Education (Scotland) Bill: business and regulatory impact assessment

Consumer Assessment

There is not expected to be an impact on consumers as a result of the provisions in the Bill, or from the activity that stems from implementation. This is because the role and remit of the functions that may impact this are already present in the system as part of the SQA and Education Scotland. The measures in the Bill do not: impact the goods and services in the qualifications market; affect essential services; involve changes in how consumer data is used; increase opportunities for consumers to be targeted by unscrupulous suppliers; affect the information available to consumers; or affect routes for consumers to seek advice or raise complaints.

Qualifications Scotland

The functions of Qualifications Scotland will take on the responsibilities of the SQA across two areas. The measures in the Bill will make no change to these.

The first is with the awarding functions of the Qualifications Scotland, which will mean it can provide an array of qualifications, assessment, awarding, training and other types of qualifications related services to consumers. This includes learners, as the direct users of qualifications, and other types of consumers that will procure Qualifications Scotland’s services on behalf of learners, such as education and training establishments, local authorities, and businesses and employers. The ability to provide different services and products means the demands and needs of consumers will be more easily met by Qualifications Scotland. The involvement of consumers of qualifications in the governance of the body will also better support meeting their expectations.

The second is with the accreditation functions of the body, which means it can provide consumers of all types with information relating to qualifications which have and have not been accredited and awarding bodies who are or are not regulated and approved by the Qualifications Body. Similarly, the ability for other awarding bodies to operate in the Scottish market and create and offer different types of qualifications improves the overall choice for consumers. Through the accreditation process, Qualifications Scotland will be able to give a credential which is a clear indicator of the quality and high standards of a qualification, providing consumers with more information to help them make informed decisions and have confidence in quality of the services and products they buy.

Office of HM Chief Inspector of Education in Scotland

The function of HM Chief Inspector of Education will take on the responsibility for the inspection function of Education Scotland.

There is not expected to be any direct impact on consumers as a result of this part of the Bill. This includes learners, parents and the broad range of education establishments that will be inspected. However, the role of the HM Chief Inspector of Education will be to inspect education and other establishments and ensure they are delivering education provision and related services in a way that meets inspection criteria. Through effective inspection of these establishments, there will be a positive impact for users of education and related services, either as users or consumers of education provision in Scotland.

Test Run of Business Forms There will be no new forms for businesses to be introduced within the Education (Scotland) Bill provisions. It will be the responsibility of Qualifications Scotland and the HM Chief Inspector of Education to consider any new business forms they may require. This would include the format they take and the implications of them.