Last updated: 12 Jun 2009

At present, it is hard to understand all the different types of qualification that learners hold - what level they are, how long they take to complete, what content they cover, and how they compare to other qualifications. The new framework will help present qualifications in a way that is easy to understand and measure.

Credit and level

Every unit and qualification in the framework will have a credit value (one credit represents 10 hours, showing how much time it takes to complete) and a level between Entry level and level 8 (showing how difficult it is).

There are three sizes of qualifications in the QCF:

• Awards (1 to 12 credits)
• Certificates (13 to 36 credits)
• Diplomas (37 credits or more).

So in the new framework you can have an award at level 1 or an award at level 8. This is because the qualification type 'award, certificate, diploma' represents the size of a qualification, not how difficult it is.

Each qualification title contains the following:

• the level of the qualification (from Entry level at the bottom to level 8 at the top)
• the size of qualification (award/certificate/diploma)
• details indicating the content of the qualification.

Simply by looking at the title of a qualification you will be able to see how difficult it is, how long it will take the average learner to complete, and its general content. To understand the level of difficulty of the units and qualifications in the new framework it might be helpful to know that GCSEs (grade A*- C) are level 2, GCE A levels are level 3 and a PhD is a level 8. Knowing this can help to position the difficulty and challenge of each level in the framework.

Testing and trialling the new framework

As the framework represents a big change to current arrangements for qualifications, ministers asked the regulators of external qualifications in England (QCA), Wales (DELLS) and Northern Ireland (CCEA) to test and trial the framework.

The tests and trials started in September 2006 and completed in June 2008 and involved learners, employers, awarding bodies, sector skills councils, colleges and training providers. A final report on the test and trials was submitted to to ministers that both evaluated the evidence from the trialling and development work, and also explored options for the implementation of the new framework across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The documentation was well received by Ministers, and QCA has now been asked by DIUS to carry out further work to develop a full and specific business case, including a detailed delivery model for QCF, by the end of September 2008.

DIUS has also asked the Learning and Skills Council (LSC) to contribute to this process, specifically in the areas of the systems and technological infrastructure that will be needed to support the QCF on a permanent basis, including systems for recording and displaying learner achievement data and supporting credit accumulation and transfer.

QCA is currently reviewing and upgrading the IT infrastructure that was developed and used during the QCF tests and trials phase. This will underpin the accreditation of new units and qualifications, and support new and existing QCF learners to engage with those units and qualifications. These upgrades will begin to be in place during September and will enable QCF to continue to develop until such time as permanent systems go live.

Whilst this upgrade work is ongoing, mechanisms for accreditation will be unaffected, but the upgrade process necessitates temporarily disabling learner achievement recording and access until completion in the Autumn. During this period, learning providers can continue to register learners via awarding body routes. QCA will keep everyone updated as the work progresses via traditional communication routes including the QCA website and the monthly electronic newsletter.

Anticipated benefits

For learners the QCF will:

• offer more freedom, choice and flexibility
• give easy access to information about the commitment needed for different routes to achievement, letting learners balance that commitment with family, work and other responsibilities
• allow them to build up credits at their own pace and combine them in a way that will help them get where they want to be
• enable them to transfer credits between qualifications to avoid having to repeat their learning
• record all their achievements on an electronic learner record, encouraging them and others to value their past achievements

For learning providers (schools, colleges, workplaces) the QCF will:

• enable them to design more flexible programmes, suitable to the individual needs of learners
• help them improve retention and progression rates by recognising smaller steps of achievement more frequently
• track all learners' achievements through the use of a unique learner number (ULN) and an individual's electronic learner record, giving providers standard information about each learner's past achievements
• help them describe achievements to employers and learners in a language that is easy to understand

For employers the QCF will:

• help them to measure quickly the level and size of achievements of prospective employees
• enable them to get in-house training recognised within a national framework
• describe levels of achievement in terms everyone can understand
• make training options and pathways clear, helping employees and employers find the right training for their learning and business needs.