Approach to designating 14-16 qualifications confirmed

This decision comes following a three-month consultation with education stakeholders in spring 2024. The revised approach aligns with previous policy decisions and will ensure that all qualifications available to 14 to 16-year-olds align with our three guiding principles wherever possible: 

You can read an in-depth report into this decision here, along with a summary of consultation responses here. 
We have also published an associated integrated impact assessment in relation to our revised policy, which you can read here.
To reduce the risk of removing any qualifications that cater to the needs of a small minority of learners, we will allow awarding bodies to apply for an exemption to our guiding principles on the basis that it is able to meet one of a limited set of criteria. 

What is designation? 
As the independent regulator of qualifications in Wales, we decide which qualifications are eligible for use on publicly-funded courses of education or training for learners under the age of 19.
We do this in two ways:  

Designation guidance for awarding bodies can be found in our Designation Handbook. 

The National Qualifications suite
National Qualifications are being introduced for 14 to 16-year-old learners over three years from September 2025. The National Qualifications will replace existing approved and designated qualifications available to 14 to 16-year-olds in Wales.
This new suite of qualifications has been specifically designed to meet the needs of Welsh learners being taught the Curriculum for Wales. National Qualifications will provide Wales’ learners with a broad choice of inclusive, bilingual qualifications spanning Entry Level to Level 2, and available in a range of general and work-related subjects. The new suite comprises:  

Once this phased implementation is complete (September 2027), the National Qualifications are intended to form the majority of the qualification offer for use on publicly-funded programmes of learning for 14 to 16-year-olds in Wales.  

What about qualifications not covered by the National Qualifications suite? 
The qualifications available within the National Qualifications suite have been carefully curated following extensive consultation with school leaders, teachers, subject specialists, learners, awarding bodies, Welsh Government and other stakeholders.
However, we recognise there may be, in some specific circumstances, the need for learners in Wales to take qualifications which are not included in the National Qualifications suite. 
We therefore anticipate designating some qualifications that may not have been made specifically for Wales, but will complement the National Qualifications offer.  

Our revised policy and exemption criteria 
In light of the introduction of the National Qualifications, we have revised our designation policy.  
Qualifications may be designated via two routes:  

 Our revised designation policy outlines five exemption criteria to our guiding principles:  

Exemption 1: An awarding body has successfully demonstrated that failing to designate a form of qualification as eligible for use on publicly-funded programmes of learning would lead to a disproportionate prejudice or impact on a group of learners who share a protected characteristic as outlined within the Equalities Act 2010. 
Exemption 2: An awarding body has submitted a form of qualification for designation and that qualification is at Level 3 or higher of the Credit and Qualifications Framework (CQFW). In line with our designation requirements for all qualifications, an awarding body must successfully demonstrate that there is demand for the qualification from pre-16 candidates in Wales.
Exemption 3: An awarding body has submitted a GCSE international language qualification for designation in an international language that is not made available as an approved National 14-16 Qualification.
Exemption 4: An awarding body has submitted a graded music qualification for Designation that is not made available as an approved National 14-16 Qualification.
Exemption 5: An awarding body has submitted a technical/vocational qualification for designation and that qualification will be delivered to 14 to 16-year-olds in a further education institution. 

Designation decision-making
When an awarding body submits a qualification for designation, we will apply the following decision-making process when establishing which qualifications can be designated: