ForSkills summer update

It's been a busy summer at ForSkills!

On the company side
ForSkills is now part of the NCFE group. NCFE is a major Awarding Organisation well known throughout the sector for innovation, brilliant customer service and a fantastic organisation to work and for! ForSkills will continue to operate as autonomous company but with the backing and financial strength of a major educational charity behind us.

Maths and English
Assessments and diagnostics covering the new GCSE 9-1 specification have been released to support all customers who start delivering these in September.

Mobile
The ForSkills Go app now includes SkillsBuilder We have added a number of videos for SkillsBuilder (as well as general help and tips videos). These are linked to a learner’s Individual Skills Plan so they will be directed to the videos linked to the topic areas they need to work one.

New Sampling Plan Overview in SkillsPortfolio
We have added a Sampling Plan Overview grid that allows IQAs to see which types of evidence and units they have sampled evidence across from the planned sampling periods. This new grid also allows IQAs to plan the units and evidence type they wish to sample in the future and allows them to see quickly and visually where they have verified according to their plan.

Jonathan Wells

ForSkills, Guroo and NCFE

Apprenticeship Levy Update

Apprenticeship levy update consultation

You can't have missed the news about this. The Government published a discussion paper giving information for all employers on the proposed apprenticeships funding support package that will operate in England from May 2017. It includes how much employers will be able to spend on each apprenticeship and the rules employers will need to follow.

The lists of individual apprenticeships show you the proposed funding bands that will apply from May 2017. It is important to note that this is a consultation and the final support package will be confirmed in October 2016.

Access to the survey is here. Headlines from the update include:

• No change for English and maths. Training providers received £471 for each of these qualifications, as now when an individual is working towards an apprenticeship standard. This will come direct from the government and will not be deducted from an employer’s digital account.
• STEM (Science, technology, English and maths) pathways will receive funding increases.
• The training costs of 16-18 years old in small companies will be fully met by Government with additional incentives for certain categories of apprentice.
• The Government will pay 90% of the additional costs when the "levy pot" has been used providing the employer meets the 10% in cash.
• Significant changes to funding rates, which are being replaced by negotiated rates.
• New training register will be compulsory.
• Employers can use levy funds to retrain workers in new skills, even if they already have prior qualifications.
• Large employers with have a "digital account" at launch.

Small employers will have to pay 10% of training costs

Produced by Jonathan Wells
ForSKills
Guroo 
And now NCFE too!

Functional Skills reform programme

Functional Skills Reform Programme

As part of the Functional Skills Reform Programme, alongside the revision to the national standards for adult literacy and numeracy, ETF have also published draft subject content for maths and English Functional Skills qualifications.

The opportunity to comment on the proposed subject content for Functional Skills represents the final stage of the first phase and is open until September 12th.

Meanwhile, the opportunity to comment on the second draft of the revised standards for literacy and numeracy is open until this Friday 19 August - that's 5pm TODAY!

Jonathan Wells

ForSkills and Guroo and now part of the NCFE group too!