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Wider Key Skills

Q

What is it?

Wider Key Skills (available in Northern Ireland only) are skills that are commonly needed for success in a range of activities in education and training, work and life in general. There are three Wider Key Skills qualifications available at Levels 1, 2 and 3:

  • Working With Others
  • Improving Own Learning and Performance
  • Problem Solving

Each skill is a stand-alone qualification and evidence can come from any context or activity, including GCSE, GCE, NVQ qualifications; work experience; employment; voluntary or youth work; and many ASDAN courses.

Read the full Wider Key Skills specifications:

Operational end dates
Please note that ASDAN has decided not to extend Wider Key Skills qualifications in England. Please see our communication notice for the full details. The final certification date is 31 December 2019. 

Who is it for?

The Wider Key Skills qualifications aim to develop and recognise each candidate’s ability to apply these skills in ways that are appropriate to different contexts and to improve the quality of their learning and performance. They are intended for everyone, from pupils in schools to chief executives in large companies.

Facts and figures

  • Following changes to UCAS points for all qualifications, each Wider Key Skill is worth 6 UCAS points for students entering higher education from 2017. Download information about changes to the UCAS points tariff for 2017 entry.
  • Following amendments to the school and college performance tables in England, qualifications that do not rely on a written examination for assessment purposes, such as ASDAN qualifications, do not, themselves, contribute to the tables.  There is however strong evidence that ASDAN qualifications improve performance in English and Mathematics, which have a double weighting in school performance measures such as Progress 8.
  • In Wales and Northern Ireland, ASDAN qualifications can contribute towards school/college performance measures. Download this information sheet for details.

Structure

Due to the generic and flexible delivery approach used with Wider Key Skills, no definitive delivery time (Guided Learning Hours) is specified. However, it is anticipated that each Wider Key Skill will take approximately 30 to 40 hours, based on guidance for delivery and funding at Post-16.

Download the standards for the three Wider Key Skills (Problem Solving, Improving own Learning and Performance, Working with Others) at Levels 1–4. 

Wider Key Skills in operation

Wider Key Skills are often used to support existing programmes or projects.

This video shows how Whitley Abbey school has used the Wider Key Skill of Working with Others to accredit part of their ‘Opening Minds’ programme.

Getting started

For centres new to ASDAN, your first step is to complete the Centre Registration Form.

Once your registration has been processed, you must upload specified policies and procedures as part of the ASDAN centre approval process. Once these have been accepted you will be able to access candidate registration for ASDAN qualifications.

Current ASDAN centres need to ensure that Wider Key Skills is added to their centre's registration.

Following registration, you will be able to purchase candidate registrations and access additional resources and guidance via the members area.

Training and support

It is recommended that all centres running Wider Key Skills has an ASDAN-trained co-ordinator; ASDAN can arrange in-house training.

Free regional support meetings are held throughout the year and are open to any staff involved in delivering Wider Key Skills.

Assessment

After students' work has been internally moderated, centres must register candidates for external moderation, which is carried out by post. ASDAN will issue certificates following successful external moderation.

Costs

All prices shown below are per learner, unless otherwise stated.


Item Price
Levels 1 and 2 candidate registration (per learner, per skill, includes certification) £9.25
Level 3 candidate registration (per learner, per skill, includes certification) £10.45
Wider Key Skills Levels 1, 2 and 3 standards with guidance £8.40

 

All prices valid from 1 September 2020 until 31 August 2021. Prices are shown exclusive of VAT. 

What next?

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