Qualifications Wales Board Minutes of Board meeting held on 20 July 2017. Attendees: Ann Evans, Philip Blaker, Isabel Nisbet, Angela Maguire-Lewis, Robert Lloyd Griffiths, Ellen Donovan, Rheon Tomos, Arun Midha. In Attendance: Alison Standfast, Kate Crabtree, Jo Richards (items 1 to 5), Alison Rees (Welsh Government observer), Helen Bushell (Secretariat), Cassy Taylor (item 6), Kerry Price (item 1 to 3), Emyr George (attended for items 14 and 15), Tom Anderson (items 12 to 15), Jack Watkins (item 8), Catrin Verrall (item 15), Rachael Sperring (item 14), Kerry Jones (item 15), Steve Wyndham (SW) Wales Audit Office (items 1 and 2). Apologies: Alun Llwyd, Caroline Burt, Claire Morgan, David Jones. 1. Welcome, Apologies, Declarations of Interest 1.1. The Chair welcomed everyone to the meeting, in particular to Arun Midha who was appointed to the Board on 18 May 2017. 1.2. The Chair also welcomed Steve Wyndham from Wales Audit Office for item 2 (annual accounts 2016/17). 1.3. Declarations of interest were sought. The following new declaration was given: Angela Maguire-Lewis is employed as Head of Apprenticeships at Cardiff & Vale College in relation to item 6. 1.4. The Chair asked if members had anything they wished to discuss from information papers. Monetary Penalties was raised onto the agenda and the Chair identified that it would be discussed after item 8. 1.5. The remaining information papers were all noted (Board forward look, annual report update, Resources Committee minutes of 16 Feb 2017). 2. Annual Accounts 2016/17 2.1. Kerry Price (KP) introduced the paper outlining the development and review process. KP confirmed that the accounts were presented in the format required by the relevant manuals and accounts direction. 2.2. KP confirmed that Wales Audit Office (WAO) had concluded their audit, which tested the accounts for their reasonableness and accuracy. 2.3. KP asked the Board if they had any queries none were raised.
Page 2 of 15 2.4. The Chair asked Steve Wyndham (SW) to present WAO s report. SW provided a summary of his report and confirmed their intention to issue an unqualified audit opinion. He confirmed that the report outcome had been presented to ARAC on 11 July. 2.5. The draft accounts were of good quality and no material or significant errors had been identified. There were a small number of non-material amendments, which were summarised at the back of the report. 2.6. The Auditor General was scheduled to review and sign the accounts on 27 July 2017. 2.7. The Board asked SW s opinion of where QW s quality of accounts fell in the context of other public bodies. SW said this was difficult to assess reliably and it varied year on year, but that the quality of QW s accounts would be towards the top end. This was noted as a credit to KP and other staff within the organisation. 2.8. The Chair invited the Chair of the Audit and Risk Committee to present her assurance report. Angela Maguire-Lewis (AML) presented her report to the Board. The Board noted the content and thanked her and the Committee for their work. 2.9. The Board approved the annual accounts endorsing the Chief Executive (as the Accounting Officer) to sign the 2016/17 Accounts. i. To approve the Annual Accounts 2016/17 for the Chief Executive to sign APPROVED. 2.10. The Chair thanked SW for his attendance at the Board meeting. SW then left the meeting. 3. Financial Report 3.1. KP introduced his paper, which provided a financial update to the end of June 2017. The financial position had been considered in detail at Resources Committee in early July and by Management Board at the end of July. 3.2. KP reminded the Board that some budget areas had been flagged at the start of the year as provisions as opposed to certain commitments these totalled 640k. Work had continued to firm up these provisions; these were reflected in section two of the paper. The provisions had been held in the Accounting Officer Reserve (AOR) to promote transparency and visibility for on-going scrutiny. 3.3. The Board was asked to approve a virement of 137k from the pay budget to the AOR. The latest information indicates that the current pay budget is 137k more
Page 3 of 15 than required, due to a combination of later than planned start dates for new recruits, starting salaries being less than originally budgeted, and staff turnover. The Board discussed the request and expressed some concern about ensuring visibility of where the 137k would be used once it had been moved. KP explained that the purpose of the AOR was to provide transparency and visibility of all spend that was not fully committed. The Board requested information on where funds held in the AOR budget are allocated. 3.4. The Board expressed concern that there appeared to be some staffing pressure points within the organisation. PB confirmed that an update would be shared within the CEO update later in the agenda in relation to staffing and a review of priorities. 3.5. The Board discussed the budget title and determined a new name might be more appropriate as the AOR is not technically a reserve. Action KP to consider a new name for the Accounting Officer Reserve budget. 3.6. KP confirmed that a budget underspend was possible in 2017/18 based on current projections. PB added that the executive was actively considering staffing, but that he was cautious about adding to the staffing headcount on a permanent basis in case there was pressure on future budgets. 3.7. Following discussion, the Board noted the current financial position and approved the virement of 137k from the pay budget to the Accounting Officer Reserve. Action KP to provide a report to a future Board to explain how funds that were contained within the Accounting Officer Reserve were allocated. i. To note the position at 30 June 2017 -NOTED; and ii. To approve the virement of 137k from the Pay budget to the Accounting Officer Reserve APPROVED. 4. Minutes of the Board meeting held on 16 May 2017 and Matters Arising 4.1. The minutes of the meeting held on 16 May 2017 were confirmed as an accurate record of the meeting, subject to an amendment to paragraphs 4.14 and 13.3, and minor typographical amendments. The minutes were agreed by the Board. The minutes would be published on the Qualifications Wales website once they had been translated. 4.2. The Board reviewed the action log, which had been updated with progress.
Page 4 of 15 Matters Arising 4.3. The Board queried progress in relation to the proposed research/ethics committee. Kate Crabtree (KC) noted that this is being considered as an Advisory committee/group. KC anticipated the group being established early in 2018. 4.4. The chair noted that she would update the Board about the meeting with Julie James AM within the Chair s update (item 5). 4.5. There were no other matters arising. i. The Board approved the minutes with minor amends noted. ii. The Board noted the progress against actions and those which had been completed. 5. Chair s Update 5.1. The Chair (AE) reported a number of updates to the Board which are reflected below. 5.2. AE and PB had met with the Cabinet Secretary for Education in early July as part of the annual cycle of meetings. Discussion was positive and constructive. 5.3. A series of Assembly Member (AM) briefings had been held with AMs of the Children and Young People s Committee outlining our approach to the Summer examinations. These had proved useful meetings to continue to form relationships with Committee members. AM s had requested these briefings to be more frequent where there is relevant content and encouraged us to contribute to the Assembly Researchers blog. As a result, PB had met with the lead researcher for the Committee. 5.4. Induction for new Board members had been undertaken since the last Board meeting and the Chair was due to meet both new members in September to review the induction. 5.5. The meeting with the Minister for Skills and Science, Julie James, had been postponed at the request of Welsh Government and rearranged for October. 5.6. The Cabinet Secretary for Communities and Children, Carl Sargeant, had written to the Chair updating her on a number of areas in relation to governance and public appointments. A specific request had been made for public bodies to support a mentoring programme for future Non-Executive/Independent Board Members. The Chair confirmed QW had replied positively to the request, but had stated we would not be in a position to offer any support until early 2018. The Board noted the importance of any mentoring placement being an appropriate fit and that it
Page 5 of 15 must have clear guidelines particularly in relation to confidentiality. The Chair agreed and noted this. 5.7. AE had met with Steve Davies, Welsh Government Director of Education, maintaining the quarterly schedule of meetings. There was nothing specific to report, the relationship with Welsh Government remains positive and appropriate to our role as an independent regulator. 5.8. HB updated that the Chair s performance review had been concluded and thanked Board members for their input. RT and RLG had led the process of collecting feedback and sharing this with the Chair. HB said the process had been thorough, useful and positive, and would become an annual process. iii. The Board noted the Chair s update. 6. Sector review: Construction and the Built Environment (CBE) 6.1. Cassy Taylor (CT) joined the meeting by video conference. 6.2. CT introduced the paper confirming that the purpose was to provide the Board with a progress update in relation to the sector review s findings and an overview of the likely range of options that may be proposed alongside the final report. 6.3. CT confirmed the sector review had been discussed in detail with the Regulation Committee in June. 6.4. CT set out the context of policy and landscape change in England in relation to vocational qualifications. 6.5. The CBE sector review had used the same methodology used in the previous review into Health and Social Care. However, far greater focus had been placed on stakeholder engagement. The Construction Industry Training Board (CITB) had been a significant partner in the review and QW had welcomed the secondment that had been put in place to support the work. 6.6. Engagement with the sector, including employers and learners, had been a central focus. Further Education, Welsh Government and other stakeholders had also been extensively involved in the review. CT informed the Board that there was consensus that a proposal for change in the qualifications system was required, but that this needed to be carefully thought through and considered. 6.7. The Board discussed and debated the content of the paper, including consideration of issues such as funding, stakeholder interest and motivations, the ability to make and influence change in the system, implications for NVQs and end point assessments, and affordability for learners and Wales more broadly.
Page 6 of 15 6.8. The Board debated the need for QW to be sure that the recommendations made would lead to the desired change for the sector. It was also important to be confident that QW could resource its role in any recommendations. 6.9. The Chair thanked CT and her team for their work and noted that the next stage of the sector review is planned to be presented to the Board in October 2017. CT extended an offer to Board members to contact her if they wished to discuss the review in any more detail or if they would like to discuss any of the policy changes in England. i. The Board noted the interim report and that proposals would be received in October 2017. 7. Summer Examination series overview 7.1. Jo Richards (JR) introduced the paper providing the Board with an update about the Summer examination series noting that Regulation Committee had received a detailed update at its last meeting in June. 7.2. JR confirmed that all examinations across Wales had been sat and that she was content with the progress that had been made in marking papers and provided a high level update about the incidents that had been reported. 7.3. JR summarised the entry data and the Board discussed this in some detail noting the high number of Year 10 entries compared to previous years. 7.4. JR summarised the engagement plan that was in place, which included regular meetings with Welsh Government, media briefings, the media campaign and the regular communications with Ofqual and CCEA. 7.5. The Have Your Say survey had closed and was being analysed. 7.6. PB informed the Board that QW would attend WG officials scheduled meetings with the Cabinet Secretary for Education prior to results days in August. 7.7. The Board had a lengthy discussion about the information JR had provided. The Board also discussed various risks that existed and how these were being managed and/or mitigated. 7.8. The Board thanked JR and her team for their work. The Board noted it was likely to be a challenging summer, but looked forward to receiving further updates as the summer progressed. The Board noted the update NOTED.
Page 7 of 15 8. Whistleblowing policy (Regulatory) 8.1. The Chair welcomed Jack Watkins (JW) to the meeting. Kate Crabtree (KC) introduced the paper and confirmed the Board was being asked to review and approve the interim policy. The policy had been recently drafted and reviewed through the internal management governance process. 8.2. The policy was focussed at the regulatory aspects of our work (not QW s staff) and was intended to be interim. 8.3. The policy had been considered by Regulation Committee and the feedback provided had been considered and incorporated where appropriate. 8.4. The Board discussed the policy and approved it subject to the following amendments and actions: It should be made very clear the policy was an interim one The organisation s role as a prescribed body should be made clear Amendments on pages 10 and 15 were noted. Action KC/JW to ensure the amendments are made to the Whistleblowing policy (Regulatory) before publication. ii. The Board was asked to approve the policy to be published as an interim policy APPROVED subject to the amendments listed in 8.4. Monetary Penalties Policy 8.5. The Board asked for the Monetary Penalties policy, which had been provided as an information paper, to be considered on the agenda. 8.6. The Board discussed the approach being taken to developing the Monetary Penalties policy, particularly noting that finalising the policy was dependent on Welsh Government conducting its own consultation in respect of the maximum fine that Qualifications Wales could apply. The current understanding with Welsh Government was that they would consult on the maximum fine level at the same time Qualifications Wales consults on the suite of enforcement policies (which includes Monetary Penalties). The Board debated the risks associated with this approach and noted it had been considered in some detail at Management Board and Regulation Committee. 8.7. The Board concluded that the current approach should continue noting that Welsh Government had committed to consult at the same time as Qualifications Wales. The Board asked that a risk analysis be completed in case this was not the case and the policy was unable to be finalised.
Page 8 of 15 Action KC to consider the risk in relation to the Monetary Penalties policy dependency on Welsh Government s consultation. iii. The Board was asked to approve the policy to be published as an interim policy APPROVED. 9. CEO Report 9.1. Philip Blaker (PB) introduced his verbal report identifying five areas of update. These are summarised below. 9.2. Welsh Assembly Finance Committee evidence Alison Standfast (AS), Kerry Price (KP) and PB gave evidence on 29 June in relation to the Committees review of Regulatory Impact Assessments and their accuracy. No specific issues had been raised. 9.3. Update on Local Democratic and Boundaries Commission for Wales (LDBCW) since the last Board update, positive feedback has been received from our legal team and Sponsor Unit, and the draft proposal has been finalised and issued to LDBCW. 9.4. Curriculum update PB confirmed that Welsh Government s Strand 2 phase is now complete, but further work is required to finalise the definition documents. These documents are needed to initiate QW s work to establish the impact on qualifications. QW has established a number of key messages. 9.5. The Board requested an update on the new Curriculum early in 2018. Action HB to add Curriculum update to the Foreword look for early 2018. 9.6. Paragraph 9.6 has been redacted. 9.7. T-Levels PB confirmed that discussions were continuing with the Department for Education (DfE) in Westminster, the department leading on this area of work pending transfer to the Institute for Apprenticeships. PB understood that T Levels could be made available in Wales (and elsewhere), but DfE had raised some legal concerns about T levels being made available outside of England. PB confirmed that he and colleagues were continuing discussion to better understand the position trying to ensure T Levels could be made available in Wales. i. To note the CEO report NOTED ii. Point ii has been redacted.
Page 9 of 15 10. 2017/18 Quarter One Business Plan Report 10.1. Helen Bushell (HB) introduced the paper summarising the main content areas and confirming that all priorities were rated green and in line with plans. HB confirmed that Resources Committee had reviewed the progress to the end of June in some detail. 10.2. HB reported that Management Board had approved a change in timescale for the ICT Sector review and this would not be published in 2017/18, but would flow into 2018/19. The Board noted this and reinforced its previous view about the need to focus on the quality of sector reviews, not the number of them. 10.3. The Board discussed the report and were encouraged that the relevant risks were contained within the risk register. 10.4. The Board thanked HB for the update and noted the report. i. The Board was asked to review and note the report NOTED. 11. Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) - Social Care Wales 11.1. KC introduced the paper and draft MoU requesting review and approval from the Board. KC confirmed that legal advice had been sought and that paragraph 5.8 had been added to the document following legal advice. 11.2. KC confirmed that MoUs are in place, or being developed with fellow regulators where there may be a dependency or some overlap in duties. In this case, there is an overlap between the QW Act and the new Social Care Act so clarity of role and ways of working were important. 11.3. The Board discussed the draft MoU asking various questions for clarity. Following discussion, the Board agreed to approve the MoU subject to a final proof read by staff. i. The Board were asked to review and approve the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) APPROVED, subject to a final proof read. 12 Data Project Update and Procurement
Page 10 of 15 12.1 The Chair welcomed Tom Anderson (TA) to the meeting. Alison Standfast (AS) introduced the paper as Executive Sponsor for the project. The purpose of the paper was to provide the Board with an update and to seek approval for the departure request. 12.2 AS reminded the Board that QW was currently reliant on Ofqual for the collection of qualification data from awarding bodies and publication of statistics. QW has a strategy of operational independence, so the project has been established to develop our own capability in the last area where we are dependent upon services provided by Ofqual. 12.3 The Board discussed the paper asking various questions in relation to the type and nature of data to be collected, compliance with relevant legislation including the new GDPR (General Data Protection Regulations) and appropriate codes of professional practice, the type of publications and QW s role and status as a provider of national statistics. The Board noted the update. 12.4 The second part of the paper was to seek Board approval for a departure from procurement procedures so that QW can contract with Ofqual to provide a data collection service while QW establishes its own capability. The Board is required to approve any contract that exceeds a value of 100k. 12.5 The Board discussed the departure and determined that this was a pragmatic, time limited and cost-effective solution and therefore approved the departure request. i. The Board were asked to note the summary of progress for the Data Project NOTED. ii. The Board were asked to agree the request for approval to enter into a contractual agreement with Ofqual for provision of statistical services to a total value of more than 100k APPROVED. Intention to Consult 12.6 TA introduced the next part of the agenda item for the Data Project, which sought approval for the intention to consult on proposed data templates for General Qualifications. The Board were agreed that it was appropriate to consult, but questioned the timing of the consultation given that it would take during the Summer period and would be open for seven to eight weeks. The Board s concern was noted, but consultation was needed to enable the collection of data for the November examination series. The Board discussed the issues and concluded that it was appropriate to consult awarding bodies and approved the request, but asked TA to consider the latest possible closing date.
Page 11 of 15 i. The Board were asked to review and approve the proposed consultation APPROVED noting the request to make the closing date as late as possible. 13 Intention to Consult Enforcement Policies 13.1 KC introduced the paper and policies included in the proposed consultation. The proposal was to consult from late October for a 12-week period. Following consultation analysis, the policies would return to the Board for review and approval. 13.2 All policies had been subject to legal review, both as individual policies and as a suite of policies, and relevant changes had been made. 13.3 The Board discussed the paper and expressed some concern about the dependency on Welsh Government in relation to the Monetary Penalties policy (see section 8 of the minutes). The Board approved the intention to consult. The Board was asked to approve: The Board was asked to approve the intention to consult on a suite of enforcement and complaints policies to begin in October 2017 APPROVED. 14 Early Entry Research 14.1 Emyr George (EG) and Rachael Sperring (RS) joined the meeting. The Chair welcomed RS to her first Board meeting. 14.2 EG set out the context of the research into the growing trend for early and multiple entry practices in GCSEs. 14.3 The paper provided an update on timelines for completing the research, the scope of the review and research methods used, data considered, and stakeholder engagement. The intent was to produce a research report with an accompanying commentary from QW setting out the organisation s views. 14.4 The Board discussed the report in some detail asking various questions and debating a variety of points. A point of debate was the lack of involvement from parents, governors and learners. Staff acknowledged this had not been included in the research design, but it was not possible to include these groups so late in the project without compromising the research methodology. The Board expressed concern that these groups were not included in the research. 14.5 TA confirmed he was confident in the scope of the research and that it fulfilled the research brief and met the original scope of the work. 14.6 The Board debated and agreed the approach to communicating QW s view.
Page 12 of 15 14.7 The Board wanted to reinforce that the research was of high quality and, thanked staff for their work. The Board asked that consideration be given in future research projects, particularly where it is of national significance, if the work can be shared with a Board committee earlier in the process (where it is appropriate to do so). 14.8 The Board noted that RS was attending the IAEA conference in October to present an overview of this work and wished her well for the presentation. 14.9 EG thanked the Board for the debate. i. The Board was asked to review the report and discuss the approach being taken to this research REVIEWED and DISCUSSED. ii. The Board was asked to approve the proposed approach to developing and communicating Qualifications Wales position on early and multiple entry, based on the findings of the research. This was subject to the Board having a further opportunity to consider the detail of the proposed policy position and any associated recommendations, alongside a copy of the final research report APPROVED. 15 Welsh Baccalaureate Review 15.1 Catrin Verrall (CV) and Kerry Davies (KD) joined the meeting. The Chair welcomed them both to their first Board meeting. 15.2 EG set out the context of the research and provided an overview of the structure of the Welsh Baccalaureate qualification (WB). 15.3 The need for the research had arisen from the first Welsh Bacc review, conducted in 2015/16, which identified concerns relating to the implementation of the Welsh Bacc and raised questions about: a. the size and manageability of the SCC; b. the potential duplication of learning across levels of the WB; c. whether the WB should be focused on the SCC; and d. the requirement for all components of the WB to be taken at the same level. 15.4 To examine these concerns, QW had commissioned a research organisation to undertake a detailed review of the design and assessment model of the SCC and its place within the WB, at every level. 15.5 The Regulation Committee had noted the approach to conducting this review in September 2016, and advised setting realistic timescales. The original timescale was subsequently revised and the review is progressing well and within the planned timescale.
Page 13 of 15 15.6 The Board discussed the draft report in some detail making various observations. 15.7 The Board asked that Higher Education Institutes within England be offered a greater opportunity to contribute to the topic. Action: EG and colleagues to ensure HEIs in England be given the opportunity to engage in the research work 15.8 The Board noted the topic would return to the Board at its October 2017 meeting for further discussion. i. The Board was asked to note the update and endorse the proposed approach to concluding the research and developing recommendations to implement the findings NOTED and ENDORSED. 16 Risk Management 16.1 HB introduced the risk management paper and supporting appendices. HB outlined the main items noted in the paper including the new risk that had been added to the organisational risk register, those that had reduced in rating and those that had been closed. 16.2 The Board discussed the new risks that had been added (Welsh Language Standards impact on Awarding Bodies, VQ monitoring (First Aid) and withdrawal of designation) and noted the other updates within the paper. The Board concluded that the rating of risks overall was reflective of the big issues the organisation faced and/or were managing. The Board noted the report. i. The Board was asked to note the latest organisational risk register and supporting Board level risk report. The Board also noted the risk appetite will be reviewed in the Autumn NOTED. 17 Regulation Committee Update 17.1 The Chair of the Committee provided an update of the main areas of business from the last Committee meeting on the 19 June. The minutes were not yet available due to the proximity of the Committee meeting to the Board meeting. The main items discussed within the Committee related to VQ monitoring of First Aid qualifications, the Summer examination series, the CBE sector review, Monetary Penalties and Early Entries research most which had been covered earlier on the Board agenda.
Page 14 of 15 i. The Board was asked to note the Committee report as presented by the Chair of the Committee NOTED 18 Resources Committee Update 18.1 The Chair of the Committee provided an update of the main areas of business from the last Committee meeting on the 3 July. The minutes were not yet available due to the proximity of the Committee meeting to the Board meeting. The main items discussed within the Committee related to a detailed review and approval of HR policies (family friendly suite), an update on the strategic framework for the organisation, a detailed financial update and a general HR update. ii. The Board was asked to note the Committee report as presented by the Chair of the Committee NOTED 19 Audit and Risk Assurance Committee Update 19.1 The Chair of the Committee provided an update of the main areas of business from the last Committee meetings on the 8 June and 11 July. The minutes were included with the Board papers for the 8 June, but not yet available from the 11 July meeting due to the proximity of the Committee meeting to the Board meeting. The main items discussed within the Committee related to the financial accounts for 2016/17, the GDPR and a risk deep dive into data management, internal audit report on Grants management and the financial management (access system ICT review). 19.2 The Chair of the Committee highlighted that a limited assurance rating had been given to the financial system (access system ICT review) audit. The main areas of concern were: The lack of monitoring of supplier accounts set up during testing and as a consequence these accounts being left open; Some incorrect access rights for QW staff who had been involved in set up testing; and Use by the provider of the system administrator s account not currently being traceable to an individual within the help desk. 19.3 The committee had discussed the audit report in detail and was assured by the processes already in place and actions identified within the report. The Committee had no concerns to raise with the Board. iii. The Board were asked to note the Committee report as presented by the Chair of the Committee NOTED
Page 15 of 15 20 Decisions Made Ex-Committee 20.1 There were no items to raise as decisions made ex-committee. 21 Dates of Next Meetings 21.1 HB confirmed the calendar of meetings in place. The next meeting would be held on the 25 October 2017 with a Board Development Day planned for the 19 September 2017. 22 Any Other Business 22.1 The Chair asked if there was any other business, one Board member asked if the communication to the Board could be increased about the key activities within the organisation so that Board members were better informed in advance. Action: HB to provide earlier information to the Board about forthcoming activities for the Boards information. 22.2 The Chair asked all present at the meeting to contribute their views on how the Board had added value to the organisation / organisation s work during the day. Attendees contributed their thoughts, examples included: The research based items had provided opportunity for the Board to have early input into the proposed publication plans for each report, this was welcomed. Similarly, this was the case for the CBE (Construction and the Built Environment) sector review. The robust debate about financial management. The high quality of debate in a number of agenda items was felt to be constructive, challenging and supportive. The meeting ended at 16.50 End