Previous events

QCA in Northern Ireland reached its 10th anniversary on 1st May 2006.

To mark this occasion QCA NI hosted a 10th Year Anniversary Dinner Celebration on 6th June 2006 at the Stormont Hotel, to mark the achievements made by those organisations who have worked with QCA NI to provide NVQ training opportunities over the last ten years and of course those individuals who have achieved NVQs.

Details of this event and TEN publication which was launched at the event are available on this site.

Annual Conference 2005

QCA Northern Ireland's annual conference took place on the 15th March 2005 at the Hilton Hotel, Belfast. The event was well attended by 150 delegates representing business organisations, training providers and sector skills bodies.

The theme of the 2005 conference focused on Improving skills and qualifications - new thinking for reform. The conference this year was held at an important time in the skills and qualifications agenda for Northern Ireland. The recent launch of the consultation on the development of a Framework for Achievement, proposing radical reform of vocational qualifications, coupled with the current consultation on a Northern Ireland skills strategy, puts skills and qualifications at the head of a challenging agenda.

The event provided an overview of some significant developments already taking place in both skills and qualifications and gave QCA in Northern Ireland an opportunity to report on recent work we have carried out on e-assessment and enabled us to present examples of qualifications that are being tailored to meet employers' needs.

Copies of the conference publication and DVD launched on the day is available from the NI office, please contact us on 028 9033 0706 or via e-mail to: jenkinsp@qca.org.uk. Alternatively you can download the case study material and articles from the annual conference publication via the NVQ case studies and features and reports web pages.

NVQs for Business

(September 2004)

This half-day workshop focused on NVQs as the qualifications of choice for individuals, employers and organisations to improve competency levels, develop the workforce and as a basis for career progression and succession planning. This seminar was designed to give an overview of the NVQ implementation process in a business context, to provide an understanding of the various roles and relationships involved in the NVQ system and explore the employer’s relationship with awarding bodies. This seminar provided information designed for employers or other organisations considering using or delivering NVQs for the first time, or those who simply wish to refresh their knowledge.

Assessment Policy and Practice

(September 2004)

This half-day seminar was aimed at experienced NVQ assessment practitioners requiring guidance on new and emerging developments in assessment policy and practice and would benefit from an opportunity to network with other practitioners to share best practice in NVQ assessment. A key feature of this seminar involved group discussion and offered a forum for exchanging practice information and guidance.

Annual Conference 2004

QCA Northern Ireland held its 4th annual conference on 23 March 2004, which focused on the theme of: Workforce Development: Improving skills and achieving qualifications.

Copies of the conference publication which features case studies and other articles on how NVQs support workforce development within Northern Ireland companies are available from the NI office. If you would like to receive a copy of the 2004 conference publication then please provide your contact details by e-mailing: infoni@qca.org.uk .

To view the NVQ case studies featured at this event or at previous annual conference events click on the link NVQ case studies featured on the Northern Ireland home page. Copies of the 2001, 2002, 2003 conference publications are also available from the NI office, send your requirements and contact details to: infoni@qca.org.uk.

NVQ introductory workshop

September, December 2003 and February 2004

This series of half-day workshops focused on how an NVQ is structured, the assessment process and provided an overview of how NVQs can be implemented within organisations.

NVQ implementation workshop

September, December 2003 and February 2004

This series of full-day workshops concentrated on the 9 NVQ implementation steps which are mapped against the Investor in People standards to demonstrate how the implementation can be an integral part of an organisation's quality standards. These workshops also aimed to provide participants with a better understanding of the use of NVQs within a business context.

Assessment policy and practice workshop

September, December 2003 and February 2004

This series of half-day workshops explored assessment policy, as detailed in the NVQ Code of Practice, and assessment strategies as defined by sector bodies and awarding bodies. Methods of assessment, including paperless portfolio, online testing and workplace assessment were topics for discussion and participants were encouraged to share best practice.

Annual Conference 2003

QCA Northern Ireland held its third Annual Conference on 11th March 2003 at Malone House, Belfast. Guest speakers at the event included Dr Ken Boston, QCA Chief Executive and Alan Shannon, Permanent Secretary for the Department for Employment and Learning. The conference theme ‘NVQs contributing to lifelong learning’ attracted a large audience representing education and training, business, community and public sectors as well as government departments and awarding bodies. To view or download further information about this event click on the link Press release. To view the NVQ case studies featured at the event click on the link NVQ case studies above. Alternatively contact our office for a copy of the conference publication.

The Paperless portfolio

During November 2001 QCA Northern Ireland hosted 3 regional half-day seminars entitled The paperless portfolio. The seminars looked at the collection of evidence within an NVQ and presentations were given covering different assessment methods: assessment linked into ISO procedures, assessment by professional discussion and assessment of special needs candidates by the use of a scribe or audio tape.

A report on these workshops, detailing input from speakers and QCA's guidance on NVQ portfolios is available by clicking on the links to the right 'Paperless portfolio report' and 'NVQ portfolios'.