Streamlining apprentice assessment: What Awarding Organisations need to know

On 20^th June 2025, Ofqual, the independent regulator for qualifications in England, published an open consultation: Regulatory framework for apprenticeship assessment¹, which closed on 27^th August, around the new approach to the assessment of apprenticeship occupational standards based on DfE’s Apprenticeship Assessment Principles² and Skills England’s new streamlined apprenticeship assessment plans.

Ofqual currently regulates the assessment of more than 580 apprenticeship occupational standards, set by Skills England, including through specific rules in relation to EPAs.

As Ofqual’s open consultation closes, RM looks at ways to streamline apprenticeship assessment using online exam and e-marking technology.

What is changing?

The DfE intends for the assessment process for apprenticeships to be more streamlined with a more flexible design and delivery. The system will be simpler while ensuring apprentices prove their competence for skilled work.

The Apprenticeship Assessment Principles state that:

The assessment process will be streamlined by enabling more design and delivery flexibility so that:

• assessment is more proportionate to the competency being tested and removes any duplication
• where appropriate, assessment plans can be designed to allow assessment to take place on programme
• where appropriate, training providers will be able to deliver elements of the assessment. End-Point Assessment Organisations (EPAOs) will continue to shape the assessment and ensure the validity of outcomes

These principles included a range of changes to the current End-Point Assessment (EPA) approach to assessment to be applied to all apprenticeships, at all levels, and will apply to foundation apprenticeships as well as to specialised apprenticeships.

What does this mean for Awarding Organisations?

Awarding Organisations (AOs) will have greater responsibility than before for assessment design and delivery and will be more accountable for their decisions as a result as they are required to:

• Prove the apprentice’s competence in the workplace - with an increased level of clarity about the purpose of apprenticeship assessments and what they must deliver for apprentices.
• Set all assessments - ensuring they are valid and provide reliable evidence of apprentice achievement. They are also permitted to allow centres to adapt assessments within certain parameters in order to support the manageability of assessment.
• Design assessments – following Ofqual’s guidance when considering content, structure, use of synoptic assessment, timing of assessment and approach to marking, any design needs to ensure the validity of the apprenticeship assessments and to support comparability between organisations for a given occupational standard.
• Mark assessments - with the flexibility to permit centres, such as colleges or training providers, to mark some with appropriate oversight, following Ofqual guidance and the Skills England apprenticeship assessment plan. This is to secure reliability and accuracy of marking.

The role of technology in streamlining apprenticeship assessment

For AOs embracing digital technology for apprenticeship assessment, they will benefit from a more robust and reliable delivery system for proving the apprentices’ competence in the workplace, and for setting, designing and marking exams.

Digital assessment technology can be used to create flexible, consistent and authentic assessments that reflect real-world expectations in the workplace, enabling AOs to provide relevant qualifications that meet the demands of employers and students. RM Assessment has a portfolio of services which can be tailored to meet the AO’s specific needs.

How can RM help?

RM Ava^®, our adaptive virtual accreditation platform, supports the full assessment lifecycle modularly, delivering an end-to-end experience from content creation and secure online learner testing, through to optional AI-driven marking and feedback.

AOs using our digital assessment technology see:

• Consistency and accuracy of marking - with e-marking, examiners are not required to manually record marks, as with the paper-based process, so this improves the quality of marking
• Prevention of fraud/malpractice - RM harnesses award-winning technology to augment and enhance the integrity of assessment to protect reputations, whilst understanding and mitigating risks. RM's award-winning malpractice solutions and our AI-boosted proctoring gather real time detailed evidence for analysis to help you to detect potential instances of malpractice
• Needs of the modern candidate met – with qualifications that are a direct reflection of a 21^st Century workplace. 73% of learners taking professional qualifications said they would be more likely to choose a course if it was assessed digitally³
• Employers are engaged - Ofqual has given guidance on how employers should be engaged to secure support when designing and reviewing apprenticeship assessments. RM has the expertise to really understand your business aims and partner with you and your employer stakeholders to help you achieve them.

Conclusion

The new Apprenticeship Assessment Principles have the potential to transform vocational education and make it more relevant to student and employer needs.

Digital assessment technology can be used to create flexible, consistent and authentic assessments that reflect real-world expectations in the workplace, enabling AOs to provide relevant qualifications that meet the demands of employers and students.

Sources

¹ Regulatory framework for apprenticeship assessment, Ofqual, June 2025: https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/regulatory-framework-for-apprenticeship-assessment/regulatory-framework-for-apprenticeship-assessment

² Apprenticeship Assessment Principles, DfE, February 2025: https://help.apprenticeships.education.gov.uk/hc/en-gb/articles/24599908217746-Apprenticeship-Assessment-Principles

³Learner Experience: Now and Opinions about the Future, RM research conducted between May-Nov 2024: https://content.rmresults.com/en-gb/research_report_sign_up_advanced