June 2008
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Welcome to the June eBriefing. As Richard mentioned in our May edition, this is my first month as your new Editor. My name is Helen Gerlach and I am the new Senior Marketing and Communications officer here at the CfA. I join the CfA at a very exciting time and our hard-working team is busy as you will see below. In the meantime, as mid-summer fast approaches, our thoughts turn to outdoor pursuits with tennis football and holidays no doubt uppermost in many of our minds. To keep you focused and cool you down this month, we bring you the latest from the equally important world of Business & Administration. Our top story this month is the launch of a new, free-of-charge job advertisement facility for your organisation and for Business & Administration roles in UK companies. We’ve also identified an excellent case study that really shows how qualifications in Business & Administration can help to launch and progress careers, and have an important request for your feedback into content for the 14-19 Diploma in Business, Administration and Finance, before it becomes set in stone later on this month. If you would like to comment on any of these stories or have a feature of your own to contribute, please contact Helen Gerlach.
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CfA launches job advertisement facility As part of our ongoing commitment to promoting and developing Business & Administration skills for employers and throughout the workplace, the CfA is delighted to launch a new facility which is available as from this month. Businesses and organisations throughout the UK will have the opportunity to post employment vacancies, for administrators and for staff in vocational learning providers. This means that CfA will be able to add further value to graduates, members and businesses by offering relevant positions from trusted and recognised employers, to assist them in their search for the ideal employee. If you have a vacant position in your organisation or would be interested in this service, please contact Oliver Stammers. |
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The CfA is currently finalising details for our Autumn 2008 workshop programme. The workshops will centre around best practice in Assessment and will be held in venues in Bristol, London, Birmingham, Leeds, and Edinburgh. Further details will follow in July's eBriefing but in order to register your interest in these events, or to suggest locations you would like us to visit, please email Tennille Balaz with your name, organisation and preferred location. |
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It gives us great pleasure to announce two new appointments at the CfA this month. Helen Gerlach joins us as Senior Marketing & Communications Officer with a background in PR and marketing, international project management and training, all of which will be of value to the CfA. Helen will be responsible for the monthly eBriefings and communications aspects of new and ongoing CfA projects. We also welcome Oliver Stammers to the CfA as his third year placement whilst undertaking his Marketing degree at Oxford Brookes University. Ollie will be working in the marketing team with responsibility for the ongoing maintenenace of the CfA website, marketing planning, customer service and new product development.
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New reports designed to further enhance our endorsed ePortfolio are going live next week. With forward ePortfolio PLUS, cross referencing of evidence is automatically tracked and displayed in one report showing the progress candidates are making and where there are gaps in progress. This means no longer needing to keep a record of the number of pieces of evidence that have been cross-referenced against a Performance Indicator and Knowledge statement. Candidates will also be helped to make even more rapid progress. There is no longer any need to go in to the ePortfolio to check whether evidence is approved and judgments made. Candidates will know as soon as they log on to their email and receive email alerts whenever an action is taken in the ePortfolio that affects them or their assessors and verifiers. Finally we have enhanced the ePortfolio's innovative tool that enables Expert witnesses to comment on a candidate's work and confirm embedded practice. When an Expert Witness statement is requested, users will automatically receive the e-mail addresses of all those people who have been added to the ePortfolio because they can genuinely comment on the work. forward ePortfolio PLUS is a web-based, access anywhere ePortfolio giving you cost effective access to greater assessment efficiency and is endorsed by more Awarding Bodies than any other system. For more information please click here. Reminder – just a reminder that Cameron Woodrow will be in Scotland during the week beginning 16th June and is available to demonstrate the benefits of forward ePortfolio PLUS. If you would like to arrange a visit and a product demonstration, please contact Cameron. |
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Modern Apprenticeship awards 2008 The Modern Apprenticeship Awards - Wales 2008 is looking to reward apprentices, learning providers, colleges and employers who have excelled in contributing to the development of the Modern Apprenticeship programme in Wales. Application forms can be downloaded from www.wales.gov.uk/maawards All entries must be received no later than 31 July 2008.
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Full Steam Ahead for the new OCR Text Processing (Business Professional) QCF Qualifications Major changes to OCRs ‘Text Processing' suite of vocational qualifications take place on the 1st of October 2008. All of the current qualifications have undergone revision to enable them to be offered on a credit basis using the new Qualifications and Credit Framework from QCA. Details of all new units are now available to download from the OCR website sam ple examination papers will also soon be available for free download. All centres have received detailed mailings about the changes. In summary
For further information please visit the OCR website. Please click here. |
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Apprenticeship helps secure promotion and career advancement KERRY Reynolds, 20, from Portland is enjoying a flourishing career thanks to her business administration apprenticeship with Paragon Skills for Industry. Kerry recently completed a foundation apprenticeship in Business & Administration while working at Medisave UK Ltd, a Weymouth-based specialist for medical supplies and HSE First Aid Kits. In her role as customer accounts and purchasing administration supervisor, Kerry's job is varied and includes setting up new customer accounts, placing stock orders and dealing with order queries. She said: "I have benefited a lot from the apprenticeship. It has given me more confidence in my job and I have developed many skills which I can apply to my working day, such as IT and communication. My progression has led to my recent promotion which has now allowed me to progress to a Level 3 apprenticeship which I will complete in August." Please click here to read the full article about Kerry's experience of her apprenticeship and how it has benefitted her. |
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The CfA's Student Handbooks are an invaluable resource for Business & Administration candidates of all vocational qualifications and cover ALL units at Levels 1, 2 and 3. Full of useful information, the Level 2 & 3 Second Edition Student Handbooks cover the Business & Administration Standards and incorporate the 2007 Incremental Change modifications. The Handbook clarifies the skills that candidates will be expected to develop for each unit and demonstrates real life examples of working situations which will enable candidates to generate evidence. The user-friendly assessment exercises ensure that candidates are fully conversant with life in the office environment. For more information and to download a sam ple chapter, please click here. Student Handbooks Levels 1, 2 and 3 are available for order through the CfA online shop. To reserve your copy, go to www.cfa.uk.com/shop_online.html. |
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City & Guilds launches newly accredited employability qualifications City & Guilds has launched a new suite of flexible qualifications that assess generic employability and personal development skills. The Award and Certificate in Employability and Personal Development are available at Entry 2, Entry 3 and Level 1 and are suitable for young people and adults who are pre-employment, in employment or seeking employment. Accredited by QCA on the Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF) the new flexible qualifications contribute to the four Progression Pathways in the Foundation Learning Tier (FLT) and are assessed by portfolio. For further details, please telephone (0)20 7294 2800, email centresupport@cityandguilds.com or visit www.cityandguilds.com to download full details. |
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Public Services Diploma Feedback request We welcome your valuable feedback at this final stage in the process of putting together content and skills needed for the Public Services 14-19 Diploma. This is to ensure that those taking it will be properly prepared for work in your sector of employment or within their field of Higher Education. To help us with this task, QCA have commissioned an online questionnaire that will let us know your thoughts and opinions about the Diploma content, including what works well and what needs further input. This sector demands high standards and we would like to ensure that all elements of the Diploma in Public Services are relevant. Please click on the following links to see the draft criteria documents: www.qca.org.uk/qca_17467.aspx with more general information about the phase 3 consultation process at www.qca.org.uk/diplomaphase3. The online consultation is available at www.qca.org.uk/qca_17475.aspx from now until the 20th June. |
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The Summer edition of the Young Apprenticeship Newsletter is now available. I would like to start by congratulating the partnerships who were successful in their application to offer the Cohort 5 Business & Administration programme. This year saw an increased number of applications as the programme continues to become more and more popular. There are now a total of 46 Business & Administration partnerships approved for Cohort 5, many of whom have been involved for several Cohorts and are proving to be a great asset to the programme. I would also like to welcome all new partnerships to the programme, and encourage them to utilise the support network of the CfA for any information or assistance they may need. |
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The EDI Level 2 & 3 Certificates in Business & Administration (Organisations and People) This is a short reminder for those of you who are taking the EDI Level 2 and 3 Certificates in Business & Administration (Organisations and People). Registration is due to expire on 31st July 2008. EDI is requesting an extension of accreditation for these qualifications and will inform customers when the extension has been approved. |
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Q: Can Functional Skills be used as part of the Business & Administration Apprenticeship frameworks? A:Yes, from the 1 st January 2008, Functional Skills can be used in place of the mandatory Key Skills within the Business & Administration Apprenticeship frameworks. This is available for centres taking part in the QCA Functional Skills pilots within England.
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To subscribe to the CfA eBriefing, please email Helen Gerlach. The CfA is not responsible for the content of any external links from this newsletter. The Council for Administration is a registered charity, No 1095 809. |
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If you would like to submit information to the CfA eBriefing, please contact Helen Gerlach on 020 7091 9620.
© CfA 2008
