National Functional Skills Quality Framework in partnership with Health Education England

Health and care employers across England are looking for high-quality functional skills provision to meet the needs of their workforce. HEE is working with Salisbury NHS FT to create a framework of funded provision that not only incorporates excellent teaching but also includes added value for learners and employers. Added value incorporates many different elements of holistic learner support - from additional needs support to on-site childcare. We hope that employers will use this framework to compliment other offers of functional skills support funded by HEE. This includes access to basic key skills builder (bksb) software and functional skills qualification (FSQ) exams through our awarding body partner Open Awards.Functional Skills are a key underpinning requirement for successful education, including workplace education and apprenticeships. On behalf of employers and learners nationally, Health Education England are creating a Quality Framework for the provision of Functional Skills training. Those who are successful at getting onto the framework will be included in / added to a digital platform (yet to be designed) that will be developed for use by Health and Social Care organisations, staff and prospective staff / leaners to search for and find appropriate Functional Skills and Exam provision which is suitable to their needs. As a result, those on the Framework will be required to provide the following information and updates: • Provide specific additional details of Functional Skills courses and Exam provision, provision of support to learners, accessibility, enrolment, any costs in addition to funded programmes / provision and contact details (list not exhaustive) to be hosted on a digital platform for learners and NHS / Social Care organisations to use to identify suitable provision • Update us of changes to these details immediately (providers will be removed from the Framework immediately if changes are not communicated which results in the information on the digital platform being out of date) • Timely response to requests for information and updates • Respond to quality monitoring requirements / checks / updates in terms of their provision (to provide assurance that providers should remain on the Quality Framework) • Communicate at earliest opportunity where learners are unable to access their provision so alternative provision can be sourced • Monitoring and data provision of access from Health and Social care learners / referrals and updated statistics provided re: engagement, enrolment, exam attempts, completion / success and attrition (among other data) • No provider with a current achievement rate below 70% will be listed on the Framework. Evidence of achievement rates must be included as part of the provider's response. • Providers must hold an ESFA adult education budget / functional skills contract / allocation and be able to deliver functional skills without cost to either the employer or learner