CONTACT

Mail :	Plymouth Workforce Development Assessment Centre Plymouth City Council Room 129, Block A, UCP Marjons Plymouth PL6 8BH Plymouth City Council Plymouth PL1 2AA
Phone :	01752 306393
Email :	nvqcentre@plymouth.gov.uk

Course details

Enrolling will allow you, as a learner, to start a workplace assessment process leading to a qualification. You will be provided with information and support, which will enable you to achieve your Level 2, 3, 4 or 5 qualification while being assessed in your workplace.

The course calendar is a timetable for the academic year - in which learners are expected to complete their award. The timetable can be found on the term dates page. In special circumstances there is the facility to place your award on hold until the following academic year, however, this must be put in writing and agreed with the Plymouth Workforce Development Assessment Manager.

How to register on an award

You will need to complete the expression of interest form or send us an email with the following information:

Name, address and telephone number
Details of your workplace and the role you are in
The award/field and level your are interested in

Expression of interest [117KB]

We will then contact you with details of the next induction sessions. The inductions are usually around June/July and the actual courses/assessments begin in September.

Induction

You will be provided with the dates of the free induction sessions. You will receive expert advice and guidance on the agreed set of values and principles, which provide the underpinning knowledge for the occupational standards relevant to your chosen award.

Induction will cover the general overview of the 'portfolio of evidence' with specific guidance on the standardisation of sections about learner professional details and evidence. Once you have attended your induction and completed your enrolment form you will then be allocated an assessor who will contact you to arrange your first visit.

Tutorials

For most of the awards there will be at least six tutorial classes you will have to attend. These will cover various topics such as:

Policies and procedures
Positive relationships
Employee rights
Safeguarding
Customer service
Child development

There is group interaction and you will be provided with handouts relating to each of the tutorials with exlanations of how these can be used as part of your portfolio. Most of our tutorials are held at The Southway Development Centre, Rockfield Avenue, Southway, Plymouth.

The assessment process

Your allocated assessor will be experienced in your field of work. Throughout the course you will receive 11 visits from your assessor in your workplace. On these visits your assessor will provide you with an assessment plan where they will pre-plan the evidence required and the work required for the next meeting. This is how you build up your portfolio - with work based evidence by supplying witness statements, oberservations, professional discussions and questioning with your assessor. Each work product will we assessed and marked by the assessor accordingly.

The learners portfolio

Your portfolio is your file which will contain all of your evidence and work products that you will have built up during your course. This file is your responsibility, however the centre can and may request your file at any time throughout your award and for up to two yeas after completion for external verifier quality assurance purposes.

How to find copies of standards

Standards are what your work products and knowledge based evidence are assessed against. These can be accessed by visiting the appropriate awarding body, such as City and Guilds, then searching by relevant award.