Impact
Q: Will providers incur additional costs in preparing to meet the Framework’s expectations?
A: Feedback from the pilot suggests that there is little additional burden on providers. As the Framework aligns with the Common Inspection Framework and contributes to an overall simplification of performance-management arrangements, it should lead to a reduction of bureaucracy overall.
Q: How is the Framework going to affect existing Investors in People accreditations and other quality badges, such as Beacon status?
A: The DIUS has commissioned a study of the range of current quality marks in the context of the roll-out of the Framework to explore ways in which the system can be simplified. Increasingly, providers with Beacon status are regarded as agents of change as the FE system moves toward self-regulation. The LSIS will use the Framework to consider both the conditions under which Beacon status is awarded and under which it may also be withdrawn.
Q: What will be the overall impact of the Framework upon the sector?
A: The FE system is moving rapidly towards a new world of demand-led funding, commissioning by Local Authorities and self-regulation. The Framework for Excellence provides the information foundation to support informed user choice, equitable commissioning and effective self-management and improvement.
Q: How will LSC staff from local offices work with the Framework?
A: The Framework will become embedded into the LSC’s business cycle and will form part of the existing cycle of regular discussions with providers: Framework scores and OPRs will become part of the performance-assessment process. Partnership teams will provide the first-line support to providers and the LSC’s national office will provide technical support, with increasing input from regional data teams.
Q: How will the LSC/relevant funding body use the Framework to inform procurement decisions?
A: From spring 2009, the LSC’s financial and wider intervention policy will have regard to the publicly available elements of the Framework. From spring 2010, interventions such as Notices to Improve and other actions, such as contract withdrawal and removal of funding set out in Identifying and Managing Underperformance (LSC, January 2008), will be triggered by Framework for Excellence scores of ‘Inadequate’.
Q: How much will skills brokers rely upon the Framework to inform their commissioning and referral decisions?
A: The Framework is being designed as the comprehensive assessment tool for the FE system. It will become a key consideration for skills brokers in commissioning and referral decisions. Currently, the LSC is exploring how to present QSR data to employers and brokers by sector.
Q: How will Ofsted use the Framework?
A: Ofsted’s Common Inspection Framework and the Framework for Excellence are strongly linked to each other. Ideally, in future Ofsted’s criteria for risk assessment will use the Framework’s scores, paying particular attention to inadequate levels of performance. The LSC and Ofsted are working together to develop the relationship between the two processes. The revised inspection handbook for September 2008 includes information on how inspectors will begin to take account of performance scores from the Framework.
