1. Generic

1. Where can information on funding for learning and training be obtained?

England: Skills Funding Agency .uk/government/organisations/skills-funding-agency

Northern Ireland: Department of Education & Learning Northern Ireland .uk

Scotland: or



Wales: Department for Education and Skills (DfES) (Welsh Government)

.uk

1.2 Where can I find further information relating to the National Occupational Standards and skills?

The National Occupational Standards (NOS) and knowledge sets are owned and maintained by the relevant Sector Skills Councils. These can be located at the following websites:

Skills for Care & Development .uk

Skills for Care .uk

Care Council Wales .uk

Northern Ireland Social Care Council

The Scottish Social Services Council sssc.

Skills for Health .uk

National College for Teaching and Leadership (EYE qualifications) .uk

You can search on UK Standards website as the main NOS website (.uk) and then search for specific NOS.

3. Where can I find the evidence requirements?

The evidence requirements can be found in individual Awarding Body’s/Organisation’s guidance documentation.

4. Does a portfolio belong to the learner, the centre or the employer?

The portfolio of evidence is the property of the learner. The assessment and internal quality assurance records are the property of the centre and should be retained according to regulatory requirements.

5. Can learners gain a unit or a qualification when they look after a single service user?

Yes. Learners can use evidence from one service user where they work with no other individual. However they must be able to cover all assessment criteria.

1.6 Can a tutor/trainer delivering the knowledge also assess learner performance?

Yes so long as they meet the vocational competence and assessor qualifications requirements of the Assessment Principles of the unit/qualification they are assessing.

In Wales please also refer to the Care Council for Wales document, Best practice guidance for learning and assessment in social care, the care of children and young people and early years in Wales.

1.7 What is a peripatetic assessor?

A peripatetic assessor is an assessor who travels between locations undertaking assessment in a learner’s workplace. Best practice requires that learners are assessed undertaking normal work activities, therefore, where a learner does not have a work based assessor they can be assessed by a peripatetic assessor.

1.8 Can audio be used to record a direct observation?

Yes.

1.9 What does qualified to assess mean?

The assessment principles agreed by Skills for Care and Development for the suite of Health and Social care and Children and Young People’s Workforce qualifications state that in addition to occupational knowledge/competence assessors of QCF units must hold a suitable qualification.

1.10 What qualifications are acceptable for assessors assessing QCF units? (Indicative list only)

D32 Assess Candidate Performance and D33 Assess Candidate Using Differing Sources of Evidence

A1 Assess Candidate Performance Using a Range of Methods and A2 Assessing Candidates' Performance through Observation

QCF Level 3 Award in Assessing Competence in the Work Environment (for competence / skills learning outcomes only)

QCF Level 3 Award in Assessing Vocationally Related Achievement (for knowledge learning outcomes only)

QCF Level 3 Certificate in Assessing Vocational Achievement

Qualified Teacher Status

Certificate in Education in Post Compulsory Education (PCE)

Social Work Post Qualifying Award in Practice Teaching

Certificate in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector (CTLLS)

Diploma in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning sector (DTLLS)

Mentorship and Assessment in Health and Social Care Settings

Mentorship in Clinical/Health Care Practice

L&D9DI - Assessing workplace competence using Direct and Indirect methods (Scotland)

L&D9D - Assessing workplace competence using Direct methods (Scotland)

NOCN – Tutor/Assessor Award

Level 3 Awards and Certificate in Assessing the Quality of Assessment (QCF)

Level 4 Awards and Certificates in Assuring the Quality of Assessment (QCF)

Level 3 Award in Education and Training

Level 4 Certificate in Education and Training

Level 5 Diploma in Educations and Training

1.11 Are witnesses required to write their own testimony statements?

No. Testimony can be oral or recorded and the assessor must endorse the statement.

1.12 What is the difference between a witness and an expert witness?

The use of expert witnesses is encouraged as a contribution to the provision of evidence of the learner’s competence. Expert witnesses may be used where there are no occupationally competent assessors for occupationally specific units or to minimise intrusion. Within these units only, the observation requirements can be met by either the assessor or expert witness.

Expert witness requirements are identified in the Assessment Principles and they must be inducted into this role by the centre. All other witnesses are individuals who may have been present at a particular incident, or are able to provide evidence of consistency of practice etc but there are no formal requirements identified for them and their testimony can never meet the observation requirements.

1.13 What vocational competence requirements are expected of expert witnesses?

An expert witness must:

• Have a working knowledge of the QCF units for which they are providing witness testimony;

• Be occupationally competent in their area of expertise;

• Have either any qualification that includes assessment of workplace performance or a professional work role which involves evaluating everyday practice of staff.

1.14 If a summative assessor is not occupationally competent in a specific unit where expert witness evidence has been used to cover the direct observation requirements how can they sign the unit off?

In this instance the primary role of the summative assessor is to ensure that there is sufficient, valid and reliable evidence for all the assessment criteria to have been met.

1.15 How do I provide evidence when the information is confidential?

Confidential records must not be included in the portfolio of evidence. Clear reference must be made as to where the information is located and assessor records should identify how the evidence meets the standards.

1.16 Is the use of photographic or video evidence of work with service users acceptable in paper form or e-based portfolios?

Generally speaking because the use of videos or photographic materials is subject to the informed consent of service users, their families or carers. It should be treated the same way as any confidential record. That is it should be kept securely within the service and not reproduced within a paper based or e-portfolio that is accessible by other people in the assessment process. The increasing use of e-portfolios and digital technology does not require that evidence is in the form of video or photography.

1.17 If a learner/employee has been suspended pending formal investigation can they continue to be assessed for the qualification?

The centre would need to investigate and inform the relevant Awarding Body/Organisation to discuss the way forward.

1.18 Does the internal quality assurer have to sample every learner?

No. Your internal quality assurance sampling strategy should provide a rationale for your sampling plan. You should check with your awarding body/organisation that their specific requirements are met.

1.19 Who can countersign the assessment decisions of a trainee assessor?

An assessor who is qualified and occupationally competent in the units they are countersigning.

1.20 If there is a pathway choice in my QCF qualification do I have to register for a pathway at the beginning, or can I decide afterwards?

Your decision has to be made before or at the time of registration. Your job role will determine the evidence you use and therefore the pathway should reflect your job role.

1.21 How will I know which units cannot be combined in my qualification?

There is a list of units which cannot be taken together under the Rules of Combination (RoC).

1.22 Can I use units from a different level to achieve my QCF qualification?

Yes. The Rules of Combination will tell you which units you can take for your qualification.

1.23 What range of assessment methods can be used?

The range of methods that can be used are suggested by each Awarding Organisation in their guidance documents.

1.24 I have completed my first QCF qualification with a specific pathway and now have a post which requires different pathway. Will I be able to use any of my evidence for the new pathway?

Some of the units can be directly transferred between pathways and qualifications. Any other units selected will then need to be evidenced. Your assessor can apply the rules of Recognition of Prior Learning to assess any existing evidence which may be of value and then plan to cover any evidence gaps through the application of the required assessment method/s.

1.25 I have only worked in Children’s Services; can I assess a learner working with adults?

No. The Assessment Principles is clear. Assessors must be occupationally competent in the units they are assessing and therefore the context of the service in which they operate is a significant factor.

1.26 I have experience in Care Management but no qualifications. I am an A1 qualified assessor and a V1 qualified internal verifier. Can I internally quality assure the new Leadership and Management units?

Yes. The Assessment Principles requires internal quality assurers to have working knowledge of management within health and social care settings, the regulation, legislation and current practice for the service (where applicable) and the requirements of national standards at the time any assessment is taking place.

2. Childcare

2.1 What is the age range for Children’s and Young People’s Workforce qualifications?

0-19 years but evidence must come from the age range in which the learner is working.

In Wales the age range for children and young people is 0-25 years.

3. Early years Educators (EYE)

3.1 Who sets the standards for Early Years Educators?

It is the role of the National College for Teaching & Leadership (NCTL) to define the Level 3 qualifications that practitioners included in the specified ratios must hold. NCTL does this by defining the criteria that underpin qualifications developed by Awarding Organisations (AOs).

The criteria lay out the minimum for what a practitioner should know, understand and be able to do to be considered qualified at Level 3 when delivering the EYFS.

3.2 Where can I find information on the Early Year Educator Criteria?

The Early Years Educator criteria are available from

3.3 How do we recognise an Early Years Educator qualification?

All EYE qualifications will have different titles, however the ones which will be recognised for ratios will have (Early Years Educator) in brackets at the end of the qualification title. The qualifications will also appear on the NCTL list of recognised sector qualifications.

3.4 What if I already have a childcare qualification?

Qualifications already achieved, which confer occupational competence and are on the qualifications list, will still count in ratios. Please see NCTL website

3.5 Will my Early Years Educator qualification be recognised in Wales, Northern Ireland or Scotland.?

No. This is an England only qualification.

3.6 What entry qualifications do Early Years Educators need?

Awarding Organisations may have entry requirements please refer to individual specifications for details.

3.7 Why do I need GCSE English and maths?

GCSE English and maths at grade C or above along with your EYE qualifications are required to count in staffing ratios at Level 3 in England.

3.8 If I have a Level 2 qualification can I progress to the Level 3 EYE qualification?

Yes. However please refer to 3.7 above.

3.9 Will Functional Skills or Key Skills be accepted as equivalents qualifications to GSCE English and maths?

No. GCSE English and maths or equivalents will be the required. Please see the NCTL’s statement on their website.

3.10 How many workplace hours do I need to complete the qualification?

Please see each individual Awarding Organisations guidance documents.

3.11 What age range does Early Years Educator Qualification cover?

It covers 0-5 years and knowledge of 5-7 years. This is based on the EYFS.

3.12 Will my overseas qualifications allow me to practice in the early year’s sector?

You will need to have your qualifications checked by NACRIC who will have them ratified by the NCTL to ensure they are ‘full and relevant’ and meet the sector’s requirements.

3.13 Where will I find the list of ‘full and relevant’ qualifications and the AOs who offer them?

NCTL will be holding a list of all the ‘full and relevant’ qualifications and these can be found on their website.

3.14 Will the current Children and Young People’s Workforce (Early Years and Childcare) pathway qualification still be available?

Not after 1 September 2014. This pathway will be removed from the CYPW qualification.

3.15 If I have a Level 3 CCLD QCF qualification from Wales or Northern Ireland can I work in England and count in ratios as an Early Years Educator?

You will need to have attained the following:

• GCSE English and maths grade C or above or recognised equivalent see NCTL website

• All of the mandatory units must be achieved for the level 3 CCLD

• The following 4 optional units:

▪ R/504/2191 Support children’s language, literacy and communication (optional)

▪ L/504/2190 Support children’s mathematical development (optional)

▪ A/601/0121 Work with babies and young children to promote their development and learning (optional)

▪ M/502/3812 – Engage with parents in their children’s early learning (optional)

3.16 What do I have to achieve for an EYE apprenticeship?

Full details for the EYE interim apprenticeship framework can be found on Apprenticeship Frameworks On-line website:

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