UK Vocational Qualifications Reform Programme

The UK government's skills agenda is to improve skills, thereby increasing employee productivity and output, and improving social equality and equity. To achieve these objectives, a range of reforms are ensuring that the whole skills system is driven by employers' and learners' needs.

The UK Vocational Qualifications Reform Programme (VQRP) was set up in 2005 with the aim of ensuring that the system of developing vocational qualifications (VQs) is led by demand. At the end of 2006, the Leitch Review of Skills in the UK was published, recommending further changes to the system, focusing particularly on England (see The Leitch ambitions for details). On 12 June 2008 the next steps in the overall skills and welfare reforms were set out in the paper 'Work Skills'.

Within this context, the VQ Reform Programme is a UK-wide programme introducing changes particularly in England, Wales and Northern Ireland, with the aim of creating a system:

• based on learner and employer needs;
• with greater clarity and more flexibility and choice;
• encouraging a more skilled and productive workforce;
• allowing individuals to fulfil their potential; and
• supporting greater social justice and opportunity.

See About the VQ Reforms for more details.

This UK VQRP site is intended to help organisations implementing reforms to the UK vocational qualifications system, including Sector Skills Councils (SSCs), employers, awarding organisations, adult training providers and other partners. The reforms currently apply only to vocational qualifications as defined by the UK VQRP.

Summaries of the planned changes and the variations between the four nations of the UK are provided in the About the VQ Reforms and Benefits for stakeholders sections.

Current reform issues details current issues being addressed by the programme.

As detailed in Who's doing what? and Country-specific reforms, this is a four nation programme which is being jointly run by:

• England: Department for Innovation, Universities & Skills (DIUS)
• Wales: Department for Children, Education, Lifelong Learning and Skills (DCELLS)
• Northern Ireland: Department for Employment & Learning Northern Ireland (DELNI)
• Scotland: Department for Education & Training

DIUS manages the Programme Office. For further information contact the VQ Reform Programme Office