Rethinking work readiness: Using VocTech to assess essential skills

Recent CIPD research (December 2024) highlights a persistent skills gap among young people entering employment, with only 28% of employers reporting that newly recruited young people are prepared for the world of work. Communication, collaboration and social interaction are critical to success, yet remain difficult to assess using traditional approaches.

As part of the Week of VocTech, this session will explore how vocational technology can enable more authentic, inclusive and scalable assessment of essential skills.

Hosted by NCFE, the session will draw on current research alongside learning from NCFE and Ufi’s Assessment Innovation Fund (AIF) projects. The AIF supports organisations to test and evaluate innovative approaches to assessment, building an evidence base for system-wide improvement. You can find out more about the pilots here: www.ncfe.org.uk/aif-pilots.

Together, we will explore:

• the competencies that underpin workplace readiness across secondary and further education
• how VocTech can support more valid, learner-centred assessment models
• practical insights on implementation, scalability and impact from live innovation projects

This session is aimed at awarding bodies, EdTech organisations, providers and policy stakeholders seeking to modernise assessment in ways that are fair, robust and aligned to the realities of work.