Guidance: Digital qualifications: evaluation progress

The Department for Education is introducing a new legal entitlement to fully funded specified digital qualifications, at Entry Level and Level 1, for adults with no or low digital skills. This entitlement will be available from August 2020. Alongside the new entitlement, the Department is reforming basic digital qualifications, introducing new Essential Digital skills qualifications (EDSQs) and new Digital Functional Skills qualifications (Digital FSQs). You can find further information about the 2 qualifications in the table below.

Essential Digital Skills qualifications
Digital Functional Skills qualifications
New qualification available at Entry level 3 and at Level 1
Replacing Functional Skills in ICT, but new qualifications available at Entry level 3 and at Level 1
Appropriate qualification for adults with no or low digital skills wishing to gain digital skills for a specific life, work or study purpose – for example, to apply for jobs online, to manage finances online or to access government services online
Appropriate qualification for adults with no or low digital skills wishing to confirm they have digital skills needed for employment or further study
Qualifications based on new national standards for essential digital skills
Qualifications based on DfE subject content derived from the national standards for essential digital skills
30-50 hours of guided learning
55 hours of guided learning
Progress of Essential Digital Skills Qualifications and Digital Functional Skills Qualifications through Ofqual’s technical evaluation process. Progress of Essential Digital Skills Qualifications and Digital Functional Skills Qualifications through Ofqual’s technical evaluation process. Feedzy Read More