Approval of centres for principal learning

Principal learning component awarding bodies

Where centre and qualification approval procedures already exist for qualifications that can contribute to additional and specialist learning, those procedures should remain unchanged.

1. Component awarding bodies must have a centre declaration, or other information, to confirm that a centre is part of a recognised Gateway1consortium, in order to operate principal learning qualifications for Diploma learners.

An individual centre’s choice of the constituent qualifications that contribute to a Diploma may be subject to the procedures of their Gateway centre consortium.

2. Component awarding bodies must require centres for principal learning to identify named points of accountability for the quality assurance and management of principal learning qualifications.2

Component awarding bodies' arrangements with centres are also referred to in Section 3 of the operating rules, 'Assessment of principal learning and the project'.

3. Component awarding bodies’ arrangements with centres for principal learning should:

  • be underpinned by component awarding bodies’ centre monitoring arrangements
  • not add unnecessarily to the Gateway process, or to existing centre and qualification approval procedures.
  1. The Gateway process is operated by the Department for Children, Schools and Families (DCSF) and does not apply outside England. [↩]
  2. The named points of accountability may be the head of each centre. [↩]