FAQs - Quality, Delivery and Assessment Support

Where a learner is unable to complete a qualification full, Open Awards will provide a unit transcript for any units that have been achieved. Providers should claim results for any units that have been completed by the learner via The Portal.

Open Awards Internal Quality Assurance (IQA) information can be found on The Portal, including template documents and additional guidance.

Providers must keep complete and accurate records, for at least three (3) years from the end of the academic year to which they relate, for all qualifications and make these available to Open Awards on request.

Providers are required to retain the following records:

• Name of learner, date of birth and contact address
• Title and accreditation number of each qualification and unit studied
• Name(s) of assessor(s)
• Assessment records, including assessment decision and reason for decision
• Name(s) of internal verifier(s)
• Internal Verification reports

Providers must retain all learner evidence at least until the next external verification visit takes place following certification to allow for appropriate external verifier sampling of evidence and/or selection of evidence to be used for standardisation purposes.

Following a successful external verification visit, evidence will be able to be returned to learners.

We have combined our Access to Assessment and Reasonable Adjustments policy. Please use our The Portal to see our Reasonable Adjustments and Special Considerations Policy and/ or to request reasonable adjustments for your learner.

Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) is 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 may already possess. Evidence of learning must be sufficient, reliable and valid. It is the responsibility of the provider to inform Open Awards at registration of any exemptions and/or equivalences for which a claim may be made. These claims will be subject to external quality assurance by the Open Awards Quality Assurance Team. For more information, please see our Recognition of Prior Learning Policy found on The Portal.

All Open Awards qualifications come with a Qualification Guide which will assist you in your delivery and assessment. Each qualification also has a Purpose Statement which is designed for learners to understand the requirements and progression. Dependent on the assessment method of the qualification, there will also be practice assessments and sample materials available. If you require personalised support with planning your curriculum, you can contact our Business Development Team at enquiries@openawards.org.uk

Total Qualification Time (TQT) is the amount of hours the qualification will take to complete, including all guided learning, independent learning and assessment. Guided Learning Hours (GLH) is the amount of hours that should be tutor led.

Details regarding the delivery of Open Awards qualifications can be found in the relevant qualification guide. This guide contains information on the unit content and any other relevant details required for delivery and assessment of the qualification.

After being approved as an Open Awards provider, you must apply to deliver your chosen qualifications. This allows our quality team to support you with any queries you may have prior to delivering a specific qualification, and ensures you meet the relevant criteria for each qualification you are wanting to deliver. You can apply for each qualification via The Portal.

No. Applications for reasonable adjustments must be submitted via The Portal as soon as possible after the need has been identified and, in all cases, at least 20 working days before the assessment is due to take place.

In the case of Apprenticeship Assessments, Open Awards expects reasonable adjustment requests to be made well in advance of the anticipated gateway date to ensure there is no impact on the EPA window. Please refer to our Reasonable Adjustments and Special Considerations Policy and Procedures for more information.