Craft Skills - Chefs

706 versus NVQ – A debate with a conclusion?

Skills are the critical missing factor in the UK's quest to improve productivity in an increasingly competitive global market.

Qualifications equal skills?

The purpose of qualifications is to accredit the skills learned by the individual learner. Qualifications should, therefore, equal skills, but as many industry figures have pointed out throughout People 1st's research, this is not always the case. Increasingly employers state that their expectations are not being met. Take the case of chefs, the modular college based NVQ's are an often quoted example - industry has no idea what the qualification or qualifications represent. Until the “graduate” enters the workplace that is, and expectation of skills levels fall short of the needs and requirements of both employer and employee.

Industry needs one college based qualification that:

• Industry understands - they must know what skills are evidenced by the individual's certificate. This should represent the industry standard.
• Provides the learner with the best possible foundation from which to develop their career along with a recognisable qualification valued in the workplace

A “grim” tale

There once was a qualification suite called 706 – everyone knew what it meant, what the individual had learnt, what they were capable of doing and in what areas they would need to be developed on entering the workplace.

Unfortunately 706 became old and its health and support weakened and 13 years ago it was put to sleep

David Nicholls (Executive Chef Mandarin Oriental laments “706 was ill, it needed evolution not euthanasia”

706, a college based curriculum was replaced by NVQ's – actually developed as work based accreditation of learning. NVQ's were never intended to be delivered in college and now we have a qualification which does not provide the learner or the industry with the clear benchmarked learning standard needed.

Things are changing...

People 1st‘s role is to ensure that education delivers industry the skills it needs and we have:

• Conducted in depth research with both employers and colleges nationwide
• Unearthed a raft of reasons behind the lack of basic cooking skills of many college leavers:
  • These included the NVQ itself (a qualification never designed for delivery within college)
  • The lack of a national curriculum run by all colleges
  • Inadequate government funding.
• Worked with employers to lay down the outline of a suitable qualification to deliver chef skills in college.
• Worked with all awarding bodies to ensure that only one qualification will be developed, thus making sure there is national consistency and a nationally recognised benchmark (similar in principle to the old City and Guilds 706 suite of qualifications).
• The resultant qualification is now in development with City and Guilds and will be piloted in September.

Having put chefs' skills at the heart of the National Skills Strategy being developed we are now working with government to ensure the new qualification is available and adequately funded.

The government's commitment to this can be measured by:

• The millions of pounds invested every year in skills development
• Their support of your Sector Skills Council (People 1st) and the mandate to develop our sectors first ever National Skills Strategy.

We need your support to ensure that the funding bodies shift their funding and provide the pilots planned for September 2006 with the appropriate level of funding to ensure both industry and young talent get the qualification and skills they need for the future of this growing vibrant sector.

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Added: Tuesday, 18th July, 2006 16:36 GMT 16:36 UK

"At long last! WE shall be piloting this qualification from September, Level 1 in 2006, Level 2 in 2007. Please develop a similar suite of Food Service training qualifications. There is a demand, the industry needs a regular supply of trained, knowledgeable service staff who have spent a year or two LEARNING not filling in portfolios"

C Jones, North Wales