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The Explanatory
Memorandum prepared by the Welsh Government describes the
Bill’s main purposes in the following terms:
The Bill provides
for the establishment of Qualifications Wales as the independent
regulatory body responsible for the recognition of awarding bodies
and the review and approval of non-degree qualifications in Wales.
Qualifications Wales will also, along with the Welsh
Ministers, be responsible for preparing a list of priority
qualifications, designated as such by reason of the significance of
the qualification, having regard to the needs of learners and
employers in Wales. The intention is, through the
establishment of Qualifications Wales, to strengthen the oversight
of qualifications and of the qualification system in
Wales.
The Bill is
intended to address the four main limitations of the current
system. These are outlined in the Explanatory Memorandum
as:
•
there is no single organisation that is dedicated to ensuring the
effectiveness of qualifications and the qualification
system;
•
there are no powers to prioritise qualifications and to thereby
focus regulatory activity where it is most needed – with the
result that there are large numbers of regulated qualifications but
limited resources to ensure effectiveness;
•
there are no powers to select a single provider of a
given
qualification to
ensure that learners across Wales take the same qualification;
and
•
the capacity to drive forward the strategic development of
qualifications within the current arrangements is too limited -
creating a risk that Wales’ qualifications will not be held
in as high esteem, nationally and internationally, as those in
other nations.
The Bill provides
Qualifications Wales with the following principal aims, and it must
act compatibly with these when exercising its functions:
a) Ensuring that
qualifications, and the Welsh qualification system, are effective
for meeting the reasonable needs of learners in Wales;
and
b) Promoting
public confidence in qualifications and in the Welsh qualification
system.
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Question
1 - Is there a need
for a Bill for the purposes outlined above?
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Section 3 of the
Exploratory memorandum notes the heavy influence of requirements in
England on Welsh qualifications policy, with the needs of Welsh
learners coming secondary to the requirements of English policy
(para 3). It also notes concerns regarding the differences
there can be across qualifications of similar titles within a
competitive or open market structure. The Bill provides for
the establishment of Qualification Wales to allow independent
regulation and quality assurance of all non-degree level
qualifications in Wales. This will allow for the design,
development and approval of qualifications which have a specific
Wales focus and/or which meet the needs of Welsh learners.
The Bill will establish an independent body, accountable to
the Welsh Assembly, with responsibility for ensuring that the
qualifications system in Wales is fit for purpose.
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If you believe there is a need for the Bill,
what are the main issues that need to be resolved?
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The Bill covers the main areas to be resolved in
terms of the need to ensure that the Welsh qualification system
meets the need of learners for Wales. It is important that
the proposed ongoing review relating to the consideration of future
awarding body aspects of Qualifications Wales (recommended by the
Huw Evans Review) continues to be addressed and is not lost once
Qualifications Wales begins to operate in what will be a very busy
environment. It is also important to clarify the roles of
Qualifications Wales, Welsh Government and Awarding Organisations
and how the effective discharge of roles will operate. Linked to
this in the interim is the need for clarity to be established as to
the commissioning model to be used by Qualifications
Wales.
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How significant is this issue? (Please select
one option)
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1 – This is a key, urgent
problem.
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2 – This is a problem that
needs to be addressed.
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§
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3 – This is a minor
problem
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4 – Not a problem.
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Question 2
- Do you think the
Bill, as drafted, delivers the stated objectives as set out in the
Explanatory Memorandum?
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The Bill will
support the independence, simplification and strengthening of
regulation (para 193 Explanatory memorandum) by removing this role
from Welsh ministers and setting up an independent body for this
purpose. In our experience this will instil public confidence
in the independence of the function.
The further parts
of the Bill regarding the list of Priority qualifications and
possible designation of Restricted Priority qualifications will
meet the objectives set out in para 31 of the Explanatory notes,
i.e. to avoid inconsistency between different forms of a given
qualification and allow Qualifications Wales to exercise choice
between Awarding Organisations. This will enable
Qualifications Wales to make decisions as to the number of
qualifications that can be approved for offer in Wales, simplifying
the qualifications offer which during the Review and subsequent
qualifications was viewed as over complicated. It will also
give powers to select a single provider if it is felt that all
learners across Wales should take the same qualification, again an
area viewed as a limitation of the current system.
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If not, how do you think the Bill should be
amended to take account of this?
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No further suggestions.
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How significant is this issue? (Please select
one option)
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1 – This is a key, urgent
problem.
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2 – This is a problem that
needs to be addressed.
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3 – This is a minor
problem
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4 – Not a problem.
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Question 3
- Are the sections
of the Bill as drafted appropriate to bring about the purposes
described above?
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The
proposed powers to be given to Qualifications Wales and the
activities that they will be required to carry out, as drafted in
the Bill, will allow Qualifications Wales to work towards meeting
the two principal aims as outlined above.
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If not, what
changes do you believe need to be made to the Bill?
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No changes proposed.
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How significant is this issue? (Please select
one option)
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1 – This is a key, urgent
problem.
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§
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2 – This is a problem that
needs to be addressed.
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3 – This is a minor
problem
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4 – Not a problem.
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√
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Question 4
- Has the Welsh
Government correctly identified the four main limitations of the
current arrangement, and will the two principal aims the Bill sets
for Qualifications Wales, as well as the eight matters which it
must have regard when exercising its functions, effectively address
these limitations?
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The limitations
identified follow on from the regulatory and qualifications market
recommendations in the Review and outline areas where change is
needed to allow the recommendations as a whole to be further acted
upon. Further recommendations relating to the operation of
Qualifications Wales in terms of awarding are noted as being for
action in future legislation. It seems appropriate to
establish the regulatory parameters initially whilst work is
ongoing in other areas which may impact upon the future operation
of Qualifications Wales in terms of aspects of for example
awarding
The two principal
aims and the eight matters should address the limitations
outlined.
The aims give
Qualifications Wales responsibility for the effectiveness of
qualifications and the qualifications system in Wales, as well as
promoting public confidence in both. It addresses the lack of
a single dedicated organisation and reduces the risk of
Wales’ qualifications being held in lower esteem.
Limitations two
and three are not directly addressed by the aims and matters
identified but the details of the work Qualifications Wales will be
asked to carry out in terms of the list of priority qualifications
and restricted priority qualifications do address these areas. The
overall aim of ensuring the Welsh qualification system is effective
in meeting the needs of learners allows for a wide range of
activities that could be undertaken to address all
limitations.
Likewise, the
eight matters do not directly address the limitations stated.
However if, in performing its functions, Qualifications Wales pays
regard to the economy, stakeholders, comparability, relevance,
value for money, it will be in line with the second principal aim
of the Bill and ultimately will address issues related to the
current limitations identified in the system.
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If you believe there are problems in this area,
how do you think they could be resolved?
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No problems noted.
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How significant is this issue? (Please select
one option)
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1 – This is a key, urgent
problem.
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§
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2 – This is a problem that
needs to be addressed.
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3 – This is a minor
problem
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4 – Not a problem.
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Question 5
- What are your
views on the proposals for determining ‘priority
qualifications’ and, within these, ‘restricted priority
qualifications’?
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It is an
opportunity to streamline the complicated qualifications offer
currently in place, allowing clearer options when choosing
qualifications and will give public confidence that whatever
qualifications are chosen, they will meet the
reasonable needs of learners in Wales and the needs of Further and
Higher Education, employers and the economy. It will also
address the concerns regarding inconsistency across qualifications
with the same title and could help ensure continuity and coherence
within the curriculum.
Conversely,
however, it will, as required, limit the qualifications offer in
Wales and, by linking the priority and restricted priority
qualifications to public funding, restrict the qualifications
market to fewer versions of key qualifications. This may
concern stakeholders who prefer to have a choice of qualifications
of the same title on offer and, whilst the intention is not to
remove providers from the qualifications market, it will reduce the
number of Awarding Organisations offering some qualifications in
Wales to meet the stated goal of a single suite of qualifications
for Wales. This in turn may reduce the innovation, creativity
and relevance of both content and assessment methodology of
qualifications and should be monitored.
Management of
comparability, portability and cross-border currency in the UK and
Europe is also noted as important for stakeholders under the new
system and Qualifications Wales will need to ensure there is public
confidence in the decisions made and a transparency in the data
used to make these decisions.
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If you think there are problems in this area,
how do you think they could be resolved?
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Stakeholder involvement throughout the process
and stakeholder endorsement will be vital to ensure portability and
comparability are managed. If learners in Wales are to have a
reduced qualification offer then what is on offer must allow for
progression into Further and Higher Education and/or employment
within and outside Wales.
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How significant is this issue? (Please select
one option)
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1 – This is a key, urgent
problem.
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2 – This is a problem that
needs to be addressed.
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3 – This is a minor
problem
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4 – Not a problem.
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Question 6
- What are your
views on the commissioning type process Qualifications Wales would
undertake under the Bill, in respect of restricted priority
qualifications?
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Having notified
Awarding Organisations regarding proposals to restrict and taken on
board responses, Qualifications Wales could: ask Awarding
Organisations for expressions of interest in designing
qualifications detailing relevant experience of similar work and
how the needs of learners in Wales would be met; request that
Awarding Organisations submit qualification proposals for
consideration; request that Awarding Organisations submit draft
qualifications and sample assessment for consideration with the
most suitable being approved for; ask Awarding Organisations to
work collaboratively to design a single restricted priority
qualification (although the competitive market place makes this
challenging); or select from qualifications already on offer.
During any of the processes above, Qualifications Wales could
make decisions about which form or forms of qualification it will
approve based on the evidence presented. The latter will form
a record for any subsequent audit.
Across the current
suite of non-degree level, general and vocational qualifications
this is a potentially large item of work to be carried out and it
will take some time to meet the objectives stated.
Whatever
commissioning type process is chosen, a transparent scheme, setting
out clear qualification criteria and a procedure for
determining/selecting which forms will be approved needs to be
devised. Firstly, as this is a competitive process subject to
scrutiny and challenge; secondly to instil public confidence; and,
thirdly to ensure there has been regard of the eight matters in
Part 2, section 3 (2).
Depending on the
competition process devised, this could significantly reduce the
interest of Awarding Organisations in developing qualifications for
Wales – i.e. if the development of qualifications for the
competition incurred significant costs, especially if it is a
relatively small market or small demand curriculum area.
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If you believe there are problems in this area,
how do you think they could be resolved?
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There remains a lack of clarity as to how the
commissioning process will be carried out. The Bill outlines
that this process will be carried out and gives Qualifications
Wales the power to design how. Therefore, as yet this is to be
decided and it will be important that this is carefully considered.
This is unlikely to be detail appropriate for inclusion in
the Bill and so would not hinder progress in the legislation.
However it is a more significant - issue in terms of how the
qualifications market in Wales will actually operate once
Qualifications Wales is established.
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How significant is this issue? (Please select
one option)
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1 – This is a key, urgent
problem.
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2 – This is a problem that
needs to be addressed.
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3 – This is a minor
problem
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4 – Not a problem.
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Question 7
- How will the Bill
change what organisations do currently and what impact will such
changes have, if any?
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The Bill will
change the current regulatory mechanisms and systems in Wales and
this will have an impact on three-country processes and on
interaction with Ofqual and CCEA.
It will also
change the relationships between the Welsh regulator and Awarding
Organisations. It is noted in the Bill that the roles and
responsibilities of both parties are to be reviewed in light of the
establishment of Qualifications Wales and subsequently clarified,
as are the inter-relationships.
The aim of a
single suite of qualifications may limit the number of Awarding
Organisations offering qualifications in Wales.
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If you believe there are problems in this area,
how do you think they could be resolved?
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The process for development and offer of
priority and restricted priority qualifications may need to be
clarified as a priority once Qualifications Wales is
established.
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How significant is this issue? (Please select
one option)
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1 – This is a key, urgent
problem.
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2 – This is a problem that
needs to be addressed.
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3 – This is a minor
problem
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4 – Not a problem.
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Question 8
- What are the
potential barriers to implementing the provisions of the Bill (if
any) and does the Bill take account of them?
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Due to
the large number of qualifications currently accredited and on
offer, it will be a significant challenge to review all vocational
and general qualifications to allow prioritisation in terms of
their significance to learners and employers in Wales. For
qualifications undergoing revision restricting the number of forms
of priority qualifications will make this more manageable but
overall this is a challenging provision.
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If you believe there are problems in this area,
how do you think they could be resolved?
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Stakeholder involvement in this process will be
crucial as will sufficient resourcing for Qualifications
Wales.
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How significant is this issue? (Please select
one option)
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1 – This is a key, urgent
problem.
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2 – This is a problem that
needs to be addressed.
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3 – This is a minor
problem
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4 – Not a problem.
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Question 9
- Do you have any
views on the way in which the Bill falls within the legislative
competence of the National Assembly for Wales?
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This would
appear appropriate.
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Question
10 - What are your
views on powers in the Bill for Welsh Ministers to make subordinate
legislation (i.e. statutory instruments, including regulations,
orders and directions)?
In answering this
question, you may wish to consider Section 5 of the Explanatory
Memorandum, which contains a table summarising the powers delegated
to Welsh Ministers in the Bill to make orders and regulations,
etc.
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This would appear appropriate in the
circumstances outlined in the Memorandum.
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Question
11 - What are your
views on the financial implications of the Bill?
In answering this
question you may wish to consider Part 2 of the Explanatory
Memorandum (the Regulatory Impact Assessment), which estimates the
costs and benefits of implementation of the Bill.
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Passing the Bill and establishing an arm’s
length regulatory body is the most costly of the options
considered. However, it is the only option of the three which
enables progress on some of the Review recommendations; addresses
the identified limitations of the current system; and meets the
aims and objectives stated for the qualification system in Wales.
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Question
12 - Are there any
other comments you wish to make about specific sections of the
Bill?
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In light of GCSE English issues in summer 2012,
the delineation of roles of Qualifications Wales and Ofqual (in
sections 30 and 31) is important to clearly establish who regulates
what qualification where, as, whilst differing in structure,
general qualifications such as GCSEs and A levels will have the
same titles in England and Wales and the same vocational
qualifications will be available in both jurisdictions.
Section 41(3) providing for Qualifications Wales
to undertake research into any matter connected with qualifications
is an important aspect. This will inform all aspects of the work of
Qualifications Wales and help instil public confidence in the
decisions made in terms of best practice and supporting the future
strategic development of qualifications.
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