DEVELOPMENT PAY ON PROMOTION

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To:           Chief Fire Officers

                Chief Executives/Clerks to Fire Authorities

                Chairs of Fire Authorities

                Directors of Human Resources at Fire Authorities

Members of the National Joint Council               

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30 December 2011

CIRCULAR NJC/09/11

Dear Sir/Madam

DEVELOPMENT PAY ON PROMOTION

1. Authorities will be aware that the NJC agreed in 2005 that assessment processes and practices should be externally verified once developed.

2. Circular NJC/9/05 states:

“Once an authority has had its quality assurance processes verified in accordance with paragraph 9 of the Code of Practice (as set out above), it is able to place individuals who have been substantively promoted on to development rates of pay. “

3. Paragraph 9 of the Code of Practice states:

“9.           There are organisations nationally recognised who comply with DfES specifications who would offer this Quality Assurance through verification, three of which are Edexcel, the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) and the Improvement and Development Agency (IDeA) these are not exclusive and a Fire and Rescue Authority, individually or collectively, may identify and engage other relevantly qualified⁷ bodies to provide this service.“

                        7 Bodies constituted under DfES meeting the criteria to validate National Occupational Standards (or equivalent in the devolved administrations.”

4. Since 2005 there have been several changes for the DfES and in more recent times it has not been responsible for the validation of national occupational standards as set out the footnote to paragraph 9 as shown above.

5. Following contact with the now Department for Education and the Department for Business Innovation and Skills we received confirmation that this responsibility has now passed to the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation (Ofqual). 

6. Ofqual is the independent regulator of qualifications, examinations and assessments in England and of vocational qualifications in Northern Ireland and recognises over 140 awarding bodies who must have met its criteria which includes ‘whether an assessment is fit for purpose and can be delivered’.  This accords with the original intention of the NJC which chose the ‘bodies constituted under DfES meeting the criteria to validate National Occupational Standards (or equivalent in the devolved administrations)’ because all parties were confident that those bodies would be able to validate an assessment process as fit for purpose and that it was being delivered fairly and transparently.

7. We write to inform you that, with immediate effect, the NJC has agreed that the replacement reference point is Ofqual’s Register of Recognised Qualifications, which contains details of recognised awarding organisations:

            http://register.ofqual.gov.uk/Organisation/Browse.

8. This reference point (the Register) applies to English and Welsh fire authorities as well as Northern Ireland.

9. As far as Scotland is concerned the previously suggested awarding body, the Scottish Qualification Authority (SQA) is also contained on the Register.  This does not preclude Scottish fire authorities from utilising the services of another one of the listed organisations should they also operate in Scotland.  

10. Examples of listed organisations with fire service experience are Edexcel (although it is referred to as Pearson Education Limited) and the Institute of Fire Engineers (IFE).  Please note the IDeA (which is now part of the Local Government Association, no longer offers this service).

Yours faithfully

SARAH MESSENGER

MATT WRACK

Joint Secretaries