Adaptability and resilience are two words I would use to describe the apprenticeship sector. Words that will continue to resonate in 2025 as we see changes, either directly or indirectly, as a result of the change to government and ever-tightening budgets. It is a competitive marketplace, and one which is heavily regulated, so EpAOs must plan carefully to future-proof their business whilst ensuring ongoing compliance.
In this series of articles I will explore areas for EpAOs to consider as they plan the maintenance and/or growth of their business in 2025. This first article focuses on aspects of quality assurance for Ofqual regulated EpAOs, future articles will focus on policy, funding, rules and regulations across all EpAOs.
All EpAOs operate quality assurance of their organisation through assessment and service monitoring, data analysis and feedback, using that to continuously improve. To ensure ongoing validity of your quality assurance processes here are some areas I would factor into business planning if you are an Ofqual regulated awarding organisation:
You don’t all have to be the same, but it helps to work together
Once recognised by Ofqual, EpAOs have autonomy in how they operate. This means that Ofqual accepts that there may be variances or inconsistencies across AOs as the businesses operate within a competitive market place, but so long as results are comparable and the EpAOs are operating in accordance with the assessment plans then Ofqual is OK with it. However, EpAOs have repeatedly expressed frustration about the lack of external quality assurance in the context of (a) feeding back on what the EpAO is doing well; (b) how the EpAO can improve; (c) sharing sector best practice. Some also report feeling isolated. As a result, make sure you actively take part in the groups that have emerged across the sector to support quality, such as the Quality Alliance (open to all) and FAB EPA groups (open to FAB members). These groups help to share best practice, provide links through to policy makers, and will also indirectly support Ofqual condition H – using monitoring to promote consistency over time and between similar qualifications. It think it would be fabulous if Ofqual could publish more technical evaluation reports on EPA, the last of which was back in 2020, as these are extremely valuable resources to support sector learning and the sharing of best practice.
Keep a close watching brief on the standards
Keep a close watching brief on the standards webpages – IfATE have a frustrating ability to change standards and assessment plans without notifying the sector (and sometimes without changing the version number). As an EpAO you must deliver against the assessment plan and have clear strategies in place to manage change, including reporting change and any potential adverse effects to Ofqual. The content of an assessment plan will directly impact your quality assurance activity, so it is critical to ensure you identify and act upon all changes as soon as they are identified. It will also be in your interests from a customer perspective, as keeping up to date with changes will enable you to update your materials and specifications thus supporting apprentices and providers to be ready for EPA. An extra hint from me – I would recommend retaining a downloaded version of your standards and assessment plans as opposed to just the hyperlink, as IfATE have been known to overwrite existing online versions without changing the version number making it impossible to identify the changes that have been made.
Keep up to speed with the changing rules and regulations
In December 2024 the ESFA (DfE) removed EpAOs from the Apprenticeship Provider and Assessment register (APAR). This change meant that the APAR conditions for EpAOs became obsolete and were removed. As an EpAO, make sure you review your policies to take account of this change. Some aspects won’t be impacted directly as the APAR conditions referred to adherence to the relevant regulatory body, but there are some aspects that have now disappeared, for example, the loss of conditions around eligible / ineligible costs, and the removal of the condition around the promotion of your service. In those scenarios your QA must default to the requirements of the regulator (Condition A finance and resourcing, Condition F packaging), and as such you may need to update your QA approaches as a result.
Take part in Consultations
Take part in Consultations that impact quality and compliance, and use the detail to plan for change – in November 2024, Ofqual launched a consultation on a new set of principles. The consultation closes on 12th February, and whilst the outcome is not yet known, you can still use the consultation content to understand more about Ofqual perception of risk and to look at your QA systems to see if you could evidence meeting those principles.
Data, Data, and more Data!
Ofqual now publish data on EPA. Whilst its use is limited for EpAO quality improvement insights, it is still worth digging down into the data. In addition, the DfE publish regular apprenticeships data enabling you to identify volumes and trends overtime across standards, which in turn can support future resource planning for QA activities. But it’s not just about national data, as an EpAO make sure you capture and use as much intelligence as possible to identify areas to focus on QA, whether that be potential risks, or new areas of QA focus due to expansion. Data will only become more important due to publications such as the transfer of functions to Skill England Bill policy impact assessment (page 5) which refers to a “more data-driven” system, so the more you know and understand data the more responsive you will be.
Use Ofqual requests to your advantage
Ofqual publishes a schedule of the data submissions required from awarding organisations. It is worth familiarising yourself with the dates and requirements to be ready to submit in a timely manner. If you use systems to provide data, explore the development of automated reports to save any last minute panics to pull together the data. Ofqual retain the right to request data outside of the published submission process so it isn’t a one size fits all but it will help QA resource planning. Remember, Ofqual is a risk based regulator, therefore when they request data or ask questions outside of their standard data submission process, it is more than likely due to their identification of a potential risk. Recent areas of questioning have included assessor training and financial resilience. This indicates that Ofqual may be identifying risks around the financial stability of EpAOs and the quality / consistency of assessment. Make sure you use these insights to tailor your QA plan and activities.
Use the latest Ofqual regulatory actions and interventions reports to identify risk areas
This hint is not about spying on other AOs, it is another way of identifying where Ofqual see risks and how they deal with it. It can really help you to understand their approach and reasoning behind decisions and actions, which can, in turn, help you shape your approach to QA.
Prepare for technical evaluation
In November 2024 Ofqual changed its approach to technical evaluation. As a result it would be worth revisiting your approaches to preparing for technical evaluations to make sure it can adapt to the changing Ofqual approach – instead of focusing on individual standards, Ofqual will conduct a single technical evaluation, where they will sample a representative number of standards from the EpAO. EpAOs will be assessed against the Ofqual requirements of validity, reliability, accessibility and differentiation. Post evaluation reports will focus on concerns about compliance with the conditions and their considered severity.
Training, training, and more training
Make sure you have comprehensive and up to date training for all staff, not just your assessors. By delivering comprehensive training you are proactively supporting the operation of a quality service. This is also important in the context of the regulatory perspective around risk, as referenced in point 6.
Quality assurance of customers
Do you carry out any quality checks of your customers (training providers) prior to contracting and on an ongoing basis? Customer checks may enable you to identify potential opportunities for expansion and any risks, such as the quality/readiness of the apprentices coming through for EPA, the risk / level of withdrawal of apprentices prior to reaching gateway, or any potential risk with regard to making payment for EPA.
On a final note around quality assurance, always keep a look out for research reports as they can provide insights and tips, for example the Gatsby Charitable Foundation report in September 2024 around end-point assessment.
My next article will focus on policy.
By Jacqui Molkenthin, Specialist support for End-point Assessment Organisations
Jacqui has worked at the forefront of further and vocational education and apprenticeship policy design, implementation and operational delivery for 25 years. For the past 10 years, Jacqui has worked specifically with apprenticeships, both designing apprenticeship standards and setting up and managing a successful end-point assessment organisation (EpAO). Since 2018 Jacqui has worked as an independent consultant supporting both new and established EpAOs to grow and develop, whilst ensuring the highest levels of quality and compliance. To enhance this support, Jacqui carries out sector research, publishes articles, and produces a weekly update for the sector on LinkedIn.
This post was originally published on here
