 What is a National Vocational Qualification (NVQ)?
- An NVQ is a nationally recognised qualification. It shows that you are able to work to a set national standard. In Scotland these are called SVQs, so sometimes you will see them referred to as S/NVQs.
- NVQs reflect ‘best practice’ and are based on National Occupational Standards written by the particular employment-led body that represents your work area.
- National Occupational Standards are written as ‘units of competence’; you gain an NVQ by achieving a set number of ‘units’.
- You achieve units by demonstrating your competence at work. NVQs are gained in the workplace, whether you are employed or on a placement there, not in a classroom or exam hall. NVQs require that you have a certain level of background knowledge about your area of work, so you may be able to use college awards (‘qualifications’) as evidence toward the knowledge part of the requirements for the NVQ. Awards that you completed before you registered for your NVQ may be accepted.
- NVQs have five ‘levels’, with level five being the highest. It is a common mistake to think these are “equivalent” to academic levels, but in fact they describe levels of operation at work. The level at which you are expected to work should determine what level of NVQ you need. For example, level 1 indicates work that is very highly supervised and requires very little or no individual decision-making. Workers at levels 4 and 5 are relatively unsupervised and will often have supervision of others as part of their task, and frequent responsibility for significant decisions. (These are typically management posts that require a high level of competence.)
 The process of gaining an NVQ
- NVQ candidates are ‘assessed’ by qualified ‘assessors’ who will observe your work and discuss with you your knowledge and understanding of why you work in particular ways.
- ‘Collecting evidence’ of your competence to work to a set standard can include: direct observation, oral and written questioning, observing a product or outcome of your work, written testimony, witness statement, or by you keeping a record of your work.
- The means by which you collect evidence will be discussed and agreed with you by a qualified assessor. This is called ‘assessment planning’.
- Once an ‘assessment plan’ is agreed then either through direct observation or through other means the evidence of your work is collected. Your assessor will indicate to you how successful this has been. They will give you feedback on how well you are doing.
- Once enough evidence has been collected to meet the requirements of the qualification, your assessor will judge your evidence against the standards to which you are working.
- When you have been satisfactorily assessed in all the units for your qualification you will be awarded the particular National Vocational Qualification for which you registered.
 Getting started – registering for an NVQ
- To gain an NVQ you need to register as a candidate at an NVQ Assessment Centre. You will register for a particular subject, at a particular level. The Coaching Academy is a registered NVQ Assessment Centre and you can register with us by contacting The Coaching Academy’s Training Centre Manager (Charlotte Rigden) on 020 8789 5676 or email charlotter@the-coaching-academy.com
- If you are in employment your manager or training adviser will be able to discuss this with you and probably help make arrangements for your registration.
- If you are not currently in employment you will need to seek advice from a careers officer, college tutor or from The Coaching Academy national Training Centre Manager Charlotte Rigden on 0208 789 5676. We at The Coaching Academy cannot help you to find employment but The Training Centre Manager is able to offer you advice on the courses which would be most suitable for you.
- You will need to know which units of competence are mandatory, and you will make choices among further units that are optional. See course details under Courses for NVQ Students to find this information. Your choices should reflect the work that you do. You should discuss this with your assessor or Charlotte Rigden (Training Centre Manager at The Coaching Academy) and with your employer or manager.
- If you have existing qualifications or work experience which you think could earn you credit towards your chosen NVQ, you should discuss this with us when you register, providing us with a copy of your original certificate which must also be available. Credit towards an NVQ is called APEL (Accreditation of Prior Experience or Learning). We may have to take advice about APEL claims from EDI (the awarding body, that allows the NVQ to be given, and controls the quality of NVQs).
- To identify you as an individual candidate, once registered with us you will receive a Personal Identification Number from EDI, the awarding body to which The Coaching Academy is accredited.
- A member of The Coaching Academy national training team will be allocated to you as an assessor. The assessor will provide you with your training materials as well as their contact details. If you are unable to contact your assessor at any time or would like to discuss any particular issues you are welcome to contact us for help at The Coaching Academy.
- During your time as a candidate with The Coaching Academy your details are held at the Training Centre by the Training Centre Manager – Charlotte Rigden. As part of qualification process all contact you have with your assessor is tracked and monitored to ensure you are receiving the highest level of training and service. If you have any queries regarding any aspect of the service you receive as a candidte please contact Charlotte Rigden on 0208 789 5676.
- Advice on becoming an NVQ candidate can also be sought from any NVQ assessment centre. The Coaching Academy is accredited as a National Training Centre for the delivering of NVQs and Learning and Development Awards. After consulting with you, we will advise you which NVQ and which level is suitable for your needs.
 The NVQ Process
Typically the process you will follow as an NVQ candidate proceeds by the steps outlined below:
- Your initial enquiry.
- A meeting is arranged to discuss your requirements as a company or individual. If you are registering as an individual this meeting will usually be conducted via the telephone.
- The candidate induction process ensures you have all the relevant information for your chosen NVQ.
- The assessor meets candidates on an approximately monthly basis depending on the candidate’s needs.
- Workshops may be an option depending on the requirements which were discussed at the initial meeting.
- An internal verification process is carried out to ensure the accuracy and consistency of the judgements made.
- Steps 4 and 5 can be repeated as necessary.
- Step 6 can be repeated as necessary.
- An external verification process is carried out by EDI, the qualification awarding body, to ensure all accepted national standards of training have been reached.
- The candidate receives their certificate of success.
This is a guide only and will depend upon the needs of the candidate and the awarding body’s requirements at the time of embarking on the programme.
For further information please see our information on Courses for NVQ Students
and Courses for NVQ Assessors.
Getting help with NVQs
If the information you need is not featured here you are very welcome to speak to The Coaching Academy’s Training Centre Manager Charlotte Rigden on 020 8789 5676 or email charlotter@the-coaching-academy.com. |
