New qualifications body and independent inspectorate to be
established.
Legislation to create a new national qualifications body and an
independent inspectorate of schools and other educational
providers has been published.
The Education (Scotland) Bill includes provisions to replace the
Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) with a new national
qualifications body, Qualifications Scotland.
If passed by the Scottish Parliament, the legislation will also
establish the office of His Majesty's Chief Inspector of
Education in Scotland, with enhanced independence, to undertake
the education inspection functions which currently sit within
Education Scotland.
While not part of the Bill provisions, Education Scotland's role
as the national education agency is also to be refocussed as part
of the reform process - including taking a lead on curriculum
design, delivery and improvement which will cover the provision
of resources to support high quality learning and teaching.
Education Secretary said:
"I am determined to drive further improvements across Scotland's
schools, and the changes being set out in this Bill will
strengthen the national education landscape to better support
pupils and teachers.
"The governance processes for the new national qualifications
body will ensure the knowledge and experience of pupils and
teachers are central to decisions taken on qualifications and
assessment.
"Greater independence for the new inspectorate body will see the
power to set the frequency and focus for inspections moving from
Scottish Ministers to His Majesty's Chief Inspector. This
is a significant change and will increase confidence in the
independent role of inspections in assessing and identifying
strengths and areas for improvement across our education system.
"The Scottish Government's programme of education and skills
reform will drive improvement right across the education system.
That's why we've taken time to engage with learners, teachers and
other professionals across the education and skills sector to
ensure these changes meet the needs of future generations."
Background
The Education (Scotland)
Bill will see Qualifications Scotland replace the SQA
and it is expected to become operational in Autumn 2025. The Bill
creates strengthened governance arrangements and increased
accountability to learners and to the teaching profession. It
places a requirement on Qualifications Scotland to establish
dedicated committees for learners and for teachers, and for it to
create two specific “charters” to set out what learners and
teachers should expect from Qualifications Scotland to ensure its
processes are fair and transparent and that the organisation can
be held to account by those it serves.
Once appointed, HM Chief Inspector, will lead the new education
inspectorate, which is expected to become operational in Autumn
2025. The new inspectorate will operate independently, but it is
intended that Scottish Ministers will retain oversight authority
and Ministers will be able to request inspections are carried out
by the Chief Inspector.
The revised remit of Education
Scotland, which is not part of the Bill's provisions, will
see it continue as the national education agency.
