European Education Holdings is the first education eco-system in Europe.
ACADEMIC PARTNERSHIP ALLIANCESPolicies & Requirements
1. Introduction
1.1. About us
European Education Holdings (EEH) only invests in Education. EEH currently has four international higher education institutes, three language training institutions, and 1 Edtech company, and our portfolio is still being expanded.
As an education holding, EEH deals specifically with (1) Financial and funding; (2) Support and strategic planning; (3) Audit and Assurance of EEH members.
1.2. Understanding the Credits, ECTS and EQF
Our qualifications are based on units that have credit value and levels (from Entry Level to Level 8). One credit approximately equates to 10 learning hours. This assists the Centre and learners to evaluate how much time they will need to gain the desired qualification.
Your Learners can gain three types of qualifications:
- Award – you can achieve an Award with 1 – 12 credits
- Certificate – you can achieve a Certificate with 13 – 36 credits
- Diploma – to achieve a Diploma you will need at least 37 credits
If a qualification includes a unit that you have already been awarded, you can use the unit you have already achieved towards that qualification.
Click this link for information on the Correspondence between UK and Irish frameworks with European Qualification Framework.
2. Centre Approval
2.1. Becoming an European Education Holdings Approved Learning Centre.
We offer our qualifications through numerous delivery Centres globally. To be able to deliver European Education Holdings (EEH) qualifications, you will need to become a EEH Approved Learning Centre.
2.2. Which organisations can become EEH Approved Learning Centre?
If you are a College, University, Independent Training Provider or other Education Institution and have resources, rigorous processes and expertise to meet the requirements, you may follow the step-by-step process outlined below to become an approved European Education Holdings Approved Centre (The Centre)
The Centre approval criteria (section 11) detail the staff, processes and records you will need to meet the requirements of both EEH and our regulators.
The step-by-step process outlined below shows how to become an approved European Education Holdings Approved Learning Centre.
Step 1
Complete the Centre Approval enquiry form on our website.
Step 2
A member of our team will contact you to provide you with your Centre Approval Application Pack and answer any questions you may have about your application.
Step 3
Complete the Centre Approval application form and submit supporting documents.
The Centre Fee is paid at this stage. Please visit the Fees related information page on our website.
Step 4
We will review your application and contact you to either:
- Request additional information to complement your application. This will then be further progressed or
- Arrange an approval visit. We will be looking for evidence to confirm that the Centre approval criteria have been met. Where an approval visit is not practical you may be granted approval and pending a physical inspection as soon as the first learner registrations take
We will aim to confirm the outcome of review of your application within 2 weeks.
The outcome may be approval granted; conditional approval subject to an action plan or approval denied with reasons given.
2.3. Approval granted
Once approval is granted, we will send you our Approved Learning Centre Agreement to be signed by an authorised person within your organisation. On receipt of the signed Centre Agreement, we will send formal confirmation and your Approved Learning Centre Certificate.
2.4. Specialist Qualifications
If you are seeking to gain approval for any of our specialist qualifications (for example Doctorate Programs), additional Centre approval requirements must be met as indicated for each qualification and outlined within the qualification specification.
2.5. Additional Qualification Approval
Once you have been approved as EEH Approved Learning Centre, you can apply to add additional qualifications to your provision at any time. You need to complete an Additional Qualification. Approval form and submit any necessary supporting documents such as CVs (see Appendix 4). On receipt of your application, we will contact you to arrange a Centre visit or inform you if a desktop approval can be used to progress your application. From time-to-time additional qualification approvals may be delayed if further information is required from you. However, we will work closely with you to clarify and resolve any issues.
2.6. Distance, Online and Blended Learning
If you are seeking to gain approval for European Education Holdings assessed through distance means, you must comply fully with the approval requirements for these qualifications.
To gain approval you must provide suitable resources and ensure that learners have access to these. If you are intending to use distance learning and assessment you must ensure that the requirements of the Distance Learning Policy are fully met. Appendix 5 provides a checklist of Centre Requirements for delivering qualifications by distance, online and blended learning. To apply to deliver qualifications by distance means you must complete the application form in Appendix 6.
2.7. Changes to Centre Details
Centres are responsible for notifying us of any Centre changes i.e., Centre name, contacts, key personnel, legal status, and control. A Notification of Change Form must be completed as soon as a change is known. (Appendix 6)
3. Centre Support
We will support you by providing all the information you need to plan and deliver your EEH programs. We have specifications and resources available for tutors and assessors to inform and support your qualification delivery, assessment and internal quality assurance. We continually update these, so it is important that you revisit the website from time to time to see what other resources and new qualifications we offer as our portfolio is growing in response to demand.
3.1. Training support activities
We offer a wide range of Centre support and resources specifically designed to help you deliver our qualifications. This includes bespoke training to suit your needs. In addition, we are more than happy to discuss individual Centre requirements with you and can arrange Centre training.
3.2. Marketing Guidelines for approved Centres
Centres are required to adhere to the Guidelines below as per their signed Centre Agreement. An approved Centre must ensure that:
- Use of EEH universities logo complies with the logo guidance policy document.
- All European Education Holdings approved to deliver, are displayed consistently with the full title as shown on the EEH website in all marketing, social media and communications with learners and other stakeholders.
- On the case dual qualification programs with Ofqual Regulated Awarding bodies, it does not mislead learners and other stakeholders by using terms that are not associated with diploma qualifications such as HND; Honours; Masters; Graduate and Postgraduate or other higher education term only associated with university programmes. Terms that cannot be justified such as ‘higher’, ‘extended’ or ‘advanced’ when the qualification is not provided as a progression route from another Subjective statements about the qualification which may be misleading.
4. Learner recruitment and registration
It is important that you recruit learners with integrity. The principles of equal opportunities must be applied to all learners and those involved in teaching and assessing EEH. This means that all qualifications must be made available to everyone who can reach the required standard and learners should be free from any barriers that restrict access and progression.
As an approved Centre you must make a judgment about the learner’s potential to benefit from and complete the selected qualification.
As an approved Centre you must make a judgment about the learner’s potential to benefit from and complete the selected qualification.
4.1. Learner Induction and Initial Assessment
You should ensure that all learners undertake an induction programme at the start of their course. This should introduce them to the course structure and requirements and how they will be assessed. A good induction programme will also evaluate learning styles and needs and of course introduce the policies and processes that are present to support their learning experience. It will also explain how individual learners progress is monitored.
4.2. Learner Registration process
You must register your learners within 28 days from the class commencement or enrolment whichever is earlier. Late registrations incur a £50 penalty per learner registration. To register learners, you need to:
- Complete the Learner Registration Sheet
- Do not change any field in this prescribed Learner Registration Sheet as it will make the data invalid and cause delay in the process.
- Complete all fields if you are a UK Centre. Non-UK Centres do not need to complete column B.
- For qualification and unit reference numbers please see the updated specification available to download from the EEH universities website.
- Email the Learner Registration Sheet to support@education.holdings
- You will then receive an invoice from EEH universities for the total registration.
- EEH universities will email you confirmation with a list of learners.
- EEH universities will email each learner to confirm.
5. Delivering a course
5.1. Flexible Delivery Options for Qualifications
We do not specify the mode of delivery for our qualifications; therefore, you are free to deliver a qualification using any mode of delivery that meets the needs of your learners. (Face to face, distance learning etc.) However, some qualifications may have specific delivery requirements which will be outlined within that qualification specification.
Your main tools for preparing to deliver a EEH’s university are:
1. The EEH’s university Specification
2. The assignment briefs that EEH’s university will make available to you upon learner registration
The qualification specification provides full information including unit aims, learning outcomes, assessment criteria, assessment methods, indicative content and a reading list.
Your course tutors will prepare the timetable, lesson plans and devise the study materials including assignment and assessment guides necessary for the delivery of each qualification unit.
We have quality assured assignment briefs available for all our qualifications. Any assignment briefs you create MUST be approved by EEH universities before use. The assignment briefs are available to you once the registration of your learners is complete.
It is important to ensure that your chosen mode of delivery does not unlawfully or unfairly discriminate, whether directly or indirectly, and that equality of opportunity is promoted.
Where it is reasonable and practicable to do so, you will take steps to address identified inequalities or barriers that may arise.
Guided Learning Hours (GLH) which are listed in each unit give you the number of hours of teacher-supervised or direct study time likely to be required to teach that unit.
5.2. Assessing your Learners
As an approved Centre you are responsible for the assessment of all learners’ work. The assessment of EEH’s university units is primarily assignment based.
You can assess your learners by using any or a combination of the following assessment methods:
- Essay
- Portfolio of evidence
- A task set by EEH’s university
- A case study
- Activity plan or planned activity
- Examination
- Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL)
- Learner’s own work products
- Oral questions and answers
- Professional discussion
The assessment methodology is usually indicated in the EEH’s university specification and unit information. For many EEH’s universities, as they contribute to degree and higher degree programmes, the assessment methodology of choice is designed to provide opportunity for higher skills development and testing.
By adopting a wider range of assessment methods, learners are given the maximum opportunity to respond using their own learning styles and a diverse range of appropriate assessment methods which contributes to a more inclusive approach to assessment design. For more information on assessing your learners please see our presentation here Assessing European Education Holdings
5.3. Marking the work
The marking scheme for each of the European Education Holdings’s universities is criterion based with final decisions recorded as Pass or Refer. We do not use a numerical or alphabetical assessment system. All units are summatively assessed on completion of each component. However, you should track learner achievement throughout all units within a programme and assessment records should detail the dates and staff involved in all assessment and internal quality assurance decisions.
5.4. Formative feedback
During the assessment process there is an opportunity to record formative feedback and it is good practice to do so.
Learners can receive formative feedback in different ways – through critiques and discussion, self and peer assessment, through tutorial and other formal and informal means. Formative feedback should give learners a clear indication of the level of their current achievement. It should be effective, informative, valid, reliable and robust. Learners should be encouraged to self – assess and evaluate their own work prior to formal assessment. They should receive individual verbal feedback to encourage a discussion about their work, and they should receive written feedback that highlights strengths and areas for improvement.
5.5. Summative Unit Marking
The tasks you design to evaluate your learners must correspond to each of the assessment criteria per unit, per qualification.
When marking consider the following:
- Is there enough evidence that learners are meeting each assessment criteria?
- Has the learner structured their work in an organised and logical manner?
- Is there a response for each task?
- Has the learner met all the task requirements?
- Has the learner understood the task and how the task should be answered? i.e., if the task asks, ‘to compare’, have they done that?
Your learners must complete an Assignment Cover Sheet provided by EEH’s universities.
Your assessors must mark the learners’ work using the EEH’s universities Assessment Marking Sheets which we will provide you with.
Once completed you can forward the assessment marking sheets to the learner for feedback or for re doing an assignment. If a learner has not yet achieved a Pass, the feedback will provide an opportunity for a period of additional learning; will help learners rework their assignment and submit it again. The feedback should be written against the assessment criteria so that learners have a clear understanding of what is missing and take the right actions to raise their achievement.
You need to set a reasonable deadline for this. You must save both the learner’s initial submission and re-submission for external quality assurance so that there is a clear picture of the learner’s progress.
5.6. Authenticity of learner submissions
You must have processes in place to ensure the authenticity of learner work. This may include signed learner declarations of authenticity, use of plagiarism software and where appropriate you may wish to use a viva or other processes to ensure the work being presented belongs to the learner.
5.7. Internal Quality Assurance
Internal Quality Assurance (IQA) is the process of monitoring the teaching, learning, and assessment activities that a learner that a training provider will undertake. Often, IQAs are the Supervisors or Managers within training Centres. They’re responsible for the staff, systems, and procedures.
Internal quality assurance at Centres must consider as a minimum;
- assessment decisions made by all assessors;
- assessment decisions to meet the criteria of the specifications;
- learner work that reflects the level of achievement and
- learner work that reflects certificate
- The processes by which these are
For more information, please watch our narrated presentation here Quality Assurance of European Education Holdings
The role of the Internal Quality Assurer (IQA) at your Centre is to make informed judgement(s) regarding the practice of and decisions made by the assessment team to maintain standards.
As a minimum, your Internal Quality Assurer should:
- plan what will be monitored, from whom and when
- observe tutor and assessor performance and provide developmental feedback
- sample assessment records, learners’ work and assessment decisions
- meet with learners
- facilitate the standardisation of tutor and assessor practice
Your internal quality assurer (IQA) should also look out for:
- evidence of standardisation activities leading to one assessor giving more of an advantage to a learner than another assessor of the same subject
- satisfactory completion of action points from quality assurance reports not being carried out by the target date
- assessment of learner needs
- evidence of authenticity
- assessor expertise, knowledge and competence
- Under or over assessment
- Use of assistive technology (if any)
- Adequate resources
- Quality of record keeping
- Learner feedback
5.8. External quality assurance (EQA)
As an approved Centre you must ensure that all learner work has met the standards through appropriate assessment and internal quality assurance processes as described above. Once you are satisfied that all units have met the standard, then you can request for an EEH’s university External Quality Assurer to be allocated to your Centre.
The intention of external quality assurance of assessment is to monitor and evaluate the performance of an approved Centre and to promote continuous improvement in the assessment process. An EQA’s role is to review the processes of assessment and internal quality assurance within an approved Centre.
Our External Quality Assurers are occupationally and professionally competent to ensure accurate and consistent standards of assessment across EEH’s university delivery Centres and over time. They are responsible for completing external quality assurance activities and providing feedback to the Centres and providing EEH’s university with the evidence needed to award, or otherwise, a qualification.
5.9. The EQA process
Step 1
Once assessment and IQA are complete you can request for an EEH’s university External Quality Assurer to be allocated to your Centre. You do this by emailing the following
- A completed EQA request form
- Learner List Grade Sheet to: support@education.holdings
Step 2
We will invoice you for the EQA request, please see fees here.
Step 3
We will confirm correct completion of EQA request form/grade sheet/learner list and receipt of payment
Step 4
We will allocate an External Quality Assurer (EQA) within 2 working days of receipt of your EQA request and payment.
Step 5
We will ensure the EQA will liaises with you regarding a visit or remote verification to sample learners’ work and assessment records within 2 days of allocation.
Step 6
We will provide a completed External Quality Assurance report to include details on the above criteria and any areas where further development is required within 7 working days following the EQA activity or quality visit.
5.10. Sampling
As with Internal Quality Assurance, the EQA will select a sample of learner work to quality assure. This may or may not be from work that has been internally quality assured at the discretion of the EQA.
The EQA sampling process will consist of the EQA sampling a minimum of 6 pieces of work
| Total Entries | Total Sample Per assessment or portfolio |
| Up to 6 assignments | All assessments should be sampled |
| 7 – 20 | 50%, based on the criteria listed above |
| Above 20 | 25%, based on the criteria listed above |
| Unitised sample | All units submitted to be sampled for each assessor |
and a square root of the remaining learner work. Should the EQA wish to sample further pieces of work to satisfy themselves of any themes or trends this should be available.
5.11. Issuing Certificates
Following successful confirmation of the results by the EQA e-certificates and transcripts will be issued through the EEH universities online certification portal. Paper based certificates can be ordered through the same portal for a fee.
6. Endorsed Learning Programmes
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We recognise that not all existing qualifications fit the needs of your organisation, which is why EEH areable to offer Endorsed Learning Programmes – our recognition of your own courses and training programmes. If you are interested in endorsement of your good quality programmes that are devised and delivered either in-house or externally, we can provide the option to recognise by endorsement.
If you would like to more information about endorsed learning programmes or would like to apply for your own programme to be endorsed by EEH, you can find further information here: Endorsed Learning Programmes.
7. Issues at Centres
We acknowledge that our approved Centres generally act in the best interests of the learners, although there are some instances where we may need to intervene.
Where we become aware of an incident that has arisen, or we have cause to believe that an incident may arise, we need to investigate.
Where we become aware of an incident that has arisen, or we have cause to believe that an incident may arise, we need to investigate.
7.1. Incident reports
We review and monitor any incidents that may affect the secure administration and award of learners on our qualifications and offer any guidance and training that would help to improve practice at your Centre. You are sent an incident report to complete within 10 working days of an incident taking place to outline the incident, summarise how the situation occurred and describe the measures they have taken to ensure similar instances do not occur in the future.
The report is reviewed by the EEH university quality department, and a decision made as to whether to undertake further investigations.
Where your Centre is found to be non-compliant with areas of the Centre Agreement, we may consider the incident to be maladministration or malpractice and place sanctions against your Centre. This will affect your Centre’s risk rating and could result in your Centre’s approval being suspended or withdrawn.
7.2. Malpractice and maladministration
EEH malpractice and maladministration policy can be found on our website here EEH Malpractice and Maladministration Policy. As with all other policies, Centres are required to have their own equivalent which is reviewed for suitability as part of the Centre approval process.
Malpractice: Malpractice is any deliberate activity, neglect, default or other practice that compromises the integrity of the assessment process and/or the validity of certificates.
Malpractice can include criminal offences such as bribery or falsifying of assessment records (fraud). Other examples would include failing to maintain the security of an assessment (e.g. by giving away exam questions or marking schemes), assisting learners in the production of projects and assignments so that the submission is not the learner’s own work, and redacting or changing examination questions or assignment tasks, thus compromising the integrity of the assessment.
Maladministration: The term maladministration relates to any activity, neglect, default or other practice that results in the EEH Centre or learner not complying with the specified requirements for delivery of the qualifications as set out in the relevant policies and procedures where applicable malpractice in accordance with the requirements set out in this document also constitutes malpractice awarding organisation or Centre.
You must report any allegation of suspected malpractice/maladministration to EEH. Failure to report allegations of malpractice/maladministration can lead to awards not being conferred and certificates not being issued, and future registrations not being accepted.
Where your Centre has been found not to have reported allegations of suspected malpractice/maladministration we may apply sanctions as set out in our Centre Sanction Policy.
7.1. Incident reports
We review and monitor any incidents that may affect the secure administration and award of learners on our qualifications and offer any guidance and training that would help to improve practice at your Centre. You are sent an incident report to complete within 10 working days of an incident taking place to outline the incident, summarise how the situation occurred and describe the measures they have taken to ensure similar instances do not occur in the future.
The report is reviewed by the EEH university quality department, and a decision made as to whether to undertake further investigations.
Where your Centre is found to be non-compliant with areas of the Centre Agreement, we may consider the incident to be maladministration or malpractice and place sanctions against your Centre. This will affect your Centre’s risk rating and could result in your Centre’s approval being suspended or withdrawn.
7.2. Malpractice and maladministration
EEH malpractice and maladministration policy can be found on our website here EEH Malpractice and Maladministration Policy. As with all other policies, Centres are required to have their own equivalent which is reviewed for suitability as part of the Centre approval process.
Malpractice: Malpractice is any deliberate activity, neglect, default or other practice that compromises the integrity of the assessment process and/or the validity of certificates.
Malpractice can include criminal offences such as bribery or falsifying of assessment records (fraud). Other examples would include failing to maintain the security of an assessment (e.g. by giving away exam questions or marking schemes), assisting learners in the production of projects and assignments so that the submission is not the learner’s own work, and redacting or changing examination questions or assignment tasks, thus compromising the integrity of the assessment.
Maladministration: The term maladministration relates to any activity, neglect, default or other practice that results in the EEH Centre or learner not complying with the specified requirements for delivery of the qualifications as set out in the relevant policies and procedures where applicable malpractice in accordance with the requirements set out in this document also constitutes malpractice awarding organisation or Centre.
You must report any allegation of suspected malpractice/maladministration to EEH. Failure to report allegations of malpractice/maladministration can lead to awards not being conferred and certificates not being issued, and future registrations not being accepted.
Where your Centre has been found not to have reported allegations of suspected malpractice/maladministration we may apply sanctions as set out in our Centre Sanction Policy.
7.1. Incident reports
We review and monitor any incidents that may affect the secure administration and award of learners on our qualifications and offer any guidance and training that would help to improve practice at your Centre. You are sent an incident report to complete within 10 working days of an incident taking place to outline the incident, summarise how the situation occurred and describe the measures they have taken to ensure similar instances do not occur in the future.
The report is reviewed by the EEH university quality department, and a decision made as to whether to undertake further investigations.
Where your Centre is found to be non-compliant with areas of the Centre Agreement, we may consider the incident to be maladministration or malpractice and place sanctions against your Centre. This will affect your Centre’s risk rating and could result in your Centre’s approval being suspended or withdrawn.
7.2. Malpractice and maladministration
EEH malpractice and maladministration policy can be found on our website here EEH Malpractice and Maladministration Policy. As with all other policies, Centres are required to have their own equivalent which is reviewed for suitability as part of the Centre approval process.
Malpractice: Malpractice is any deliberate activity, neglect, default or other practice that compromises the integrity of the assessment process and/or the validity of certificates.
Malpractice can include criminal offences such as bribery or falsifying of assessment records (fraud). Other examples would include failing to maintain the security of an assessment (e.g. by giving away exam questions or marking schemes), assisting learners in the production of projects and assignments so that the submission is not the learner’s own work, and redacting or changing examination questions or assignment tasks, thus compromising the integrity of the assessment.
Maladministration: The term maladministration relates to any activity, neglect, default or other practice that results in the EEH Centre or learner not complying with the specified requirements for delivery of the qualifications as set out in the relevant policies and procedures where applicable malpractice in accordance with the requirements set out in this document also constitutes malpractice awarding organisation or Centre.
You must report any allegation of suspected malpractice/maladministration to EEH. Failure to report allegations of malpractice/maladministration can lead to awards not being conferred and certificates not being issued, and future registrations not being accepted.
Where your Centre has been found not to have reported allegations of suspected malpractice/maladministration we may apply sanctions as set out in our Centre Sanction Policy.
7.1. Incident reports
We review and monitor any incidents that may affect the secure administration and award of learners on our qualifications and offer any guidance and training that would help to improve practice at your Centre. You are sent an incident report to complete within 10 working days of an incident taking place to outline the incident, summarise how the situation occurred and describe the measures they have taken to ensure similar instances do not occur in the future.
The report is reviewed by the EEH university quality department, and a decision made as to whether to undertake further investigations.
Where your Centre is found to be non-compliant with areas of the Centre Agreement, we may consider the incident to be maladministration or malpractice and place sanctions against your Centre. This will affect your Centre’s risk rating and could result in your Centre’s approval being suspended or withdrawn.
7.2. Malpractice and maladministration
EEH malpractice and maladministration policy can be found on our website here EEH Malpractice and Maladministration Policy. As with all other policies, Centres are required to have their own equivalent which is reviewed for suitability as part of the Centre approval process.
Malpractice: Malpractice is any deliberate activity, neglect, default or other practice that compromises the integrity of the assessment process and/or the validity of certificates.
Malpractice can include criminal offences such as bribery or falsifying of assessment records (fraud). Other examples would include failing to maintain the security of an assessment (e.g. by giving away exam questions or marking schemes), assisting learners in the production of projects and assignments so that the submission is not the learner’s own work, and redacting or changing examination questions or assignment tasks, thus compromising the integrity of the assessment.
Maladministration: The term maladministration relates to any activity, neglect, default or other practice that results in the EEH Centre or learner not complying with the specified requirements for delivery of the qualifications as set out in the relevant policies and procedures where applicable malpractice in accordance with the requirements set out in this document also constitutes malpractice awarding organisation or Centre.
You must report any allegation of suspected malpractice/maladministration to EEH. Failure to report allegations of malpractice/maladministration can lead to awards not being conferred and certificates not being issued, and future registrations not being accepted.
Where your Centre has been found not to have reported allegations of suspected malpractice/maladministration we may apply sanctions as set out in our Centre Sanction Policy.
8. Centre withdrawal/closure
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If you wish to withdraw from qualification delivery or Centre approval, you must ensure:
- We have been notified in writing prior to taking any action
- All outstanding certificate claims are submitted
- All learners agree to be transferred to a new provider and that you keep a record of their permission to share personal data. All costs associated with completing the qualification for a Centre’s active learners will be charged to the closing
- You make provision to store required records for a period of at least seven
- You allow a closure visit with EEH universities (if appropriate).
Further guidance on Centre Withdrawal can be found within EEH’s Centre Withdrawal policy
9. Centre Policy requirements
9.1. Appeals Policy
As a Centre you must have an appeals policy and process through which a learner may challenge an assessment decision with which they disagree. The policy should include a staged approach to the appeal with appropriate timescales and information informing learners that the final course is to appeal to EEH’s university. All appeals must be formally acknowledged upon receipt and conclusions formally communicated at the close of the appeal to all those involved.
9.2. Complaints Policy
You must have a complaints policy and process which is made available to learners. Evidence must be provided that you have written procedures to deal with a range of complaints efficiently and effectively with timescales.
9.3. Malpractice, Maladministration and Plagiarism Policy
You must have a comprehensive policy and procedure in relation to malpractice, maladministration and plagiarism. You are required to notify EEH’s university as soon as any incident of malpractice, maladministration or plagiarism is suspected or discovered to enable us to decide how it will be investigated. We may require you to investigate the incident or we may undertake the investigation ourselves with your cooperation.
9.4. Conflicts of Interest Policy
You are required to maintain an up to date conflicts of interest policy and log, that details the conflict and mitigation taken to manage conflicts. A conflict or perceived conflict can be defined as a situation in which a person has a private or personal interest sufficient to appear to influence the objective exercise of his or her official duties as, say, a trainer, assessor, an IQA, or an employee. To maintain the integrity of the assessment process, you must consider all potential conflicts of interest.
9.5. Data Protection Policy
You are required to comply with the UK Data Protection Act the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) 2018 and have a written policy so that learners are aware of how their data will be used. We require information about the use, processing and sharing of personal data to be made available in Centre registration Centre data protection notices must allow personal data to be transferred to EEH’s university for the following purposes:
- To undertake administration in relation to the qualification for which the Learner is
- To provide Centres with a certificate for the
- To contact the learner directly regarding assessment or quality assurance purposes for the qualification they are registered on, or for the purpose of investigations into suspected This includes the learner’s personal telephone number.
- To disclose to EEH university’s regulators where so required.
- To administer requests for reasonable adjustments under the Access to Fair Assessment policy and arrangements.
- To carry out statistical analysis and monitor equal opportunities (anonymised).
9.6. Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Policy
As an approved Centre you need to demonstrate you have an equality of opportunity and diversity policy that clearly details how learners are made aware and how the policy can be accessed. The policy needs to take account of the most current legislation in relation to access to fair assessment and equal opportunities.
9.7. Health and Safety Policy
You must have a documented policy stating your commitment for the protection of health and safety of employees and Learners.
9.8. Assessment Policy
You must have a documented policy that outlines a systematic process for facilitating and evaluating student learning. The process should include the design, development and implementation of assessment tasks, and the judgement and reporting of learner performance.
9.9. Documentation Retention and Secure Storage Policy
You must set out your arrangements for documentation retention and secure storage. The content of all live assessment materials is confidential and should be restricted to the assessment itself.
9.10. Recognition of Prior Learning (RPL) Policy
RPL is an assessment process that makes use of evidence of a Learner’s previous non-certificated achievements to demonstrate competence or achievement within a unit or You should seek assistance from EEH’s university if you are unsure if RPL is a valid assessment method for a particular qualification.
10. Centre Requirements for delivering qualifications by distance learning
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| Quality Category | Criteria | Rationale | Your evidence can be seen in |
|---|---|---|---|
| Centre Governance | An appropriate governance structure to guide and enable effective planning, decision making and continuous improvement relating to blended and distance learning programmes is in place.
The blended and distance learning programmes are fully integrated into the Centre’s policies, processes, and structures |
It is important that your Centre Senior Management team decides on, plans, implements and reviews distance learning courses.
It is important that the programmes you offer by distance learning come with sufficient course handbooks/syllabi where Assessment and Internal Quality Assurance processes are clearly explained. |
● Governance Meeting minutes ● Course review documents ● Course handbook |
| Technology Support | A technology strategy and plan including electronic security measures is in place to ensure established standards and regulatory requirements are met.
A contingency plan is in place to ensure continuity of data regarding Centre operation, student access and support services in the event of prolonged service disruption. |
You must ensure that you have sufficient IT support for your online platforms as well as employing teaching staff with expertise that can effectively use the technologies.
Also, ensure that records are securely kept by way of password protection, encryption etc. It is important to have back-up facilities in the event of system failure and archives of individual learner evidence on appropriate media e.g. CD ROM, memory sticks. |
● List of back-up facilities in the event of system failure ● A contingency plan ● Internal or outsourced IT support |
| Staff Support | The Centre staff receive training, assistance, and support before teaching on blended and distance learning programmes as well as ongoing training and professional development related to improving practice in distance learning. | You must ensure that you provide teachers with clear induction on the use of the online platform as well as provide training and support materials related to fair use, plagiarism, and legal and ethical concepts relevant to copyright and use of digital and web-based resources. | ● Teacher Training materials / Staff handbook ● Staff induction and training day agendas |
| Learner Support | Learners are well supported and kept informed in developing the required knowledge and skills to effectively use technologies. | It is important that before starting on a course, a learner is assessed to ensure that they understand the mode of delivery and have the necessary technology. You must also ensure that you provide the required course materials and learning resources (digital or print format) before the course start date.
During their study learners must have information and training in how to access required materials through electronic databases, digital material repositories, Learning Management System (LMS) and other sources. |
● Pre-enrolment assessments of learners ● Interviews for suitability ● English language testing ● Course syllabus ● Online or on-site technology support available ● Online course materials ● Online or print resources available ● Syllabus clearly outlines learner-tutor contact times |
| Course Design | A course development process is followed that ensures courses are effectively designed for distance delivery and learners can develop the necessary knowledge and skills to meet measurable learning outcomes at the course and programme level. | It is important that you have a process in place for the development of courses delivered by distance means. Such process must be consistent with the assessment criteria and learning outcomes of the qualification specification.
It is important to ensure that the materials and resources you develop are accessible to all learners (including learners with disabilities), easy to use, and may be accessed by multiple operating |
● Course syllabus ● Course materials ● Assessment strategies ● Equal Opportunity policy ● Access and special consideration policy |
| Teaching & Learning | The Centre uses effective strategies to facilitate learner-to-learner and Centre-to-learner interactions and engagement throughout the course. | It is important to ensure that you communicate with your learners throughout their course of study by post, phone, face- to face, email, online chat video conference etc. | ● Learner feedback ● Learner Handbook |
| Evaluation and Assessment | The Centre has a clear course evaluation strategy. | It is important that you collect learner feedback on the courses you provide by distance means on an annual basis. Such feedback should include items such as, the effectiveness of instruction and the quality of the course materials and support services. | ● Course evaluation forms ● Annual course review |
11. Centre Approval Criteria
The following criteria should be met by both prospective and existing Centres in order to receive and maintain approval to provide European Education Holdings or services. Evidence in support of the Centre approval criteria will be reviewed by EEH during either the first approval visit or the first external quality assurance visit following approval.
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| Area of evaluation | Criteria | Possible Sources of Evidence (not exhaustive) |
|---|---|---|
| Centre Governance | The Centre’s aims, policies and procedures in relation to the European Education Holdings to be delivered are supported by Centre senior management and understood by the Centre assessors and internal quality assurance staff
Staff responsibilities, authorities and accountabilities of the assessment and internal quality assurance team across all assessment sites are clearly defined, allocated and understood There is a process in place to notify us of any changes in relation to the delivery of European Education Holdings' universities which may affect the Centre’s ability to meet our approval criteria |
➢ Organisational Chart ➢ Curriculum development plans ➢ Clear lines of accountability in relation to the assessment and IQA ➢ Records of all assessment sites and personnel ➢ Staff development policy ➢ Documented process ➢ Other Documents: Incorporation Certificate/Trade Licence |
| Resources Equipment & Accommodation | Equipment and accommodation used for the purposes of assessment comply with the requirements of relevant business legislation and qualification requirements |
➢ Photos of facilities & resources ➢ Live website link ➢ Public employee liability certificates ➢ Evidence of any additional resources obtained ➢ Maintenance schedules |
| Staff | There are procedures in place to ensure effective communication between all levels of staff and in all directions (including any staff who work remotely)
Time is allocated for regular team meetings and standardisation for all staff involved in the teaching, assessment and internal quality A staff induction and development programme are established for the assessment and internal quality assurance team in line with identified needs There are enough competent and knowledgeable Assessors and Internal Quality Assurers to meet the demand for assessment and internal quality assurance activities |
➢ Staff handbooks and updates ➢ Agendas and minutes of team meetings ➢ Schedule of activity for staff involved in the delivery of the qualification ➢ Induction schedule or checklist indicating policies and procedures provided to staff ➢ Records of individual development plans ➢ Staff CVs and CPD records together with copies of relevant certificates ➢ List of qualified Assessors and IQAs ➢ A record of Assessor/learner ratios and time allocation |
| Learners | Information, advice and guidance about qualification procedures and practices will be provided to learners and potential learners
Learners’ development needs will be matched against the requirements of the qualification and an agreed individual assessment plan established Learners will have regular opportunities to review their progress and goals and to revise their assessment plan accordingly to meet their target qualification / award. There are appropriate staff, resources and systems necessary to support the accumulation and transfer of credits, the recording of exemptions and recognition of prior learning |
➢ Learner guidance and induction materials ➢ Evidence of initial assessment of learners e.g. diagnostic tests, English ➢ Details of support services available ➢ Appeals procedures ➢ Learner assessment plans ➢ System to track learners’ progress ➢ Examples of revisions to assessment plans ➢ RPL Policy ➢ Process for checking and recording of exemptions and credit transfers |
| Registration & Certification Process | Learner personal data is collected and held in accordance with the Data Protection Act 1998 and GDPR May 2018
The Centre has in place a robust registration and certification process and will register learners within 28 days of course commencement to allow for external quality assurance to take place |
➢ Data protection policy ➢ Signed declarations from learners ➢ Security and access arrangements ➢ Copies of enrolment forms ➢ Learner registration details |
| Centre Policies | There are documented policies including but not limited to appeals, complaints, health and safety, safeguarding, malpractice and plagiarism, conflicts of interest and diversity and equality | ➢ Documented policies ➢ Documented policy review mechanisms |
| Assessment Policy | There is a planned programme of delivery and assessment methods available for the qualification/award which meets our guidelines
Assessment methods to be valid and reliable and to allow access to assessment for learners Assessment records are in place to show accurate assessment tracking, progress and achievement Learners to receive regular verbal and written feedback after assessment |
➢ Schedule for qualification delivery/teaching plans ➢ Assessment plans and learner assessment records ➢ Provision for learners with assessment requirements ➢ Access and fair assessment policy ➢ System to track learners’ progress and assessment outcomes ➢ Completed assessment marksheets |
| Assessors | Allocation of Assessor responsibilities are clear and will meet the needs of learners and Assessors
Assessors will be provided with accurate advice and support to enable them to identify and meet their training and development needs |
➢ Records of all assessment sites and personnel ➢ CVs of the assessment team ➢ Signed agreements indicating the lines of accountability for partner organisations in relation to the management of assessment ➢ Individual development plans for the assessment team ➢ Records of meetings, briefings or updates |
| Internal Quality Assurance | An appropriate IQA strategy and sampling plan is in place which will be reviewed regularly, and corrective measures implemented
Records of internal quality assurance activity will be maintained in line with EEH requirements and will be made available for the purposes of auditing Adequate time will be allocated to allow for internal quality assurance duties to take place Suitable arrangements are in place to ensure adequate liaison, consistency and standardisation will take place across all sites including any satellite Centres |
➢ IQA plans and reports ➢ A sampling strategy and schedule of activity ➢ Records/minutes of assessment team meetings ➢ Internal reviews of sampling strategies ➢ External Quality Assurer reports ➢ Evidence of corrective action taken ➢ Documented activity ➢ Schedules/plans for internal quality assurance activities ➢ Records/minutes of IQA meetings ➢ Documented quality assurance procedures ➢ Schedule for standardisation between satellite Centres ➢ Records of all satellite sites and personnel |
| Security & Storage | Learner records and details of achievements will be accurate, kept up to date and securely stored in line with EEH requirements for a minimum of 3 years and will be made available for external quality assurance visits and auditing
Adequate procedures exist to ensure secure and safe storage of current and completed learner |
➢ Security and access arrangements ➢ Details of the security and access arrangements for the storage of current and completed learners’ assessments |
| Marketing | Marketing and advertising of EEH universities is clear, accurate, not misleading and complies with EEH universities guidelines | ➢ All advertising, promotional activity and materials reflects the qualification being offered ➢ Use of EEH universities logo meets branding guidelines |
| Feedback from Learners & others | Feedback to be sought and used to evaluate the quality and effectiveness of qualification provision against the Centre’s stated aims and policies, leading to continuous improvement | ➢ Evaluation forms/surveys ➢ Customer service statements |
| ELP | Where the Centre has developed their own programme and is seeking endorsement from EEH universities, there is a robust process in place to ensure the content is fit for purpose | ➢ Clearly stated aims, objectives, learning outcomes and associated assessment criteria for each course ➢ Learning outcomes and assessment criteria are appropriate to the level assigned |
12. Glossary of Terminology
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| No. | Term | Definition |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Additional qualification approval | The process required to add additional qualifications to the Centre’s approval status |
| 2 | Appeal | An appeal is a procedure through which an Awarding Organisation/Centre may be challenged on the outcome of an enquiry about results or, where appropriate, other procedural decisions affecting an individual Learner. |
| 3 | Approved Centre | An organisation undertaking the delivery of an assessment (and potentially other activities) to Learners on behalf of an awarding organisation. Centres are typically educational institutions, training providers, or employers. |
| 4 | Assessment | The process of making judgements about the extent to which a Learner’s work meets the assessment criteria for a unit or part of a unit. Formative assessment provides feedback to Learners to help improve their performance/achievement. Summative assessment takes place at the end of a defined period of learning. |
| 5 | Assessment criteria | The requirements that Learners need to meet in order to achieve success for a unit or part of a unit. |
| 6 | Assessment evidence | Proof that the learner has achieved or is working towards the achievement of assessment criteria. Satisfactory evidence for all assessment criteria enables the Internal and External Quality Assurer to confirm the award of credit. |
| 7 | Assessor | A person who is qualified to assess learners’ work and make decisions about competence |
| 8 | Authentication of Learner’s work | The process that confirms the work being put forward for assessment is the learner’s and has been produced under the conditions set out in the qualification |
| 9 | Awarding Organisation | An organisation that awards qualifications. An Awarding Organisation must meet the criteria laid down by the Qualifications Regulators e.g., Ofqual. |
| 10 | Centre approval | The process required for companies wishing to deliver EEH or units that has committed itself to hold and maintain the required quality and consistency of assessments and comply with other expectations of EEH |
| 11 | CPD | Continuous Professional Development |
| 12 | Credit | An award made to a Learner in recognition of the achievement of the designated learning outcomes in a unit. |
| 13 | Credit value | It is the measurement of notional time that a Learner, on average, will take to achieve the learning outcomes in the unit. Credit value is calculated in terms of total learning time and can be made up of contact and self-study time. 1 credit = 10 notional hours of learning |
| 14 | Criterion reference assessment | The setting of an assessment where achievement is measured against approved assessment criteria |
| 15 | Distance Learning | Distance Learning is a mode of delivering education and instruction, often on an individual basis, to learners who are not physically present in a traditional setting such as a classroom. |
| 16 | External Quality Assurer (EQA) | EEH role responsible for the quality auditing of Centres on behalf of EEH |
| 17 | Guided Learning Hours (GLH) | The number of direct contact hours required to teach a qualification or unit of a qualification |
| 18 | Internal quality assurer | An individual appointed by the Centre to ensure accurate and consistent standards of assessments, both between assessors operating in the Centre and between differing awards offered by the Centre |
| 19 | Learner | A person who is registered with EEH universities to take a qualification and to be assessed as part of that qualification |
| 20 | Learning outcomes | Learning outcomes express the knowledge, skills and understanding Learners are expected to acquire |
| 21 | TQT (Total Qualification Time) | The number of notional hours which represents an estimate of the total amount of time that could reasonably be expected to be required, for a Learner to achieve and demonstrate the achievement of the level of attainment necessary for the award of a qualification. Total Qualification Time is comprised of the following two elements:
(a) The number of hours which an Awarding Organisation has assigned to a qualification for Guided Learning (GL/GLH). |
| 22 | Level | An indication of the relative demand, complexity and/or depth of achievement and/or the autonomy of the Learner in demonstrating achievement |
| 23 | Malpractice | Any deliberate activity, neglect, default or other practice that compromises the integrity of the assessment process, and/or the validity of certificates. Malpractice may include a range of issues from the failure to maintain appropriate records or systems to the deliberate falsification of records in order to claim certificates. Failure to deal with identified issues may constitute malpractice. |
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