• ATHE is regulated by the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual), which is the independent regulator of qualifications, examinations and assessments in England. ATHE also regulated by agencies and inspectorates based in countries outside the UK.
• These Regulators set conditions upon all awarding organisations which must be adhered to, in order to ensure their continued recognition. The Conditions are comprehensive covering all aspects of the work of awarding organisations and are amended in order to meet changing circumstances.  The Regulators also monitor the performance of awarding organisations such as ATHE, to ensure they are working to the required standards.
• The Regulators report directly to their respective parliament/assembly.

ATHE is committed to being an equal opportunities organisation. ATHE is opposed to discrimination on any grounds, including those of race, language, colour, nationality, ethnicity, regional or national origin, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, age, religious belief, disability or social background.

ATHE is fully committed to compliance with the requirements of dataprotection law.  ATHE will therefore follow procedures that aim to ensure that all employees, contractors, agents, consultants and other partners of ATHE who have access to any Personal Data held by or on behalf of ATHE, are fully aware of and abide by their duties and responsibilities.

In accordance with signed Centre Agreements, ATHE and Centres are required to have in place policies in relation to data protection which recognise and reflect the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).  Both parties to these Agreements are therefore bound by the relevant privacy standard in place from time to time which sets out the correct and lawful treatment of Personal Data.

ATHE has developed a Centre Assessment Standards Scrutiny Strategy (CASS) as required by the regulator Ofqual.

This document states how ATHE will ensure that assessment decisions on learner work, made by centres, are accurate, robust and in line with the requirements of ATHE qualifications. It also outlines the processes in place to moderate or verify centre assessment decisions and internal quality assurance activities.

The CASS is available to centres on the ATHE website.

What is centre recognition?

Centre recognition is a process which a potential centre completes in order to deliver ATHE qualifications. Recognition status is granted based upon the centre’s capacity to comply with the ATHE standards and requirements. It cannot be achieved without a formal application and a Centre Recognition Quality Assurance (CRQA) check which is conducted by an External Quality Assurer (EQA).

Who can become a recognised ATHE centre?

Any organisation can become a recognised ATHE centre if it can demonstrate it is able to provide evidence that it meets the ATHE standards required for delivery, assessment and quality assurance of ATHE qualifications.

To become a recognised ATHE centre, the applicant first has to complete the centre recognition application form. To access the initial form go to 

https://athe.co.uk/become-an-athe-centre/

Centre recognition application form

The application form is intended to provide ATHE with information on the centre applying for recognition. You will need to submit the completed application form online. When the application form has been submitted, an invoice for the application and recognition fee will be issued. 

Initial centre check

Once the invoice has been cleared, ATHE will conduct an initial desk check on your organisation. This desk-based activity will enable ATHE to check through some details, including whether your centre is a registered company/charity and if the organisation is regulated by the appropriate authorities. Upon successful completion you will be sent details of what to expect during the CRQA check, guidance on the documents required and a copy of the centre agreement.

Centre Recognition Quality Assurance (CRQA) Check

When ATHE has completed the initial centre check, an EQA will contact you to arrange a CRQA check. The CRQA check is designed to ensure your centre is able to deliver, assess and quality assure qualifications to the required standard and you are able to meet the contractual agreement with ATHE. The EQA will ask to see a range of evidence, which is listed below under the ‘Centre Policies and Processes’ section of this document.

After the CRQA check, the EQA will produce a report with recommendations for a Regional Standards Manager (RSM) / Quality and Assessment Manager (QAM) to approve. If there are shortfalls in the standards required, the EQA will produce actions for your centre to complete within defined timescales.  These actions are intended to help your centre improve the quality of provision and ATHE will assist you in achieving the standards needed. If there are serious shortfalls the centre will not be recognised, and it will need to address the action points within the given timescales before recognition will be gained.

ATHE Centre Agreement

An agreement will be issued for the centre to sign and return to ATHE electronically. The agreement clearly specifies the roles and responsibilities of ATHE and the recognised centre.

Centre recognition documents

Upon completion of the centre recognition process, your centre will be sent a copy of the ATHE recognition certificate and the signed ATHE centre agreement.

Timescales

We aim to contact the centre to arrange a CRQA check visit within 3 working days of successful completion of the initial checks, and send a centre recognition pack to centres within 3 working days of the notification of recognition.

Initial training

All newly recognised centres are required to undertake an initial training session provided by ATHE, the cost of which is included within the centre recognition fee.  The training will be conducted remotely, so that all centres irrespective of their location will be able to participate. It will be related to the outcomes of the CRQA process undertaken at centre recognition and the action points identified by the EQA.  Regular sessions will be scheduled and it is required that new centres attend the training within three months of recognition.

Attendees from centres are expected to include:

• Head of centre, Programme Manager, or Head of Department as applicable
• Lead IQA
• Tutors
• Assessors
• Other personnel managing the Centre QA process as applicable
• Administrative personnel managing ATHE registrations and results

ATHE will support and work with centres to ensure recognised centre status is maintained. In this way ATHE is assured that the required standards for delivery and assessment of the qualifications are upheld and that learners have the opportunity to achieve.

ATHE will monitor the quality of centres in a number of ways.  This will be through Monitoring and Development visits which check that centre policies and procedures, which impact on teaching, learning and assessment, are being implemented. These visits will also provide an opportunity to give centres some initial feedback on learner work and whether it is meeting the standards required.  We will also track centre progress using each centre report and other information as appropriate.  This will ensure we have a complete picture of centre performance.

ATHE will take appropriate action where centres have not attempted to complete action points, do not respond to requests for information or the standards of delivery, assessment and quality assurance fall below what is required. This action will be in accordance with the ATHE Malpractice and Maladministration Policy and may lead to sanctions being applied in line with ATHE’s Sanctions Policy.  Possible interventions include:

• early moderation of learner work, so that issues with internal assessment/verification are identified and the centre can take corrective action
• training for tutors, assessors and the internal verifier(s) based on centre needs
• Monitoring and Development visit to undertake a detailed review of centre provision

Throughout these processes ATHE is striving to constantly improve the quality of provision, in the interests of centres and their learners. Our experience shows that centres which embrace the quality agenda are the most successful organisations.

ATHE recognises that some centres have outstanding provision and outcomes for learners, in respect of the ATHE qualifications which are offered.  Where a centre has demonstrated over time that it has the ability to manage, deliver, assess and quality assure ATHE qualifications to the correct standard, ATHE will judge the centre to be High Performing for the named qualification(s). This will mean that:

• sampling of learner work will be reduced at verification
• sampling can take place for learners who have not completed the learning but are substantively through their programme of study
• other financial benefits may be available as a key account customer

The criteria that ATHE uses to judge whether centres are eligible for HPS are shown on the ATHE website under Policies and Procedures.

A centre’s campuses are part of the same organisation and legal entity as itself.

The staff are employed by the centre, regardless of their location, and the centre is fully responsible for the delivery, assessment and internal verification of the learners.

All campuses are an extension of the centre itself and are therefore run under the same policies and procedures. In most cases, the physical campus building will be registered under the centre’s name. If not, the centre will have a formal, legally binding agreement explaining the relationship it has with the campus site, be that the rental of classroom space, the use of equipment and learner facilities etc. The campus resources (including teaching staff CVs and learning facilities) will go through a standard ATHE health check prior to learner registrations and will receive formal confirmation of being a campus of the recognised ATHE centre. The campus staff CVs will confirm their employment by / contractual relationship to the centre. Any new campus can be added by using the Centre Change Form and providing ATHE with the aforementioned information.

It is possible that over time centres may wish to change ATHE approvals for qualifications and there may also be changes to the mode of delivery or location of centre premises. We need to manage this in a way which allows the centre to operate in the best interests of the learners and is not over bureaucratic but does ensure that standards have been checked and are being maintained.

Process:

1. All centres will be required to use the “Apply to” facility available on the centre portal to request the change. 

2. Once the specifics and any supporting evidence has been submitted to ATHE a decision will be made to either:

 Approve the changes to the centre’s recognition. The centre will be informed and will be able to make the changes to their provision immediately.

1. inform the centre that an EQA visit will need to take place to assess in further detail the centre’s ability to deliver, assess and quality assure the additional qualifications and/or the changed mode of delivery or at the new premises. The EQA will also check whether action points from previous visits have been addressed. Based on the findings of the EQA report, the centre will either be able to make the changes/additions or will have action points to address, before the approval is granted.
2. inform the centre the changes have not been approved at this point. The centre will be given feedback on which areas it needs to address before a further application will be considered.

This section gives details of the requirements and responsibilities of each role involved in the assessment, quality assurance and management of provision. The centre will need to identify members of staff to fill each of the centre roles described.

Centre roles

Principal/Head of Centre

The Principal/Head of Centre in conjunction with other senior staff, sets the vision and direction for the centre and together they ensure that structure, resources and effective systems are in place to assure the quality of experience for learners. Experience shows that where qualifications are managed effectively at strategic and operational levels standards are maintained and a culture of continuous improvement is more easily established.

The Principal/Head of Centre is the final point of accountability for the standards within an organisation and will usually be the individual who signs the centre agreement with ATHE and will be the person contacted in the case of a sanction being imposed.

Centre Contact/Quality Assurance Co-ordinator

The centre contact is the person responsible for ensuring that the administrative and quality assurance systems for all ATHE qualifications are properly maintained throughout the centre and that communications between ATHE and the centre are dealt with efficiently. In order to ensure this, the centre contact will have a secure email address to which correspondence can be sent. The centre contact must inform ATHE immediately if their details change.

The person undertaking this role for ATHE qualifications will need to:

• have an appropriate background in assessment, management, administration and quality assurance
• possess the necessary authority and time to ensure that management, administration, assessment and internal quality assurance co-ordination procedures are implemented correctly and consistently across the centre as a whole
• have regular contact with the assessors and internal quality assurers
• liaise closely with other staff members to obtain, and provide external quality assurers and other ATHE personnel with, detailed information on the overall operation of the centre
• co-ordinate visit arrangements for external quality assurance
• be responsible for ensuring that registrations/entries are sent to ATHE in accordance with specified procedures
• confirm registrations/entries have been received from ATHE and candidate enrolment numbers are checked
• ensure only appropriately qualified and experienced staff are used in the assessment process, in accordance with any specified vocational experience/qualification requirements
• ensure staff involved in assessment have access to and regularly participate in activities designed to promote continuous improvement
• ensure sufficient and effective quality assurance processes are available for confirming assessment decisions
• ensure any internally devised assignments are checked by ATHE before issue to learners
• ensure those involved in assessment apply equal opportunity principles to assessment
• ensure everyone involved with assessment is familiar with the qualifications they are assessing or quality assuring, including rules of combination and has a knowledge base sufficient to enable them to interpret the learning outcomes, assessment criteria and all documentation
• ensure staff are familiar with the recording systems, documentation and procedures for assessment and quality assurance of individual units and qualifications
• ensure staff are prepared for their role, supported and allowed sufficient time to carry it out effectively
• ensure staff have discussed EQA reports and any action plans agreed between the external quality assurer and the centre are met within the appropriate timescale
• provide proof of candidates’ identities is obtained as appropriate
• ensure security arrangements are in place for written papers and assessments for coursework, project and practical work and are in accordance with regulations (where applicable)
• ensure administration of assessments including time constrained tests is in accordance with regulations
• ensure candidates’ projects and other evidence are forwarded on time (where applicable)
• ensure appropriate records, results or other evidence of achievement are released to other centres or candidates (as applicable) in cases where candidates transfer to new centres
• ensure qualification and unit certificates received from ATHE are securely stored prior to issue to candidates
• ensure results and certificates are properly issued to candidates at the centre
• disseminate promptly all general correspondence from and to ATHE, the centre and the relevant staff (the QAC acts as the point of contact for such correspondence)

Assessors

The role of the assessor is to:

• ensure that learners understand the requirements of assessment for each unit
• produce and disseminate an assessment plan
• develop assignments, use ATHE sample assignments and/or produce other forms of assessment that enable learners to meet the learning outcomes and achieve the standards shown by the assessment criteria
• make valid, reliable and consistent assessment decisions
• take account of any reasonable adjustments or special considerations that have been granted and record this information on the assessment documentation
• provide learners with detailed feedback to show how they have met the learning outcomes at the standards set by the assessment criteria and where further evidence is required
• map evidence of learner achievement to the learning outcomes
• ensure that recommendations for the award of credit are valid, reliable and consistent
• record assessment decisions systematically and ensure that candidate records and centre documentation are completed in accordance with the requirements of the centre and ATHE

In addition to required initial training for all new centres, ATHE offers a variety of ad hoc training and support to centres to enable further development and facilitate continuous improvement. Training and support are provided through online, bite sized presentations or there is bespoke training for centres, which addresses specific areas for development. This can be in the following areas:

• improving work with students in terms of planning and delivering teaching and learning
• improving the quality assurance processes in centres or developing quality assurance systems and processes
• improving the design of assignments and ensuring valid and reliable assessment decisions
• further improving the quality of assessment judgements leading to valid outcomes

Training may be delivered in small groups at centre premises or where required, at an external venue. If you would like to discuss training and support, please email support@athe.co.uk.

Please note ATHE may use previous learner work to facilitate activities in training days. The learner work will be anonymised. Please email support@athe.co.uk if you would prefer learner work from the centre is not used for training days.

In addition a series of training presentations are available on the ATHE Centre Portal. These provide guidance on a number of areas including Using the Portal, Assessment, Internal Quality Assurance, Assessing for Merit and Distinction Grades and Preparing for EQA.

All of the support materials below can be found on the Qualification Guidance page which is accessible via the online Centre Portal.

Specification Guide

ATHE provides a specification guide for each of its qualifications to support course planning and delivery.

Sample Assignments

These are example assignments which support lecturers and tutors in planning and delivering the specifications and the assessment of learners. Centre devised assignments may be used after approval has been given by ATHE.

Sample Materials

These include forms for use with curriculum planning, assessment, internal quality assurance, tracking sheets and documents to support RPL.

Additional Support Materials

There are a wide range of additional support materials available for staff to use to support the management, delivery and assessment of teaching and learning

Suggested Resources

Each unit is accompanied by a list of suggested resources to support lecturers and learners.

Teaching and Learning Guidance

This guidance is designed to help planning and ensure coverage of unit content.

Teaching and Learning Resources

ATHE is developing a range of premium teaching and learning materials for popular qualifications – centres should contact support@athe.co.uk for further details.

Learner Handbook

This Handbook is available via the Qualifications Guidance page on the Centre Portal.  This comprehensive guide provides learners with a wide range of information to support their studies, from details of Ofqual’s Regulated Qualifications Framework and Level Descriptors, to personal development planning and advice for progression.

Learner Registration

In order to register learners, the centre must have successfully completed the centre recognition process and can only register learners on qualifications it has been approved to deliver.

When to register

Learners must be registered within 28 days of enrolment on the course otherwise a late registration fee will apply. This is to ensure ATHE can provide all necessary support in qualification delivery and enable your learners to have the best chance of success. There is a minimum period between registration and results submission, typically half the Total Qualification Time published in qualification specifications for a learner in full-time study and no less than eight weeks. The minimum duration varies for each qualification (e.g. very small qualifications may be less than eight weeks study time) – please contact the ATHE office for further information and timeframes.

How to register

Centres can register learners online via their centre portal account https://www.atheportal.co.uk/

Information needed for registrations

ATHE needs the following data to register learners for units and qualifications:

• The qualification the learners are studying
• The start date (when the learners started the course)
• The end date (when the learners are expected to finish the course)
• The learner’s official full name as it appears on official documentation
• The learner’s date of birth
• The learners email address
• Language of assessment

The centre must ensure that learners are aware that their information will be passed to ATHE for registration purposes. ATHE may use these details to contact learners where appropriate.

ATHE is committed to ensuring that the determination and reporting of results for ATHE qualifications and units is undertaken in a manner which is clear, accurate and timely.

The process of recording results and producing certificates is managed using the ATHE Learner Management System (LMS). The summary below shows how results travel through the system. The key points where the LMS requires input from ATHE and centre staff are highlighted.

This process needs to be followed for every external quality assurance or resubmission of learners’ work.

Stage 1 – Learner completes units

On completion of each unit or group of units the centre administrator logs onto their secure ATHE registration portal account and downloads a semi prepared result sheet for the cohort. The result sheet is then completed (units chosen and provisional grades recorded).

Stage 2 – Results submitted

The centre administrator then uploads the result sheet onto the ATHE portal. Once the result sheet has been submitted online, the assigned EQA is provided with the results and a copy of the previous report.

The EQA will contact the centre directly and normally within two working days to arrange the visit.

Stage 3 – Results quality assurance

The EQA will review the assessment decisions submitted by the centre in line with ATHE’s sampling procedures, qualification specifications and required standards. This will lead to a report based on the moderation. The EQA’s report will then be quality assured by an RSM/QAM, prior to confirming the outcome.

Stage 4 – Processing of results

Once the EQA report, RSM/QAM approval and results are confirmed within the LMS, the system will identify the qualifications where the learners have achieved the required credits and units.

Stage 5a – Certification

The system will then generate the qualification certificates. If the full qualification has not been achieved the learner may be eligible for a smaller qualification/certificate depending on the units achieved.

The certificates generated by the LMS are scanned to the centre’s portal account and sent by recorded delivery to the centre (the system does not allow alteration or generation of certificates other than through the above process).

Stage 5b – Replacement certificates

Requests for replacement certificates can come from learners or centres. A form must be filled in which can be found at https://www.atheportal.co.uk/replacement-certificate/ and must include proof of identification as noted in the replacement certificate guidance. Once learners and their achievement have been verified, a replacement certificate can be generated for any qualifications the learner has been granted. Replacement certificates are clearly identifiable from originals on the LMS.

Note: A certificate replacement fee will apply.

Fraudulent or mistaken claims for certification

Only registered learners’ results can be accepted, directly from ATHE recognised centres and only from authorised centre personnel. Learners’ work must be clearly identifiable and is assessed as authentic by the EQA. All learner work must be accompanied by a full plagiarism report. Only when results are approved is the certification process initiated as detailed above.

Identifying errors in the LMS

All learners are registered electronically to reduce the likelihood of errors. We also ask that centres review the learners’ details when they are first entered into ATHE registration portal. The spreadsheet containing the results can be stored locally on the centre’s computer to give them time to review and change if necessary. If a centre identifies an error in learner registration details at any point before certification, they can contact ATHE to make amendments; the request must be made in writing by authorised centre staff.

All information requested from centres when dealing with external quality assurance and certification is checked against records held on the ATHE LMS.

As part of the CRQA visit the ATHE EQA will ask for evidence that appropriate systems, policies and procedures are in place and working effectively.

ATHE has a number of policies and procedures to ensure the organisation delivers its mission and in so doing –

• complies with the Ofqual Conditions of Recognition, Qualifications Wales and those set down by other regulators and external agencies
• meets the objectives set out in the ATHE strategic plan
• operates in a fair and transparent manner
• works openly with centres so they are informed and are able to act accordingly
• complies with current legislation
• upholds a high quality standard

Reasonable Adjustments and Special Consideration Policy

ATHE aims to facilitate open access to ATHE qualifications for learners who are eligible for reasonable adjustment and/or special consideration in assessments.  Reasonable adjustments and special considerations must not compromise the standards for the assessment of skills, knowledge and understanding being measured.

Complaints Procedure

The aim of this procedure is to ensure a consistent, open approach to addressing complaints, in a manner facilitating conciliation and a timely resolution.

Enquiries and Appeals Policy

The Enquiries and Appeals policy is intended to ensure that any enquiries or appeals received by ATHE are dealt with quickly, fairly and effectively.

Equality and Diversity Policy

This policy covers the principles of diversity and equality for anybody developing and using ATHE products and services including ATHE staff, centres and learners.

Data Protection Policy

This policy is to ensure ATHE complies with current data protection legislation in its dealings with centres, learners and other parties.

Fee Structures

The different Fee Structures outlines the registration and administration fees for all our qualifications as well as other services ATHE provides. The fee structures vary between two Zones dependent on which country the centre is based in.

Invoicing Policy

The Invoicing Policy sets out how ATHE will ensure invoices are issued in a timely manner and provides a breakdown of any fees charged.

Replacement Certificate Procedure

This procedure gives instruction to learners and centres on what steps to take in the event of a lost/damaged/misspelt certificate.

Qualification Withdrawal Policy

This policy specifies the process ATHE will undertake in the event of a qualification withdrawal to best protect the interest of learners and centres.

Maladministration and Malpractice Policy

This policy is aimed at students and centres who are involved with ATHE or use ATHE products and services. It outlines what constitutes maladministration and malpractice and how any reported cases will be handled.

Customer Service Statement

This document contains our commitment to achieve high standards of customer service. Full copies of all of our policies are available on our website.

Conflict of Interest Policy

This policy aims to draw attention to the possibility of conflicts, minimise or prevent the conflict occurring, and manage conflicts that have arisen.

Assessment of ATHE Qualifications in a Language Other Than English

This policy states the criteria and procedures to be followed when qualifications are assessed in a language other than English to ensure the qualifications remain valid and comparable across the different languages.

Sanctions Policy

ATHE provides its recognised centres with guidance and support to help mitigate the risk of noncompliance with centre agreements. This aims to ensure the appropriate quality of experience for learners, facilitating achievement and progression. Where breaches do occur ATHE takes these seriously and may apply sanctions commensurate with the nature and gravity of the breach.

Whistle-Blowing Policy

The aim of this policy is to inform whistle-blowers at ATHE recognised centres what to do if they encounter instances of malpractice or maladministration in the course of their engagement with ATHE and delivery of ATHE qualifications.

ATHE Subject Access Request

The aim of this policy is to inform stakeholders about the information ATHE holds on them and how it  can be accessed.

Recognition of Prior Learning, Credit Transfer and Exemptions Policy

The aim of this policy is to offer guidance with regards to learners that may have already attained the knowledge and expertise needed to meet the standards stated in the ATHE assessment criteria.

Adaptations to Assessment Policy

If, as a centre you are affected in some way that prevents you from assessing your learners in the usual manner, you may apply to ATHE for an adaptation to that assessment. The policy outlines the circumstances which may apply when considering an adaptation request, the types of adaptations that can be considered and the process for applying to ATHE.

Guidance for Centres on Managing and Delivering Internal, Time Constrained Summative Assessments and Tests

This document contains the information ATHE centres need to manage and deliver internal, time constrained, summative assessments and tests (hereafter referred to as ‘assessment(s)’.

Centre Assessment Standards Scrutiny (CASS) Strategy

This document sets out the arrangements ATHE has in place to undertake Centre Assessment Standards Scrutiny where evidence generate by a learner in an assessment for an ATHE qualification is marked by a centre.

Centre Devised Assessments Policy

ATHE’s policy on ‘Quality Assurance of Centre Devised Assessments’ informs centres, staff and associates on the quality assurance procedures governing centre devised assessments, including assignments and time constrained task-based tests. The policy also references the use of ATHE sample assignments.

Guidance for Centres on Internal Malpractice Policies

The aim of this guidance is to assist managers in centres, with the development of comprehensive and effective policy documentation on malpractice, for use with learners and staff.

Policy for Engaging Contractors (Publishers), Product Endorsement and Packaging

This Policy governs ATHE’s engagement with publishers in developing endorsed resources, and how learning can be undertaken together with or separately from these resources.

High Performing Status for ATHE Centres

This Policy provides the criteria centres must achieve to be considered for High Performing Status and the associated benefits.

Introduction

The purpose of this section of the Handbook is to provide information and guidance, which will support practitioners in delivering, assessing and quality assuring ATHE qualifications and improving the quality of their work.  With regard to teaching and learning, the guidance in this section is aimed at helping learners to increase their knowledge, develop their skills, improve their understanding and be successful. This section is also designed to help practitioners further develop the planning of learning and make accurate assessment decisions. Finally, this section includes information on appropriate quality systems to ensure that all of these improvements are taking place and there are better outcomes for learners.

Recruitment and Induction

ATHE’s policy on learner recruitment to qualifications is that:

• they should be available to everyone who is capable of reaching the required standards
• they should be free from any barriers that restrict access and progression
• there should be equal opportunities for all those wishing to access the qualifications and associated assessments

This means that centres must recruit learners with integrity. Centres must also apply their reasonable adjustments policies to learners where appropriate, so that the needs of individual learners are identified and met from the outset. All applicants need full information about the programmes of study and advice and guidance to help them make decisions about the most appropriate qualification. This will ensure any queries are resolved.

The centre must make a judgment about the applicant’s potential to benefit from and complete the selected qualification. ATHE has produced entry criteria for each qualification. These can be found in the specifications and are the norm for the level and type of qualification to which they apply. The criteria should be read in conjunction with any centre devised entry criteria. The entry criteria which are used by centres will be checked by EQAs at monitoring and moderation visits.  Where entry criteria do not cover a specific applicant, the centre may consult ATHE if there is a learner with a particular entry profile.

In addition, agencies such as UK Visas and Immigration Department (UKVI) require adult students to have acceptable English language ability before they can apply to become an adult student under the Student Visa System. Centres must therefore ensure that the applicant is competent in the English language at a standard identified in the relevant qualification specification. Where centres have prospective learners where English is not their first language but a student visa is not required, centres should still assess whether the learners have an appropriate level of English language ability to succeed on the programme of learning.  This should be done either through an external assessment, such as IELTS or equivalent or via an appropriate internal test. This testing should be done before enrolment at the centre takes place.

ATHE expects that all learners will participate in an induction programme, which will enable them to embark on their programme of study with confidence. The content and structure of induction programmes is the responsibility of centres. However, centres must ensure that the learners have a clear understanding of the structure of the programme of study, the standards that must be achieved, how they will obtain feedback on their progress and how they will be assessed. ATHE has provided support materials for learner induction programmes and centres should refer to and use these as appropriate. There is also a Learner Handbook which can be downloaded from the ATHE portal. It is important for learners to understand the centre’s key policies which have direct implications for learning and assessment. In particular, learners must understand the centre’s policy on malpractice and how this will be enforced.

Learners Transferred from other ATHE Centres

In accordance with the Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL), Credit Transfer and Exemption Policy ATHE seeks to avoid duplication of learning and assessment. Learners who have been externally certificated for qualifications on the RQF can transfer the credits they have achieved. Learners who have transferred from another ATHE centre and hold certification for ATHE units do not need to repeat these units. The centre needs to ensure that the certification is valid and if the learner meets the other entry requirements, he/she may embark on their programme of study at the new centre and be registered with ATHE in the normal way.

Where the learner has completed or partially completed an assignment which has or has not been assessed and has or has not been internally quality assured, the work should be re-assessed at the receiving centre.

The centre should have processes in place to ensure the authenticity of this work. This will include signed learner declarations of authenticity, use of plagiarism software and where appropriate the centre may wish to use a viva or other processes to ensure the work being presented belongs to the learner. If the centre has any concerns, it should contact ATHE for additional guidance.

In their initial visit to centres, the ATHE EQAs will check how the centre is planning the curriculum. This will cover the order of the delivery of specific units across the period of study, so that learning is consequential and facilitates understanding and achievement. EQAs will also wish to know about the mode of study. This may be through classroom-based activities, activities in the workplace, open or distance learning or a blend of learning routes. Whatever combination is chosen, centres must ensure that learners have access to the appropriate resources to help them achieve.

What resources are needed for delivery of ATHE qualifications?

ATHE provides sample assignments for units. There are also additional resources for centres to access if they wish to use them. Centres should check ATHE’s Qualification Guidance page for all these materials. Sample assignments are updated periodically so centres need to check the status of the sample assignment and ensure that current assignments are issued to learners. Centres may wish to devise their own assignments in order to meet the specific needs of their learners. If so, ATHE must check that these centre devised assignments are fit for purpose. Learners who are studying by an open/ distance learning route will require particular levels of support and resources to ensure that appropriate learning and progress is taking place.

It is essential that staff delivering the programmes are appropriately qualified and/or suitably experienced to deliver specific units and qualifications. It is also essential that staff understand the nature of the qualifications they are delivering and the implications this has for delivery and assessment.

Management of the course provision is important and experience has shown that this is most effective when an individual member of staff has responsibility for the delivery of a particular programme of study. Where student numbers are small this person may have the responsibility for more than one programme. The specific job role for members of staff in this position will vary from one centre to another. However, typically they will have a planning and a quality assurance responsibility and may lead on internal quality assurance. Details about quality assurance, assessment and internal quality assurance are covered in detail in later sections of this guide.

There also needs to be physical resources in place to facilitate the teaching and learning and support assessment. The physical resources need to be proportionate to the number of learners following specific qualification routes.

What other things do I need to consider in planning the qualification?

In planning programmes of study, it is important for centres to consider carefully the overall aims of the qualification being delivered, as well as individual units. The specifications lead to the development of knowledge, understanding and skills. In some qualifications the skills developed are explicitly stated in the specification and the sample assignment. This is intended to support learner progression.  ATHE is in the process of reviewing its qualification specifications to introduce synoptic teaching, learning and assessment, offering a more joined-up and holistic approach to provision and study – see the section ‘a synoptic approach to the curriculum’ below for further details.

It is important for centres to ensure that in the delivery of the learning a direct link is made between theory and practice, so that knowledge is applied. This in turn will further facilitate the development of skills and understanding. Learners’ personal experiences must be utilised in the learning process.

Most ATHE qualifications consist of mandatory core units and optional or specialist units. The core units represent the fundamental areas of learning for the qualification, while the optional units offer choice of elective subjects to suit different learner needs and interests.  Centres must ensure they adhere to the required rules of combination as defined in the specifications.

ATHE definition of Total Qualification Time (TQT), Guided Learning Hours (GLH) and Credit

Values for Total Qualification Time, Guided Learning Hours and Credit, are calculated by considering the different activities that a learner would typically complete to demonstrate achievement of the learning outcomes of a qualification.

The needs of individual learners and the differing teaching styles used mean there will be variation in the actual time taken to complete a qualification.

Values for Total Qualification Time, Guided Learning Hours and Credit are estimates.

Guided Learning Hours (GLH)

The term Guided Learning Hours (GLH) is an estimate of the amount of time, on average, that a tutor, trainer, workshop facilitator etc., will work with a learner, to enable the learner to complete the learning outcomes of a unit to the appropriate standard.

GLH are intended to provide guidance for centres on the amount of time required to deliver the programme and support learners. GLH are made up of activities completed by the learner under direct instruction or supervision of a tutor/teacher, lecturer, supervisor, trainer etc. whether through actual attendance or via electronic means, the activity must be in real time.

Some examples of activities that can contribute to Guided Learning Hours include:

• Supervised induction sessions
• Learner feedback with a teacher in real time
• Supervised independent learning
• Classroom-based learning supervised by a teacher
• Work-based learning supervised by a teacher
• Live webinar or telephone tutorial with a teacher in real time
• E-learning supervised by a teacher in real time
• All forms of assessment that take place under the immediate guidance or supervision of a lecturer, supervisor, tutor or other appropriate provider of education or training, including where the assessment is competence-based and may be turned into a learning opportunity.

Total Qualification Time (TQT)

Total Qualification Time (TQT) is a guide to the amount of time a learner would take, on average, to complete the different activities to demonstrate achievement of the learning outcomes of a whole qualification.

TQT includes all the activities described under guided learning hours (GLH) plus all the additional learning.

Additional learning will take place away from the classroom and this will not be under direct supervision of a tutor/teacher, lecturer, supervisor, trainer etc. The activities will vary depending on the qualifications, their level and the nature of the learning.

Some examples of activities that can contribute to Total Qualification Time, include:

• Preparation for classes
• Independent and unsupervised research/learning
• Unsupervised work on assignments
• Unsupervised compilation of a portfolio of work experience
• Unsupervised e-learning
• Unsupervised e- assessment
• Unsupervised coursework
• Watching a pre-recorded podcast or webinar
• Unsupervised work-based learning
• Any other form of learning, education or training, not under the direct supervision of a tutor/teacher, lecturer, supervisor, trainer

Credit

The credit value specifies the number of credits that will be awarded to a learner who has achieved the learning outcomes of a unit at the specified standard.

Each credit represents 10 hours of learning time and equates to 10 hours of total qualification time. Therefore, one 15 credit unit represents 150 hours of total qualification time. Learning time is a notional measure which indicates the amount of time a learner at the level of the unit is expected to take, on average, to complete the learning outcomes of the unit to the standard determined by the assessment criteria.

Learning time includes all the activities described under guided learning hours and additional learning.     The credit value of the unit will remain constant in all contexts regardless of the assessment method or the mode of delivery. Learners will only be awarded credits for the successful completion of whole units.

A synoptic approach to the curriculum

ATHE is committed to both providing and signposting opportunities for tutors and learners to more joined up and holistic approaches to delivery, study and assessment. For this reason, ATHE is reviewing its qualification specifications during 2022/2023 to ensure that:

Synoptic teaching and learning

• each specification will contain a section at the end of each unit which identifies opportunities for synoptic teaching and learning. This means that for each unit we identify the connections between ideas and themes across units of the qualification so that tutors can develop their programmes of study and learners can see the content of each unit much more holistically.

Synoptic assessment

• each specification will also contain a section at the end of each unit which identifies the way in which the unit contributes towards synoptic assessment. Synoptic assessment identifies the ways in which assessment can be used to focus and reinforce joined up, holistic assessment practice. There may be synoptic assessment occurring quite naturally between assessment criteria in a unit or there may be opportunities for tutors to organise the delivery of units and assessments in such a way as to maximise synoptic assessment opportunities between units.

Study Skills & Employability Skills

• each ATHE specification will also contain sections at the end of each unit to identify the ways in which the unit signposts towards study and employability skill opportunities. ATHE has developed both Study Skills and Employability Skills frameworks (see later sections for these) and will reference these frameworks within each unit to indicate relevant opportunities to develop these skills.

Study Skills are learning-specific skills that enable an individual to find, record, interpret, understand and utilise information relevant to an area of study. ATHE identifies seven broad categories of Study Skills. These are: Self-organisation; Time management; Using sources of information; Reading skills; Writing skills; Thinking skills; and Digital skills.

Employability Skills are those core skills and behaviours needed in nearly every job. These are also often referred to as transferable skills. Employability Skills are distinct from Study Skills. Study Skills are needed by learners to best complete the requirements of their qualification and for progression to higher level study. Employability Skills are related to and overlap with Study Skills but have a different and distinct workplace focus. ATHE identifies ten broad categories of Employability Skills. These are: Working independently; Communication skills; Teamwork; Negotiation; Leadership; Problem-solving; and Digital skills.

The Regulated Qualifications Framework

All ATHE qualifications sit on the Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF). The RQF is the national credit transfer system for qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Qualifications range in difficulty from Entry level to level 8.

The table below gives examples of the RQF level descriptors which show what level of knowledge and understanding, application and action and autonomy and accountability learners should be able to demonstrate relevant to the level of qualification they are studying. It is important to take these into account when teaching and assessing learners.

A guide to comparing UK qualification frameworks with those in Ireland and the EU can be accessed via the following link: Qualifications can cross boundaries: updated with apprenticeships (qaa.ac.uk)

The Level Descriptors provide a general shared understanding of learning and achievement at each level and are concerned with the outcomes of learning, not the process of learning or the method of assessment.

Each level descriptor is divided into the following sections:

• Knowledge
• Skills

In the tables over the following pages, the level descriptors for each level of ATHE qualification are listed.

Level 3 Level Descriptors

Expectations for assessment at level 3

In each learning outcome for each unit the learner must demonstrate the following:

Level 4 Level Descriptors

Expectations for assessment at level 4

In each learning outcome for each unit the learner must demonstrate the following:

Level 5 Level Descriptors

Expectations for assessment at level 5

In each learning outcome for each unit the learner must demonstrate the following:

Level 6 Level Descriptors

Expectations for assessment at level 6

In each learning outcome for each unit the learner must demonstrate the following:

Level 7 Level Descriptors

Expectations for assessment at level 7

In each learning outcome for each unit the learner must demonstrate the following:

Learning is a change in skill, attitude, knowledge and understanding and measuring these changes are the steps in the assessment process. Assessment is the judgement of evidence presented by the learner, which shows that learning has taken place. In other words, it is an act of measurement and it confirms that a learning outcome has been achieved and the standards determined by the assessment criteria have been met.

When should assessment take place?
Pre course/beginning of the course

Diagnostic assessment takes place either before the course begins or at the first session.  This can serve a number of purposes:

• to help decide whether the unit/qualification at a particular level is suitable for the learners’ needs
• to help decide if the learner should provide additional evidence to meet the standards for higher grades, where they are part of the qualification specification
• to encourage learners to identify their own needs and discover if the proposed learning is right for them
• to help tutors identify individual learning and thinking styles

During the course – formative assessment

Assessment can be used during learning to give feedback and support the learner’s progress.  It will also inform both the learner and tutor/lecturer of any action that needs to take place.

Formative assessment will allow:

• tutors to judge what knowledge/skills and understanding a learner has acquired
• tutors to plan the next steps, including working towards higher grades as appropriate
• tutors to give appropriate feedback to a learner
• tutors to encourage and motivate a learner
• a learner to identify what has been learnt, what they need to learn and what they need to do to improve

Summative assessment

Summative assessment normally takes place towards the end of the learning programme or section of a learning programme. This type of assessment measures the extent of learning that has taken place at the end of that phase of the learning experience. It enables a judgement to be made about whether the learner has achieved all the learning outcomes at the standards stated by the assessment criteria within a unit.

Where the moderation of learner work is focused on achievement of qualifications directly related to job roles, assessment decisions must be based on achievement of each AC. Learners should achieve the LO at the standards described by each AC.

Who can assess?

There are a number of categories of people who could be involved in assessing individuals’ learning in a centre. These are likely to include assessors and internal quality assurers, but they may also be supported by people from businesses who are experts in their particular field. ATHE requires evidence that staff carrying out formal assessment have qualifications and/or experience commensurate with the level of the qualification being assessed.

What is the key to making valid assessment decisions?

Tutors need to be very clear about how to assess learner work. All ATHE units are written in terms of learning outcomes which must be achieved for learners to succeed. The learning outcomes state what the learner will be expected to know, or do, or understand. Assessment criteria are the standards which a learner must meet in order for the learning outcomes to be achieved.

One task in an assignment may assess several learning outcomes at once and provide learners with opportunities to meet a range of assessment criteria. In addition, an assignment may cover more than one unit. When qualifications are graded there are normally additional tasks for learners to complete which extend the learning.

It is important that learners are clear about how they can meet the standards. This will include learners knowing what is required by the command verbs stated in each of the assessment criteria. It is essential that all this information is shared with learners verbally and visually (hand-outs, flipcharts etc.).

ATHE assignments for core qualifications reinforce this information, as they relate to the learning outcomes and the separate tasks in the assignment state the specific criteria they refer to. This is reinforced by the cover sheet for assignments, which assessors can use to record their judgements and provide feedback to learners. This document is available on the Qualification Guidance section of the ATHE portal and definitions of the command verbs can be found on page 53 of this document and also in the Learner Handbook.

Where units are graded the learners must demonstrate that they have achieved all the criteria set for the merit and distinction grades. Where work for the pass standard is marginal, assessors can take account of any extension work completed by the learners.  If a learner resubmits work in order to meet any of the standards set, a pass, merit or distinction grade can be awarded. The judgements are based on the resubmitted work and where the assessor judges that the standards have been met, the appropriate grade should be given.

Assessment should be:

• open and transparent
• authentic
• reliable, consistent and rigorous
• relevant to the target group
• inclusive

Formal assessment is structured, usually takes place in clearly stated conditions, and is usually used for summative assessment. Forms of non-paper based formal assessment may include:

• practical activity
• structured discussion
• questions and answers
• presentation

Paper based formal assessment is normally in the form of assignments which may include:

• case studies
• projects
• dissertation
• reports
• reflective journal
• diaries or logs
• timed assignments under controlled conditions

Learners typically build up a portfolio of evidence. ATHE assignments are vocationally relevant and are normally set in a vocational context. It is entirely appropriate for learners to research and complete assignments in the workplace. Some centres may wish to include time constrained tests as part of the portfolio of evidence. ATHE has produced guidelines on the conduct of such tests and centres should refer to the policy document on Time Constrained Assessment, which is on the ATHE website.

Assessment of ATHE provision should involve:

• the application of assessment criteria at the appropriate level for the qualification to show that learning outcomes have been achieved and the award of any higher grades is valid.
• a documented process of standardisation to ensure consistency across learners, assessors, sites and units to meet standards
• feedback to learners which is specific, and directly linked to the learning outcomes and assessment criteria. This allows the learner to understand where they have been successful and what they need to do to improve. This might lead to an action plan for improvement

Assessment practice must have processes in place to ensure that the evidence for assessment is the learners’ own work. Staff involved in assessment should at all times be aware of the necessity of confirming the authenticity of learners’ work. This has become more important with the advent, and increasing use, of information technology such as, word processing, the Internet, Intranets, and CDs, all of which have contributed to the risk of plagiarism and copying.

While it is almost impossible to eliminate all opportunities for plagiarism and other forms of malpractice such as copying, collusion, ghost writing etc., it is possible to take steps to reduce the risks of it occurring. Therefore:

• All centres should have a malpractice policy including a plagiarism statement.  All learners should be made aware of this, and its meaning and consequences made clear. ATHE has produced some guidelines to help centres review their malpractice policies and these are available on the Qualifications Guidance webpage. The document is titled Guidance for Centres on Internal Malpractice Policies and it provides a range of advice, including how to interpret plagiarism reports. When moderating and/or verifying learner work, EQAs follow the guidance included in this document, so it is important for centres to take note of the information provided.
• A statement confirming authenticity of the work should be included with the learner’s file or portfolio.
• Centres should use software to check for plagiarism in learner work and a copy of the plagiarism report must be attached to learner work at external quality assurance.
• Whenever possible draft copies of work should be retained. Apart from giving an indication of authenticity, the practice should be encouraged as it provides evidence of development and planning of a larger piece of work.
• A learner’s work, or passages within a piece of work, that are substantially different in level, tone or vocabulary from previous samples of similar work should be queried. 
• Learners should at an early stage be introduced to an acceptable standard system of referencing, so that external sources can be properly attributed.
• The learners name and ATHE Learner ID should be on every page of learner work produced.

Centres must comply with the ATHE policy on Malpractice and Maladministration and failure to do so may mean that certification will be blocked for all or some learners.

What does validity of evidence mean?

Assessment strategies must correlate with the learning outcomes and the assessment criteria. Valid assessment enables the results to be used with confidence.

What does sufficiency/fitness for purpose mean?

The assessment strategy must be appropriate and relevant to the target group of learners and the context in which the learning takes place. The assessment must be appropriate to the credit value and level and provide sufficient evidence so that an accurate assessment judgement can be made.

What does fairness mean?

Assessment must be free from gender, ethnic or other types of discrimination. There should be a balance of approaches to assessment.

Assessment should be manageable for:

• learners,
• lecturers, assessors
• administrators
• the centre/college
• the awarding bodies

This is in terms of time, cost, resources etc.

Assessment in a language other than English

ATHE qualifications are predominately assessed in the English language. However, where there is an evidenced need for an alternative language to be used, ATHE will consider this on a case-by-case basis.  Centres should refer to the ATHE Policy on Assessment in a Language other than English and contact ATHE as detailed in the policy.

How do I document assessment decisions?

Evidence of achievement must be directly related to specific learning outcomes and assessment criteria including any criteria which relate to merit and distinction grades. Learners cannot be awarded credit for partial achievement of a unit. This evidence must be made available to the ATHE EQA to confirm the award of credit for the learner/group of learners.

The following are examples of acceptable forms of evidence that are straightforward to cross -reference to assessment criteria within units:

• portfolios
• assignments
• written examinations/tests
• time constrained internally assessed work
• reflective diary
• projects
• research
• dissertations

The following are examples of acceptable forms of evidence that will have to be accompanied by signed tutor observation or witness statements to ensure that adequate evidence exists to confirm that individual learners took part in the activity and achieved the learning outcomes at the standards provided by the assessment criteria:

• questions and answers
• viva
• talks and presentations
• role play
• group work

Learners taking part in these types of activity, as part of the assessment process, must keep any preparatory notes/plans etc. which will make the assessment decisions more reliable and transparent. Evidence should ALWAYS be clearly cross referenced to relevant learning outcomes and associated assessment criteria. Taped or videoed evidence must have an introduction identifying the unit and learning outcome/assessment criterion for which it is providing evidence. Both the tutor and individual learners should be identified by name. An example of a form which can be used by assessors who are assessing oral work is available on the ATHE website.

When dealing with oral evidence it is essential that tutors keep an on-going record of achievement of all learners in the group and where possible record the oral work. If individual assessment/achievement records are lost this will be the only proof of achievement. The internal verifier within a centre should sample this form of evidencing by attending the assessment and/or listening to the recordings as part of the internal sample.

It is important for tutors/course co-ordinators to remember that in certain circumstances assessments can be adjusted to take into account the needs of individual learners e.g. descriptions can be given orally where learners have difficulty with committing work to paper or extensions to deadlines may be given when a learner has an illness which is certificated by a doctor. (See: ‘ATHE Reasonable Adjustments and Special Consideration Policy’).

Before submitting learners for certification, it is very important for centres to ensure that all information about assessment decisions is accurate and ready for scrutiny by an EQA. This will include information on whether the learner work is a resubmission and/or when the learner has been awarded a reasonable adjustment or special consideration. Further information about this will be found in this guide in the section on Quality Assurance Processes. An example of a tracking grid which records learners’ achievements across the qualification is provided in the Documents / Resources / Sample Documents section of the Centre Portal.

How do I design an assignment brief?

An assignment brief is the document issued to learners at the start of the assessment process for any given unit(s). The creation of assignment briefs which are fit for purpose is essential if learners are to be given every opportunity to succeed.

There is no prescribed layout or format for the brief, but it is recommended that it contains the following information:

• title and level of the qualification
• title and number of unit(s) under assessment
• title/reference of the assignment
• date the assignment is set
• submission date

The brief should include the following sections:

• opportunity for the assessor to place the assignment within a context; perhaps referring to prior teaching and learning, where the project fits into the overall programme, etc.
• a statement on which learning outcomes and assessment criteria the activities and assessment address
• extension activities in order to provide learners with opportunities to achieve higher grades.

Tasks and preparation

• a description of specific activities the learners will undertake in order to produce assessment evidence to address the assessment criteria targeted by the assignment and ensure that learning outcomes can be achieved.
• tasks must be clear, relevant, current and realistic.
• wherever possible there should be variety in the tasks set
• the design of the brief should make reference to the criteria and learning outcomes which individual tasks address, including providing opportunities for any extension work needed for merit and distinction grades.

Forms of evidence

A clear statement of what the learner is expected to produce as evidence, and how that evidence will be assessed.

Other information may include:

• resources
• reference materials

Underpinning principles

ATHE regards work placements as a valuable aspect of learning. They enable learners on full time learning programmes to gain a greater understanding of how an organisation operates in practice and they provide opportunities for learners to observe how individual roles function and how groups of people operate in the workplace. Furthermore, placements enable learners to develop skills, gain confidence and apply theoretical learning from the classroom in a real environment.

In order to be effective and to be an integral part of learning, a work placement in ATHE qualifications must have the following characteristics:

• the learner must be appropriately prepared for the placement
• the centre has responsibility for the learner throughout the period of the work placement
• the placement provider must be clear about their responsibilities with regard to the learner and the centre’s expectations of them
• each learner must have a tutor who supports them while he/she is on placement and develops and challenges their thinking and understanding
• the individual needs of the learner must be taken into account in organising the work placement
• the placement must be directly linked to a unit or parts of units and generate evidence which enables the learner to meet the learning outcomes at the standards set by the assessment criteria for that unit or units
• the placement must therefore provide information and evidence which is assessed
• the placement is a part of the learning on a course of study and should be managed accordingly. Centres should ensure that the balance of work placement and classroom based activity is appropriate. Centres must take into account any rules with regard to work placements set by their regulatory authorities and strictly adhere to them

It is the centre’s responsibility to ensure the points listed above are characteristic of the work placements it provides. The information in this document and the attachments are designed to support centres with embedding work placements into teaching and learning and to enable evidence from the placements to be used in the assessment process. This document should be used as a guide only and it is expected that centres will wish to build on the information supplied here. 

Sample assignments for use with work placements

ATHE has provided examples of sample assignments directly related to placements and to specific units and these are available for centres to use. They can be accessed from the list of sample assignments via the portal. The centre must ensure that the nature of the specific placements undertaken by learners enables them to complete the assignment, provide sufficient evidence and achieve the learning outcomes at the required standards.

Mapping assessment criteria to work placements

By way of example, ATHE has considered the learning outcomes and assessment criteria for the units of the Healthcare Management qualifications and identified where evidence can be gathered from work placements to help meet the standards. This mapping exercise clearly shows that evidence for some assessment criteria cannot be gathered in the workplace, whereas other assessment criteria are suited to this approach. Indeed, learners may find it very useful to gather evidence from their placement, particularly where the assessment criteria refer to an organisation as in unit 7.1 Organisational Behaviour. Here in order to help achieve LO2, learners must ‘Analyse the culture and structure of one organisation and evaluate how they impact on its effectiveness’.  Evidence for use in assignments may be gathered from a range of activities and the list below provides some examples but it is not exhaustive.

• observing how an organisation functions in general, the interaction between individuals, clients or other stakeholders, or individual(s) in work roles, or a team
• reading documents such as structure charts, reports, policies, agendas or minutes of meetings or the various types of communication used in the organisation
• meeting with individual staff or stakeholders to gather specific information or engage in discussion on topics which are relevant to set tasks or the assignment. Learners may wish to record these meetings electronically, on paper or by audio so information is not lost
• distributing questionnaires or surveys to relevant individuals in order to gather a range of views on specific questions
• reviewing work that you have personally carried out in the work placement

Success in gathering evidence for learning outcomes and assessment criteria will inevitably depend on the nature of the specific work placement the learner is undertaking.

Sample forms and documentation to support learners undertaking work placements

Individual Learning Plans (ILPs)

ILPs are a useful tool to support learning in general and particularly to help embed a work placement into the learners’ overall learning experience. ILPs can be structured in different ways but in essence this is a record of existing levels of achievement, the student’s learning needs and the action required to address these needs. Producing a personal skills audit before the work placement begins is a particularly good way for the learner to identify what he/she does well and where improvements are required. Development of particular skills can then be targeted through the work placement or from other parts of the learning experience on the programme of study as appropriate. The ILP can therefore accompany the learner throughout their period of study. A sample form for the skills audit and subsequent action plan are attached.

Frequently these documents are included in an ILP file which may also contain other information related to progression. This information may include a statement about the intended career goal, a CV, copies of certificates or qualifications obtained, a record of the initial interview before starting the current programme of study or copies of other meetings with the placement provider or tutor.

As the learner progresses through their course of study the ILP must be updated. The learner should audit their skill development at different stages in the learning and create further action plans to ensure continued progress.

Observation forms

When making assessment decisions on evidence the learner has gathered from the work placement, assessors may wish to use evidence obtained through observation. ATHE has prepared a sample observation form which is available on the ATHE website.  You will note from this example that the observer is the assessor so he/she is experienced in assessment and/or trained and is therefore able to take the assessment judgements. The observation form may be used to support assignment briefs submitted by the learner.

Witness Testimony

Assessors may also wish to use witness testimony to support their assessment decisions. In this case the assessor gathers evidence from a witness who has observed the learner undertaking certain tasks, has held meetings with the learner or has read documentation completed by them. The witness is not making assessment decisions but the information he/she provides may be invaluable in helping the assessor to confirm that standards have been achieved. The sample form attached must be completed in full, so that the assessor has sufficient information to support their assessment decisions. This additional information should be submitted with the assessment judgments for use in internal and external quality assurance.

ATHE recognised centres must have quality assurance processes in place, which assure the quality of the learner experience. These processes are a requirement of inspection agencies. They will also assure the consistent and valid award of ATHE qualifications. This means that the centre will normally have:

• policies in place relating to quality assurance
• internal quality assurance of assessment decisions
• internal quality assurance of any centre devised assignments
• internal standardisation processes as appropriate
• review of evidence of unit and qualification achievement
• sampling processes including a sampling plan
• information gathered from learners regarding views on their experience at the centre
• annual centre review processes which are based on current, specific evidence and information and lead to action plans. These processes are integral to the operation of centres and provide accurate judgements about good practice and areas for development
• action plans are detailed and delivered to the standards required. Managers and staff respond quickly to corrective action

Information from all of these processes will be used in external quality assurance.

What is internal quality assurance?

• internal quality assurance is a system of quality checks which ensure that assessment decisions are accurate and that assessment procedures are inclusive and enable participation, consistency and fairness
• there must be a record of all internal quality assurance which is retained
• internal quality assurance is a check that the standards set by ATHE are being delivered

Who is responsible for quality assurance?

The role of the internal quality assurer is to:

• ensure that assessment is consistent, fair and transparent and does not unintentionally discriminate against any learner
• ensure that assessors are aware of the different ways unit achievement can be assessed, for example one assignment may cover more than one unit, to avoid over assessing learners
• ensure that tutors/assessors receive on-going advice and support, for example in designing assessment activities that cover the assessment criteria and constructive feedback on their assessment decisions
• prepare a sampling plan
• regularly sample assessment activities, methods and records to monitor consistency of assessment decisions as specified by qualification documentation
• monitor learners’ achievement records and centre documentation to ensure that they are completed in accordance with requirements. This will include records of learner work which has been resubmitted and/or work where learners have been awarded reasonable adjustments or special considerations
• ensure that learners understand assessment requirements and are given opportunities to achieve against the assessment criteria
• ensure that learners’ work is organised and presented in a manner that enables effective quality assurance to take place
• disseminate good practice in assessment across the centre
• ensure equal opportunities and anti-discriminatory practices are upheld in the assessment process
• ensure that evidence of learner achievement is mapped to the learning outcomes and assessment criteria
• ensure that recommendations for the award of credit are valid, reliable and consistent

Internal quality assurance arrangements must include as a minimum:

• an identified individual responsible who is the named internal quality assurer for a set of assessment decisions. This should be another tutor/assessor with the same subject specialism wherever possible, with the overarching purpose being to verify that the assessor has applied the assessment criteria correctly and consistently
• clear and documented roles and responsibilities for all those involved
• a forum for discussion of borderline cases at all grades and good practice in assessment
• sampling of assessed work
• standardisation of assessed work
• full and clear records and action plans
• regular evaluation of the process

Two or more of the roles carried out within centres can be undertaken by the same person.  However, internal quality assurers who are also acting as assessors cannot internally quality assurance their own assessments.

Internal quality assurance and all assessment records must be held in the centre for a minimum of 4 years following the date quality assurance.

What happens during the external moderation of learner work?

One of main tasks which an external quality assurer undertakes is to check that all assessors are assessing to the same standards. The internal assessment outcomes reached for all ATHE qualifications are therefore subject to an independent assessment review by an ATHE External Quality Assurer (EQA). The EQA will undertake external moderation of learner work when learners have completed their programme of study and are seeking certification. Some centres, such as those with High Performing Status, will be subject to verification of learner work and this will take place when learners have completed their programme of studies and also include those still on programme who have completed at least 50% of the assessed work.

In completing either the moderation or verification the EQA role is to:

• ensure that ATHE qualifications are delivered in accordance with regulatory requirements
• externally quality assure the standards of achievement of learners at unit level
• ensure that there is regional, national and international consistency in the way achievement of learning outcomes and assessment criteria are applied
• resolve issues relating to borderline achievement
• monitor the learners’ experience of the programme
• provide an on-going source of objective and impartial advice to centres through discussions with tutors and via a report summarising the outcomes of the visit
• support the continuous improvement of the quality and fitness for purpose of ATHE accredited provision

This means that the EQA will want to:

• sample the assessed work of different learners. For moderation the sample will cover the assessment judgements of every assessor, across any graded judgements which have been made. The sample will also cover every unit which has been assessed and take into account the nature of the tasks which learners have been set. The exact sample will be determined by the EQA and he/she will normally start with a minimum sample size of 10 learners plus 10% of the remaining cohort. Where a centre has been awarded Good Performing Status (GPS) the sample size will be reduced to 5 candidates for each qualification plus a further 5% of the remaining candidates’ work. Where a centre is offering more than one qualification, this minimum size will apply to each qualification. The sample will also include internally quality assured learner work.

For verification of learner work the sample size may be less depending on the individual centre being visited but will typically be the work of 5 learners plus 10% and cover each assessor and grade awarded. The key principles listed above will still apply e.g., judging decisions made by every assessor, across the units studied and taking into account the nature of the tasks completed by learners.

Both the moderation and verification processes are designed to be rigorous but at the same time positive and supportive, and are intended to highlight areas of good practice, as well as identify any areas of concern.

• ensure that all supporting internal documentation is completed and up to date. This will include records relating to assessment for learners both formative and summative. These records should show the decisions made including any resubmissions of work and/or any cases where special considerations have taken place
• ensure records are complete for the internal quality assurance processes used at the centre including any standardisation activities
• see and take account of plagiarism reports for each piece of learner work sampled and for other work where appropriate, noting how they have been used in the assessment process
• check the authentication arrangements that have been made for any learners using alternative routes to certification for example RPL or credit transfer

In some circumstances, particularly in centres which provide distance learning and have different start and completion dates for learners, there may not be a sufficient number of learners to warrant a full external quality assurance. In these cases where there:

• is only one learner the EQA will sample a minimum of 50% of the units and all of the assessors. Only the learner work section of the EQA report will be completed
• are two learners the EQA will complete the normal sampling procedure. All sections of the EQA report will be completed

Where there are large numbers of learners taking more than one qualification and/or there have been concerns with assessment at earlier visits, the external quality assurance may take more than one day or be undertaken by more than one EQA.

The outcomes of the moderation process will be to:

1. confirm that internal assessment meets UK national standards and allow certification

or

2. make recommendations to further strengthen the quality of assessment outcomes and IQA processes before full certification is released. Certification or unit certification may be awarded for some learners where work sampled has met the required standards

or

3. provide feedback and state the actions needed to improve the quality of assessment outcomes and IQA processes before full certification is released. Some unit certification may be awarded for learners, where actual work sampled has met the required standards

or

4. provide evidence and make recommendations about the centre’s ability to continue to be approved to deliver the ATHE qualifications in question, without a significant change in practice. No learner certification can take place.

These outcomes are not necessarily independent of one another. A centre will receive initial feedback in a meeting (often online) at the end of the moderation or verification process along with a draft EQA report, detailing why EQA decisions have been taken and any action that is required by the centre to improve existing practice.  Taking account of any adjustments arising from this meeting, the EQA report will be finalised, reviewed and signed off by the SM or QAM, and issued to the centre prior to certification as appropriate.

ATHE reserves the right to withdraw either a qualification or centre approval when there is evidence to show that there is an irreversible breakdown in a centre’s ability either to assure the quality of its programme delivery or its assessment standards. This will be done in accordance with the ATHE Sanctions Policy.

All ATHE EQAs will have gone through a rigorous selection and induction process.  All their work is checked internally as part of the ATHE quality systems. They will have participated in regular training activities and will be proficient in ATHE systems and procedures. All will have had experience as practitioners in fields relevant to their responsibilities and as a result will have experienced many similar successes and problems that are possibly encountered within the provision they are now reviewing. ATHE EQAs come from a variety of professional backgrounds.  However, what is common is their commitment to implementing ATHE’s quality assurance strategy to a consistent standard and providing support, which meets the needs of individual centres. They will have no connection with the centre or the learners being reviewed.

It is not part of the EQA’s responsibility to assess work but to confirm the decisions made by internal quality assurers and assessors at a centre.

Where provision has been reviewed previously, it is important that centres check that they have read the last EQA’s report and are familiar with the contents, both positive and negative. Centres will also need to ensure that any action required as a result of the last external quality assurance visit has been acted upon.

Learner interviews

To help ensure our External Quality Assurance (EQA) procedure continues to be appropriately insightful and robust, interviews with learners may take place as part of the moderation process. As with our standard EQA approach, this will be on a randomised sample basis and will be online. The interviews will be undertaken by the EQA who has completed the relevant moderation, and will be an engaging and supportive conversation regarding the learner’s work which has been moderated.

If any of your learners are selected for interview the EQA will contact you to either request the relevant learners’ details in order to contact them to arrange the interview via a video call, preferably on Microsoft Teams, or request that you arrange the interviews with the learner on their behalf. At the beginning of any such interview photographic ID, such as a passport, will be required to be shown. Completion of the moderation will be subject to these interviews being carried out, therefore centres are requested to ensure the interviews can take place as soon as possible following the EQA’s request.

Verification

Verification differs to moderation in that, for verification learners will not necessarily have completed their qualification, although they should have completed at least 50% of this. The aim of verification is to ensure that internal assessment meets with the standards required and to provide support and guidance to centres. Verification may be particularly helpful for new centres, or centres delivering a qualification for the first time, who may feel they would benefit from some additional support prior to submitting their results for moderation.

If a centre should decide they would like to take advantage of the verification service they  should firstly request this though the ATHE Support online service. An EQAs would then be allocated who would complete a review on a sample of learner work and internal assessment.

The sample should typically consist of;

• Five completed units of learner work which have been internally assessed
• Plagiarism detection software reports
• Internal Quality Assurance (IQA) reports should also be included where this has taken place by this point in the programme (we strongly recommend that IQA should take place in a timely manner following assessment so that learners are not disadvantaged if they are required to ‘look back’ at previous work to add to this, if it is not deemed to have passed by the IQA)
• Standardisation meeting reports if these have taken place by this point in the programme.

Combined Level 5 Extended Diploma (incorporating Level 4 and Level 5 qualifications)

As moderation and certification of the new Combined Level 5 qualification does not take place until completion of all units at both Level 4 and Level 5 verification will be undertaken part way through the programme, typically upon completion of the Level 4 units. This is to ensure that the Level 4 units are of the standard required before a learner completes the full suite of Level 4 and Level 5 units.

Centres with High Performing Status (HPS)

Verification may also be undertaken for those centres who have been awarded High Performing Status (HPS), replacing moderation in these instances, as part of their annual review. The sample size would be typically five completed units of work plus 10% and cover each assessor and grade awarded.

ATHE seeks to enable learners to avoid duplication of learning and assessment. This can be achieved by offering learners the opportunity to transfer credit i.e. recognise previously accredited achievement from within the Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF) to count towards another qualification. Alternatively learning or achievement that has not been certificated or accredited from regulated qualifications could lead to achievement depending on the correlation to the LOs and standards provided in the ATHE units. This existing achievement will lead to exemption.

Learners may claim RPL, credit transfer or exemption against a whole unit or several units. It is not possible to award part units, but where the evidence presented does not fully meet the needs of a complete unit, the missing information may be provided via the same assessment processes that are undertaken by a taught group of learners. 

Where centres wish to use RPL they are required to have a robust policy in place and to develop processes to support learners, assessors and internal quality assurance to use RPL effectively. The centre must retain evidence for successful claims, as it does for all other assessment decisions. This will be checked as part of the external quality assurance processes. There is an ATHE Policy on RPL, Credit Transfer and Exemptions which is available on the website.  This policy describes the RPL process in detail and there are forms for centres to use.

Where a centre does not have a robust internal policy enabling valid RPL decisions to take place, ATHE will inform the centre that assessment judgements using RPL cannot be made.  This decision may take place at the CRQA check process or at other EQA visits.  Where a centre is graded in the lower half (weak amber or red) at EQA of learner work or at an M&D visit due to issues with assessment, the centre will also be informed that RPL cannot be used.  This restriction will apply until such time that assessment and supporting QA processes meet the required standards.

Not all ATHE qualifications are suitable for RPL, for example where learners are new to the learning specified in the unit and/or where assessment includes a requirement for an observation of skill development.

Some verbs are more commonly used in assessment criteria for units at particular levels. This document provides an illustrative list of verbs used in ATHE assessment criteria. The explanations for the verbs given in the tables over the following pages provide alternative words or phrases that help to clarify the verb used in the assessment criteria at each level.

Assessors and Internal Quality Assurers should use these explanations to consider whether learners have met the correct standards when assessing learners and internally quality assuring assessment decisions.

Study Skills are important for success in all ATHE qualifications and they provide a basis for successful learning and achievement at higher level study, whether at university or a higher level apprenticeship. The development and application of these generic skills are also valued by employers.

Employability Skills are those core skills and behaviours needed in nearly every job.  The development and application of these skills are valued by employers in terms of work readiness:

Assessment

The process of making judgements about the extent to which a learner’s work meets the learning outcomes at the standards set by the assessment criteria for a qualification or unit, or part of a unit.

Assessment Board

The purpose of an Assessment Board is to examine in detail the assessment judgements that have been made for a particular qualification and to agree recommendations for the awards to be made to students.

Assessment Criteria

The specific standards that learners need to meet in order to achieve success in a qualification or unit, or part of a unit.

Assignment

A task or number of tasks that must be completed by a learner to evidence that he/she has achieved the learning outcomes and met the assessment criteria of a unit. 

Awarding Organisation

An organisation that is regulated to design, deliver and award qualifications.

Centre Recognition

When a centre (usually a college) is recognised to deliver qualifications to the awarding organisations standards.

Conflicts of Interest

When an individual or organisation has personal, professional or financial interested which may cause them to deviate them from their professional obligations.

Credit Value

Each unit has a credit value which tells you how many credits are awarded when a unit is completed. The credit value also gives an indication of how long it will normally take you to complete a unit or qualification. One credit will usually take you 10 hours of learning.

Guided Learning Hours (GLH)

The time that a lecturer, tutor or facilitator spends with a learner(s) providing lectures or guidance in order to deliver the aims of the unit specification.

Total Qualification Time (TQT)

TQT is an estimate of the length of time it would take a learner to complete a qualification. This includes guided learning hours.

Indicative Content

An indication of the content which should be included when teaching a unit or qualification.

Internal Quality Assurance

A process by which assessment practices and decisions are sampled and evaluated and findings are acted upon to ensure standardisation, consistency and fairness in assessment.

Learning Outcome

A statement of what a learner can be expected to know, understand or do as a result of a process of learning.

Maladministration

This is any activity, neglect, default or other practice that results in the centre of a learner not complying with the specified requirements for delivery of the qualifications and as set out in the relevant legislation.

Malpractice

This refers to any deliberate activity, neglect, default or other practice that compromises the integrity of the assessment process and/or the validity of certificates.

Moderation

Moderation is a particular form of Centre Assessment Standards Scrutiny through which the marking of assessments by centres is monitored to make sure it meets required standards and through which adjustments to a centre’s marking are made.  This will ensure that results are based on the required standards. Moderation is based on an agreed sample of learner work and associated documentation and takes place before final results are issued under Ofqual’s Condition H6.1.

Portfolio of Evidence

A collection of learner work from sample assignments, tasks, tests or examinations, which is compiled to provide evidence to show that the learner has met the standards for a qualification.

Qualification

This is a record of achievement that is awarded to a learner after they have undertaken a course of study and have been assessed against learning outcomes and a specified set of criteria.

Quality Assurance

Quality assurance is the process undertaken by an individual or group to ensure quality standards are met in the planning, delivery and assessment of qualifications.

Reasonable Adjustments

A reasonable adjustment is any action that helps to reduce the effect of a disability or difficulty that places the learner at a disadvantage in the assessment situation.

Recognition of Prior Learning

A method of assessment that considers whether a learner can demonstrate that they can meet the assessment requirements for a unit through knowledge, understanding or skills they already possess and do not need to develop through a course of learning.

RQF Level

This is an indication of the relative demand, complexity and/or depth of a qualification on the Regulated Qualifications Framework (RQF). The RQF has equivalencies to other international frameworks such as the National Framework of Qualifications in Ireland.

Rules of Combination

This is a description of the credit accumulation requirements for the achievement of a named qualification.

Sampling Procedures

Procedure in which a sample of assessed learner work is chosen to quality assure the assessment decisions made. Sampling will be undertaken by an External Quality Assurer of assessed and internally verified work or by an internal verifier on assessed work.

Special Considerations

Special Consideration is an adjustment to the outcome of an assessment for a learner who was prepared for assessment but who may have been disadvantaged by temporary injury, illness, or adverse circumstances that have arisen at or near to the time of an assessment. A special consideration does not mean that the assessment is easier and standards are reduced.

Standardisation

Standardisation is a process which aims to achieve accuracy and consistency in making decisions about assessment, so a learner would receive the same assessment decision, regardless of centre, assessor, Internal Quality Assurer (IQA), type of evidence produced, type of programme delivery, location or date.

Synoptic

Synoptic teaching, learning and assessment refers to the opportunities presented in each qualification to tutors and learners to enable experiences to be presented and understood in a more integrated and holistic manner.

Unit

This is a coherent and explicit set of learning outcomes and assessment criteria with a title, credit value and level.

Verification

Verification is a check of assessment decisions that ATHE conducts in conjunction with a set of learner results which have been submitted.  Verification is only completed for centres that are performing at the highest levels and meet criteria determined by ATHE.  The sample size will be lower than that used for moderation and may include learners who are part way through the learning programme.