HC Deb 11 June 1991 vol 192 cc523-5W
15. Mr. Favell

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment what progress is being made towards the introduction of comprehensive national vocational qualifications.

Mr. Jackson

Progress in developing a national framework of standards-based vocational qualifications relevant to the needs of the modern workplace has been good. This far-reaching reform is being led by the National Council for Vocational Qualifications, which has been set the target of completing the framework of reformed qualifications to cover 80 per cent. of the work force by the end of 1992. At present almost 300 NVQs are available to around one third of the work force in over 40 major industries.

Comparable progress has been made in producing equivalent Scottish vocational qualifications.

Mr. Matthew Taylor

To ask the Secretary of State for Employment (1) what has been the annual budget of the standards branch of the training, enterprises and education department since the establishment of the National Council for Vocational Qualifications; and if he will make a statement;

(2) what are the annual grand totals of budgets for the industry lead bodies currently engaged in drafting competences, from the date of their establishment, the standards branch of the training, enterprise and education department since the establishment of the National Council for Vocational Qualifications, and the National Council for Vocational Qualifications, since its establishment, as an annual percentage of the work-related further education budget administered by the training, enterprise and education department in each relevant year; and if he will make a statement;

(3) if he will list the industry lead bodies currently engaged in drafting competences and their associated criteria as the basis for national vocational qualifications; what was the date of the establishment of each industry lead body; and what have been their individual budgets from the date of their establishment;

(4) if he will publish the annual budget of the National Council for Vocational Qualifications since its establishment; and if he will make a statement;

(5) if he will place in the Library a copy of the report entitled "Knowledge and Competence", commissioned by the standards branch of the training, enterprise and education department; and if he will make a statement.

Mr. Jackson

The National Council for Vocational Qualifications (NCVQ) was established in 1986 to reform the national framework of vocational qualifications in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. Its key target is to produce national vocational qualifications (NVQs) to cover 80 per cent. of the work force by the end of 1992. The grant-in-aid budgets which have been made available to NCVQ by the Employment Department since 1986–87 to undertake this work are as follows:

£
1986–87 520,000
1987–88 3,708,698
1988–89 3,750,000
1989–90 3,000,000
1990–91 2,621,000
1991–92 3,700,000

The Employment Department's standards programme has provided pump-priming funding since 1987–88 to assist in the development of standards that form the basis of NVQs, and comparable Scottish vocational qualifications (SVQs) in Scotland. These standards are developed through 160 employer-led lead bodies. The annual budgets of the standards programme since 1987–88 are as follows:

£
1987–88 2,086,000
1988–89 3,000,000
1989–90 6,700,000
1990–91 8,911,000
1991–92 9,077,000

The standards programme is administered separately from and is not part of the Employment Department's work-related further education budget, which is £6,633,000 for 1991–92. Figures are not kept centrally for the budgets of lead bodies, which are employer-led and funded. The Employment Department generally funds up to 50 per cent. of the costs of developing standards in particular industries. Total budgets of lead bodies are therefore well in excess of the standards programme budgets. A list of the industry lead bodies which are currently engaged in drafting competences and their associated criteria as the basis for national vocational qualifications is given in section 2 of the Employment Department's publication "The Standards Digest", a copy of which has been placed in the House of Commons Library. Lead bodies progressively came into existence. Section 3 of "The Standards Digest" details when lead bodies started work on developing standards.

The Employment Department's report "Knowledge and Competence: Current Issues in Training and Education" forms part of the technical guidance made available to those who are concerned with developing standards for competence-based vocational qualifications. I am arranging for a copy of this report to be placed in the House of Commons Library.