Regional Progression Agreement in the South West

Originally featured in vetnetworks - Issue 6 (Page 9)

Few people really realise how far Cornwall is from Somerset, let alone Gloucester!
The first meeting of the Steering Group in the autumn was well attended, with a membership that included the Universities of Bristol, Gloucestershire, Plymouth and the West of England, the Royal Agricultural College, a number of major FE providers, two of the other regional
LLNs and Aimhigher. 

Consideration of the content of the Western Access Progression Agreement (WAPA), already agreed by the regional board as a good model on which to base VETNET LLN  regional agreement, was thorough and thought provoking.

The heart of WAPA is a policy statement which specifies the information that parties to the agreement must provide to each other, and to potential applicants, and the minimum arrangements for ensuring effective communication between all parties.  It was agreed that
this should be reviewed and updated for the VETNET LLN context, and this task was delegated toa small working group.

The Steering Group also agreed to retain, subject to review, a section of WAPA which articulates the principles and values that underpin the commitment of each party to the agreement.  These are drawn from relevant quality standards or good practice guidance (such as the QAA guidance on good practice in Admissions), thereby anchoring the requirements of the agreement within
national quality frameworks.

The working group, made up of representatives of FE and HE providers, has had some lively debates about the proper and necessary range of information that should be included within entry requirements for applicants with vocational qualifications. Research undertaken prior to the inaugural meeting in Yeovil confirmed that information for such students from HE providers in the region is often inadequate, inconsistent (between HE providers and not infrequently between subject areas in one provider), and sometimes inaccurate (in relation to
what a particular qualification can possibly deliver).   

The aim of the policy is to ensure that the HE providers who sign up to the agreement get this right in the future – not only by complying with the information and communication policy, but through the better arrangements the policy also puts into place between all providers to ensure that information flows in all directions, and HE Admissions are fully informed about vocational qualifications. 

Detailed work on the BTEC qualifications has been completed, and the group will now move on to consider the City and Guilds qualifications and the Advanced Apprenticeship, as well as the clarity of entry requirements for mature students and the role of APL and APEL. 

The central purpose of this project is to develop a regional framework agreement that all the HE providers in the region can sign up to.  As all the participating HEIs (except Plymouth, which is not a member of the Western Vocational LLN) are already signatories to and active participants in the operation of WAPA, the Steering Group is optimistic that this can be achieved during the
early months of 2009.

Plans are now being finalised for a “mini-conference” for the region in March which will provide an opportunity for Admissions staff and course managers from both FE and HE, as well as representatives of the major awarding bodies and Lantra, to come together to explore the value
and possible extent of improved curriculum alignment between the FE and HE programmes in the region, and to discuss what sort of short term projects would best develop any such potential.  

Julie Farmer | FARMER RESEARCH ASSOCIATES