Update 26/02/21: There are two upcoming webinars on the arrangements for VTQs in 2020/2021. Tickets for these can be booked here.
Letter sent to Open Awards' centres 25/02/2021
Dear colleagues,
Ofqual has published the outcome of their consultation on arrangements for vocational and technical qualifications (VTQs) today.
The outcome of this for the majority of Open Awards qualifications that are regulated by Ofqual, including Functional Skills qualifications, is that:
- Assessments will continue either remotely or in-person where they can be accessed by learners in line with public health guidance
- Adaptations will continue to be made available, including remote assessments and remote invigilation options
- Where a learner cannot access an assessment remotely or in-person due to COVID-19 restrictions, we will put a process in place for a teacher assessed grade to be made available
Ofqual are now consulting on the regulatory arrangements for implementing these outcomes. The details of this consultation can be found here.
We will be holding webinars in the next fortnight to talk through the arrangements for this in more detail and expect to make the application process for a teacher assessed grade available from April onwards. In the meantime, please continue to submit your requests for adaptation via the Portal. If you have any concerns about your learners accessing assessments, please contact your quality assurance contact at quality@openawards.org.uk
There are a small number of Open Awards qualifications that are linked to occupational competence and these are not in scope for a teacher assessed grade. We will be contacting centres that deliver these qualifications to talk through arrangements.
Existing guidance from QAA regarding Access to HE Diplomas remains in place.
Functional Skills
Ofqual’s Functional Skills update published today can be viewed here.
We are continuing to make assessments available for all our Functional Skills qualifications, including paper-based, online and remote invigilation options. We have also now introduced the option to use Open Awards invigilators. The full guidance on adaptations for Functional Skills qualifications is available on the Portal.
If you would like to move to remote invigilation or have any concerns around accessing assessments, please contact quality@openawards.org.uk.
Next steps
In preparation for awarding arrangements for this summer, please can you ensure the course information we hold for you is as up to date as possible. This includes checking:
- All registrations for this year are on the system (including registering against specific units)
- Any learners that are no longer on programme have been withdrawn on the system
- Course run end dates are up to date and accurate
- Adaptations made (including moving to online/remote learning) have been communicated to us via an Adaptation Request Form
In addition, please would you check that the key contact information we have for you is up to date as there is likely to be a lot of updates over the next few weeks.
If you need any support with the registrations of your learners and/or course dates, please contact the team at customerservices@openawards.org.uk.
I appreciate there is a lot of information at the moment and you and your learners will all be impacted differently. We will be keeping our FAQs page updated on our website, along with publishing recordings of webinars and guidance. Please do let me know if you would value a conversation with a member of the team to talk through the arrangements for this year and any specific concerns you have.
Thank you, in advance, for your support to Open Awards as we implement these new processes.
With kind regards,
Nina Hinton
Head of Business and Development