Following consultations with the regulator, CCEA, we have made a change to the way that the writing element of Essential Skills Communication is marked at Levels 1 and 2. To assist you in preparing your learners for assessment, we have updated the mark schemes for all the sample assessments to reflect this new "Banded Marking" method. The Mark Scheme now contains guidance about how to apply this to learners' work. Should you have any questions please email customersupport@cityandguilds.com so that we may assist you.
5546 – Employability Skills (Northern Ireland) qualifications
This is a reminder to centres that following the review of the Employability suite of qualifications in July 2016 a number of pathways were identified to be withdrawn due to little or no uptake. We originally created these pathways to provide a slightly different range of qualification content/size configurations that could be used within Training for Success (TFS) programmes, although the routes we are withdrawing have in practice had little take-up and are effectively duplicated within the range of 5546 qualifications and units that will remain open.
The following Employability Skills qualifications will therefore be closed to new learners from 31 October 2017:
5546-22 - Award in Employability Skills (Northern Ireland)
5546-25 - Extended Certificate in Employability Skills (Northern Ireland)
5546-44 - Extended Certificate in Employability Skills (Northern Ireland)
Last certification for these routes is 31 October 2018.
However we can offer the following qualifications from the same suite as alternatives:
5546-02 - Award in Employability Skills
5546-05 - Extended Certificate in Employability Skills
These use the same bank of units and are the same credit values as the original qualifications, the only difference being the naming convention on the certificates. If your centre is approved and has direct claims status for the routes that are being withdrawn, City & Guilds is automatically transferring this status and approval to the alternative pathways.
The qualifications below remain open to new registrations:
5546-21 - Introductory Award in Employability Skills (Northern Ireland)
5546-23 - Extended Award in Employability Skills (Northern Ireland)
5546-24 - Certificate in Employability Skills (Northern Ireland)
5546-43 - Certificate in Employability Skills (Northern Ireland)
The last date for new registrations to these qualifications is 31 December 2018.
As part of City & Guilds product life cycle, we will be carrying out a review of these products to determine their future. We welcome feedback from centres about these qualifications as part of the review process, this can be sent to the employability@cityandguilds.com inbox.