A selection of educational bodies, inspection agencies and career advisors. Note: all links open in a new window.
CCEA provides advice and supprt on all aspects of the curriculum, examination
and assessment in Northern Ireland. They cover general and vocationally related
qualifications but not occupational qualifications (NVQs).
Find all that CCEA has to offer for teachers, students, parents, and employers
in N.Ireland by clicking on www.ccea.org.uk. Link to other areas directly from
this home page, search for more information on the curriculum and examinations
in the Teachers section and find useful links to other sites.
The Department for Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills (DCELLS) works to
fulfil the Welsh Assembly Government's vision of better public services. It
aims to improve children’s services, education and training provision to secure
better outcomes for learners, business, and employers.
Ofqual is the new regulator of qualifications, exams and tests in England.
We ensure that children, young people and adult learners get the results
their work deserves, that standards are maintained and that qualifications
count now and in the future. We also make sure that the qualifications
available meet the needs of learners and employers.
The Government will be
bringing in legislation to establish Ofqual as the regulator of qualifications.
Until this legislation is passed, Ofqual will operate as part of the
Qualifications and Curriculum Authority (QCA). Afterwards, Ofqual will be
accountable to parliament rather than to government ministers.
QCA is committed to building a world-class education and training framework.
They develop and modernise the curriculum, assessments, examinations
and qualifications.
SQA is the national body in Scotland responsible for the development,
accreditation, assessment, and certification of qualifications other than
degrees.
Inspection and Funding bodies
The Education and Training Inspectorate, Northern Ireland provides inspection
services and advice on the standards and quality in education and training in
Northern Ireland.
Ofsted is the non-ministerial government department responsible for regulating
childcare, inspecting schools, colleges, and teacher education, and for leading
the inspection of children’s services in England.
The LSC exists to make England better skilled and more competitive. They have a
single goal: to improve the skills of England's young people and adults to make
sure we have a workforce that is of world-class standards. The Learning and
Skills Council is responsible for funding and planning post 16 education and
training in England. This site contains the LSC corporate plan, news and
comprehensive documents and links sections.
Scottish Funding Councils are the non-departmental public bodies of the Scottish
Higher Education Funding Council (SHEFC) and the Scottish Further Education
Funding Council (SFEFC). Together they are responsible for funding
Scotland's 66 higher education institutions and further
education colleges, disbursing more than £1.1bn annually.
Other Government and Educational Sites
The Careers Research and Advisory Centre promotes lifelong learning through
careers education, research, courses, conferences and resource materials for
learning about jobs.
This is part of Scottish Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise.
The website includes advice to prospective employees, employers and learning
and guidance community.
Connexions direct offers on-line information, advice and support to young people
aged 13-19. The site offers easy access to up to date information on learning,
careers, health, relationships, money and other issues.
The Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) is responsible for
improving the focus on all aspects of policy affecting children and young people,
as part of the Government’s aim to deliver educational excellence.
The Department for Innovation, Universities and Skills (DIUS) brings together
functions from the former Department of Trade and Industry, including responsibilities
for science and innovation, with further and higher education and skills,
previously part of the Department for Education and Skills.
The Department of Education is responsible for the central administration of all
aspects of education and related services in Northern Ireland - excepting the
higher and further education sector, responsibility for which is within the
remit of the Department for Employment and Learning.
DEL is responsible for third level education, training and a range of employment
measures, all aimed at giving people the skills, knowledge and opportunities to
work. If you are looking for careers advice in Northern Ireland, this website
provides a host of information, advice and contacts in helping people of all
ages make informed career decisions.
Created in April 2002 to replace the previous Benefits Agency and Employment
Service. The Jobcentre Plus network will provide help in finding jobs and pay
benefits to people of working age (i.e. 16 to 65). It will take over local
offices currently run by both Employment Service and Benefits Agency, including
Jobcentres, Jobcentre Plus offices and social security offices.
MIAP is about streamlining how information on learners and learning is
shared across the education sector so that excellent services are made
available to individuals, employers and communities. It will enable
schools, colleges, universities, training providers and other agencies
to access and share information about individual learners and their own
organisations.
The QCF Learner Achievement Record provides functions to individuals taking
units and/or qualifications from the Qualifications and Credit Framework.
Learners are able to access their individual record of achievement via this
site and give permission to others (including employers and schools, colleges
and training providers) to view them.
UCAS is the UK’s universities and colleges’ central organisation for processing
applications for full-time first degrees, HNDs and university diplomas at 325
institutions offering more than 50,000 courses. Around half a million people
wanting to study at a university or college of higher education use our
services each year.
UfI (University for Industry) aims to meet demand for lifelong learning among
businesses and individuals. Ufi's learning services are being delivered through
learndirect centres, who provide access to courses - over 80%of them online.
Ufi developed the Learn Direct service to change the face of learning for
hundreds of thousands of people. learndirect offers high quality learning at a
time, place and pace to suit the learner.
Learndirect operates a network of more than 2,000 online learning centres in
England, Wales and Northern Ireland providing access to a range of e-learning
opportunities. learndirect offers more than 550 different courses covering a
range of subjects, including management, IT, Skills for Life and languages, at
all levels.
The UK NARIC is the National Agency for the Department for Education and Skills
(DfES). UK NARIC is the only official information provider on the comparability
of international qualifications from over 180 countries worldwide. The UK NARIC
services, supplemented by the National Centre for Vocational Qualifications and
the National Europass Centre, provide the essential assistance in skills
integration and progressions towards employment and further studies in the UK.
The Sector Skills Development Agency (SSDA) is responsible for funding,
supporting and monitoring the network of Sector Skills Councils (SSCs).
The SSDA is a non-departmental public body with its main base in South Yorkshire
and representatives across the UK. The organisation is led by Chair Margaret
Salmon and Chief Executive Mark Fisher, both of whom were appointed by the
Secretary of State for Education and Skills.