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Policies and procedures

Appeals Procedure

This purpose of an appeals procedure is to ensure that every learner who is not satisfied with the outcome of an assessment decision has the right to appeal against the decision that has been made. This procedure applies to all students of Julie Driver Pilates Education who wish to appeal against an assessment decision.

The appeals procedure applies to any learner following completion of “The Pilates Equestrian Series – The Reformer” at Julie Driver Pilates Education and provides learners with a formal route to appeal against a decision.

Julie Driver Pilates Education learners will be assessed against published criteria laid out by the organisation and by assessors who must hold:-

  • Fully-Certified Pilates Certificate (contemporary or classical in both mat/apparatus)

In addition, Julie Driver Pilates Education will ensure that assessors have relevant industry experience and demonstrate an active involvement in a process of industry relevant Continued Professional Development (CPD) during the last two years

All new Julie Driver Pilates Education assessors will be given a clear action plan for achieving the appropriate qualification(s) and should be countersigned by an appropriately qualified individual until the qualification(s) are achieved.

Examples of areas that may be deemed grounds for appeal include:

  • You feel you have not been given the correct support throughout the course.
  • A marking decision was unfair and/or the final overall decision to award the certificate.
  • You feel you have been unfairly treated by a member of staff or fellow learner
  • You experienced major delays or course days were not run at all.

All appeals must adhere to the following procedure:

  1. All appeals must be addressed to Julie Driver Pilates Education or Julie Driver Pilates Education@gmail.com
  2. The appeal must include the details of the appeal along with all supporting evidence using the following protocol:
    1. All appeals must be sent to Julie@juliedriverpilates.com
    2. All supporting evidence needs to be sent with appeals letter (including video evidence, if necessary)
    3. A panel will investigate the circumstances of the appeal and respond in writing within 10 days
    4. If necessary, a theory paper will be hand-marked by an independent body.
    5. Any additional evidence may be requested during this time in writing, by person or by telephone.
    6. In relation to a practical appeal, the practical component will need to be assessed via video submission only.
    7. All available evidence needs to be presented to Julie@juliedriverpilates.com along with any re-assessment.
    8. If required, the student and the original assessor will give their evidence to independent body.
    9. A signed and dated written record of the decision should be given to the student within 2 working days post-hearing.

If the outcome of the appeal is successful, one of the following will be awarded:

  • The mark for an individual item of course work is amended
  • The result of a practical or theory component is amended
  • The overall result is amended
  • The student is given the opportunity to retake the assessment at no further cost.

If the student feels the outcome is unsatisfactory then an appeal against this decision can be made directly to CIMSPA. Contact information and procedure can be sent on request.

Additional Notes

It is extremely difficult to investigate appeals without impartial evidence. Therefore, appeals against referrals in practical assessments will only be considered when accompanied by video evidence.

The student has the right to video any aspect of his/her assessment using his/her own video equipment, provided that it does not interfere with the assessment process, other candidates or the assessor’s ability to carry out his/her role.

It is the responsibility of the candidate to arrange a video operator and/or advise the teacher/tutor of any medical problem, which may affect student performance. This will enable a decision to be made if deferral is needed.

All practical assessment appeals must be received in writing within 20 working days from the candidate’s receipt of his/her assessment results.

Throughout the assessment process Julie Driver Pilates Education will comply fully with CIMSPA policy on reasonable adjustments and special considerations that can be found:

Fees

There will be a charge of £125.00 for handling appeals that progress beyond the initial stage that are NOT upheld. If upheld the fee should be waived.

Complaints Procedure

Introduction

This document sets out Julie Driver Pilates Education’ complaints policy and procedure and is aimed at our learners and all interested parties who encounter a direct or indirect service from Julie Driver Pilates Education. Julie Driver Pilates Education values the learners who undertake our course. Our aim is for you to experience great teaching that puts you at the heart of how we teach, giving you the opportunity to achieve the best results. We value honesty, a good work ethic, clear guidelines and supporting each other in our learning journey.

Therefore, it is important should you feel you have encountered a level of service that is below both yours and our expectations that you raise any concerns you may have with us immediately so that we may address them and learn lessons appropriate to improving service level expectations.

Scope of Policy

This policy covers complaints that learners and members of the public may wish to make in relation to the qualifications offered by Julie Driver Pilates Education.

It is not to be used to cover enquiries about services offered by Julie Driver Pilates Education or appeals in relation to assessment decisions made by Julie Driver Pilates Education. These areas are covered by our Appeals Policy. Should a complaint be submitted which is in fact an appeal we will respond to inform the relevant party that the issue is being considered in accordance with our Appeals Policy.

If you are unhappy about the way an examination or assessment was delivered and conducted and you suspect malpractice and/or maladministration may have occurred you should send your concern to us in accordance with the arrangements in our Malpractice & Maladministration Policy. This should occur as soon as possible to protect any associated evidence that may form part of your complaint.

How Should You Complain?

Stage 1. All Julie Driver Pilates Education staff are trained to support our customers and are all keen to help, so you should first try to sort out any problem at the earliest opportunity by speaking to the person who dealt with your problem initially.

Stage 2. If they cannot help or you wish to speak to someone else please complete our complaints form and pass it on to Julie Driver, who will email you a receipt for your complaint within 5 working days and will respond with a solution for your complaint within 20 working days. Where it is not possible to offer a solution within 20 working days you will be notified of the time scaled action plan.

Stage 3. If stage 2 is not possible, or if you are not satisfied with the help provided, please send a written complaint which must be received within 20 working days of exhausting stage 2 of the event you are complaining about, and address it to us using the contact details outlined at the end of policy.

If you have fully exhausted the process and are still unhappy with the outcome then you can contact CIMSPA directly. Contact details can be found on www.cimspa.org.uk

Confidentiality and Whistle Blowing

Sometimes a complainant will wish to remain anonymous. However, it is always preferable to reveal your identity and contact details to us. If you are concerned about possible adverse consequences please inform us that you do not wish for us to divulge your identity.

What happens if your complaint is upheld?

If any part of your complaint is upheld we will of course respond to the complainant accordingly and give due consideration to how we can improve our service and arrangements. For example, by reviewing our procedures to assess the impact on our arrangements and assessment process (if relevant) or arranging for staff training. In extreme circumstances, internal disciplinary procedures may be exercised where the performance or behaviour of our staff is deemed inappropriate.

In situations where a complaint has been successful, or where an investigation following notification from CIMSPA indicates a failure in our processes, Julie Driver Pilates Education will give due consideration to the outcome and will, as appropriate, take actions such as:

  • Identify any other learner, who has been affected by that failure
  • Correct, or where it cannot be corrected, mitigate as far as possible the effect of the failure
  • Ensure that the failure does not recur in the future
  • Compensate the learner if the centre has found it has compromised its own terms and conditions that form part of the contract between us and the learner in question.

Equal Opportunities And Diversity Policy

We promote a working environment in which diversity is recognised, valued and encouraged. We acknowledge the multi-cultural and diverse nature of the UK workforce and society in general. We are committed to principles of fairness and mutual respect where everyone accepts the concept of individual responsibility. These principles are embedded into Julie Driver Pilates Education’ Equal Opportunities and Diversity Policy.

We recognise that discrimination in the workplace/provision of training in any form is unacceptable and, in most cases, unlawful. We view any breach seriously. We will investigate and potentially take appropriate action.

Definitions and Protected Characteristics

Diversity. The concept of diversity encompasses acceptance and respect. It means understanding that each individual is unique, and recognizing our individual differences. These can be along the dimensions of race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, socio-economic status, age, physical abilities, religious beliefs, political beliefs, or other ideologies. It is the exploration of these differences in a safe, positive, and nurturing environment. It is about understanding each other and moving beyond simple tolerance to embracing and celebrating the rich dimensions of diversity contained within each individual.

Protected Characteristics. No learner, or anyone our organisation deals with, receives less favourable treatment because of their protected characteristics. The protected characteristics are:

  • Age
  • Disability
  • Gender Reassignment
  • Marriage and Civil Partnership
  • Pregnancy and Maternity
  • Race (including colour, nationality, ethnic or national origin)
  • Religion or Belief
  • Sex
  • Sexual Orientation

This is Julie Driver Pilates Education’ Stance

In adhering with this stance, Julie Driver Pilates Education ensures equality of treatment for all by aiming to:

  • Raise awareness of equality and diversity
  • Ensure that you are never discriminated against or receive less favourable treatment because of a protective characteristic
  • Acknowledge any issues that could be defined as discrimination, victimisation or harassment with an appropriately sensitive and prompt investigation
  • Comply with CIMSPA in making suitable reasonable adjustments.

Your Responsibilities

Each and every one of us is a stakeholder in the success of this policy. We expect you to make a positive contribution towards maintaining an environment of equal opportunity throughout the organisation. Please make sure you observe this policy at all times. In particular, you have individual responsibility to adopt the following:

  • Do not take unlawful discriminatory actions or decisions contrary to the spirit of this policy
  • Do not discriminate against, harass, abuse or intimidate anyone on account of their protected characteristics
  • Do not place pressure on any other learners to act in a discriminatory manner
  • Resist pressure to discriminate placed on you by others and report such approaches to an appropriate member of staff
  • Co-operate when we investigate, including providing evidence of conduct which may amount to discrimination
  • Co-operate with any measures introduced to develop or monitor equal opportunity
  • Discrimination is not just treating one person less favourably than another. It can take place because:
  • someone associates with a person with a protected characteristic;
  • someone is believed to possess a protected characteristic (even though they do not);
    We expect you to treat, and be treated by, other learners and the people our organisation deals with considerately and with respect.

Where You Encounter Discrimination

  • If you feel subject to discrimination of any kind as identified within this policy, make clear to the individual concerned that you find it unacceptable. Person-to-person discussion at an early stage may be enough to resolve your concern without involving anyone else. Alternatively, seek the help of a trusted colleague (e.g. a fellow learner or a trusted member of staff) and ask them to approach whoever has caused you offence.
  • If discrimination continues, or you consider an instance to be particularly serious, you should consider who to highlight the issue with. For the majority of cases this will likely to be the tutor or assessor. However, we appreciate that this staff member may be implicated in your concern and therefore when this happens they should approach the tutor/assessors line manager or the designated internal verifier.
  • The staff member approached will carry out a suitable documented investigation or where more appropriate will refer the issue to an appropriate individual responsible for this area within the company. In this instance it will be Julie Driver.
  • The result of the investigation into alleged discrimination will be communicated to you with information including the action taken and outcome highlighted if applicable or appropriate.
  • If you feel dissatisfied about the outcome of the investigation and you want to appeal then you will need to contact CIMSPA within five working days of receiving the outcome, who will carry out a review these concerns.

Malpractice and Maladministration Policy

Definition of Malpractice

Malpractice is essentially any activity or practice which deliberately contravenes regulations and compromises the integrity of the internal or external assessment process and/or the validity of certificates and associated achievement. It covers any deliberate actions, neglect, default or other practice that compromises, or could compromise:

  • the assessment process
  • the integrity of a regulated qualification
  • the validity of a result or certificate
  • the reputation and credibility of Julie Driver Pilates Education or the qualification or the wider qualifications community

Malpractice may include a range of issues from the failure to maintain appropriate records or systems, to the deliberate falsification of records in order to claim certificates.

For the purpose of this policy this term also covers misconduct and forms of unnecessary discrimination or bias towards certain groups of learners.

Examples of Malpractice

The categories listed below are examples of centre and learner malpractice. Please note that these examples are not exhaustive and are only intended as guidance on our definition of malpractice:

  • Denial of access to premises, records, information, learners and staff to any authorised Julie Driver Pilates Education representative and/or the regulatory authorities
  • Failure to carry out internal assessment, internal moderation or internal verification in accordance with our requirements
  • Deliberate failure to adhere to our learner registration and certification requirements
  • Deliberate failure to continually adhere to our centre approval and/or qualification approval requirements or any actions assigned to your centre
  • Deliberate failure to maintain appropriate auditable records, e.g. certification claims and/or disposal and/or forgery of evidence
  • Fraudulent claim(s) for certificates
  • The unauthorised use of inappropriate materials / equipment in assessment settings (e.g. mobile phones)
  • Intentional withholding of information from Julie Driver Pilates Education which is critical to maintaining the rigour of quality assurance and standards of qualifications
  • Deliberate misuse of our logo and trademarks or misrepresentation of a centre’s relationship with Julie Driver Pilates Education and/or its approval status with <Awarding Organisation>
  • Collusion or permitting collusion in exams/assessments
  • Learners still working towards qualification after certification claims have been made
  • Persistent instances of maladministration within the centre
  • Deliberate contravention by a centre and/or its learners of the assessment arrangements specified for Julie Driver Pilates Education qualifications
  • A loss, theft of, or a breach of confidentiality in, any assessment materials
  • Plagiarism by learners/staff
  • Copying from another learner (including using ICT to do so)
  • Impersonation – assuming the identity of another learner, or having someone assume your identity during an assessment
  • Unauthorised amendment, copying or distributing of exam/assessment papers/materials
  • Inappropriate assistance to learners by centre staff (e.g. unfairly helping them to pass a written exam or practical assessment)
  • Deliberate submission of false information to gain a qualification
  • Deliberate failure to adhere to, or to circumnavigate the requirements of Julie Driver Pilates Education’ reasonable Assessment Adjustments and Special Considerations Policy

Definition of Maladministration

Maladministration is essentially any activity or practice which results in non-compliance with administrative regulations and requirements and includes the application of persistent mistakes or poor administration within Julie Driver Pilates Education (e.g. inappropriate learner records).

The categories listed below are examples of centre and learner maladministration. Please note that these examples are not exhaustive and are only intended as guidance on our definition of malpractice:

  • Unintentional, but persistent failure to adhere to our centre approval or qualification requirements and/or associated actions assigned to the centre
  • Late learner registrations (either infrequent or persistent)
  • Unreasonable delays in responding to requests and/or communications from Julie Driver Pilates Education
  • Inaccurate claim for certificates made frequently, even if accidentally
  • Failure to maintain appropriate auditable records, e.g. certification claims and/or disposal and/or forgery of evidence
  • Withholding of information from Julie Driver Pilates Education which is required to assure CIMSPA of the centre’s ability to deliver qualifications appropriately.
  • Misuse of Julie Driver Pilates Education logo and trademarks, or misrepresentation of a centre’s relationship with CIMSPA and/or its approval status with CIMSPA.
  • Failure to adhere to, or to circumnavigate, the requirements of Julie Driver Pilates Education Reasonable Adjustments and Special Considerations Policy

Making an Allegation of Malpractice or Maladministration

Anybody who identifies or is made aware of suspected or actual cases of malpractice or maladministration at any time must immediately notify the appropriate personnel at Julie Driver Pilates Education. In doing so they should put them in writing/email and enclose appropriate supporting evidence. If the area of malpractice or maladministration involves Julie Driver Pilates Education then the informant may bypass us as a centre and report straight to CIMSPA.

All allegations must include (where possible):

  • Centre’s name, address and number
  • Learner’s name and <Awarding Organisation> registration number (If known)
  • Julie Driver Pilates Education personnel’s details (name, job role) if they are involved in the case
  • Details of the Julie Driver Pilates Education course/qualification affected or nature of the service affected
  • Nature of the suspected or actual malpractice and associated dates
  • Details and outcome of any initial investigation carried out by the centre or anybody else involved in the case, including any mitigating circumstances

If Julie Driver Pilates Education has conducted an initial investigation prior to formally notifying CIMSPA, Julie Driver Pilates Education should ensure that staff involved in the initial investigation are competent and have no personal interest in the outcome of the investigation. However, it is important to note that in all instances, Julie Driver Pilates Education must immediately notify CIMSPA if they suspect malpractice or maladministration has occurred. Julie Driver Pilates Education has a responsibility to the regulatory authorities to ensure that all investigations are carried out rigorously and effectively.

In all cases of suspected malpractice and maladministration reported to CIMSPA, they will protect the identity of the ‘informant’ in accordance with their duty of confidentiality and/or any other legal duty.

Julie Driver Pilates Education responsibility to prevent malpractice and maladministration

To eradicate cases of malpractice/maladministration, Julie Driver Pilates Education will ensure:

  • All staff are aware of policies and procedures and receive appropriate training/briefings on these
  • Staff have clear roles and responsibilities
  • There is a documented internal quality assurance procedure/methodology that is clearly in place and is subject to regular internal reviews
  • There are documented internal standard arrangements in place and evidence that these take place at least once a year
  • Learners are informed of their roles and responsibilities in terms of not doing anything that may be deemed a malpractice and jeopardise their potential achievements
  • All assessment and internal verification activities are accurately recorded and carried out in accordance with the Julie Driver Pilates Education internal quality assurance arrangements and in line with the Julie Driver Pilates Education’ expectations as outlined in its qualification guides etc.
  • All registration and certification records are subject to appropriate internal review before submission
  • All registration, assessment and certification records will be kept on a password protected computer file for up to 3 years after the student has completed their course. Only authorised and appropriate members of staff will have access to them

Julie Driver Pilates Education Procedure to Investigate Malpractice or Maladministration

To embed effective arrangements to investigate instances of malpractice/ maladministration the following should process will ensue. It is intended that the stages involve generic key activities; however, not all these would be implemented in every case.

Stage 1: Briefing and record-keeping

Anyone involved in the conduct of an investigation should have a clear brief and understanding of their role.

All investigators must maintain an auditable record of every action during an investigation to demonstrate that they have acted appropriately.

The officer assigning the investigating officer(s) will stipulate and/or provide secure storage arrangements for all material associated with an investigation in case of subsequent legal challenge. There may be occasions when a joint investigation occurs with CIMSPA with the roles of the two teams being clarified by Julie Driver Pilates Education. It is Julie Driver Pilates Education’ responsibility to ensure their investigators are fully aware of the agreed roles and processes to follow during the investigation.

 

Stage 2: Establishing the facts

Investigators should review the evidence and associated documentation, including relevant Julie Driver Pilates Education guidance on the delivery of the qualifications and related quality assurance arrangements.

Issues to be determined are:

  • What occurred (nature of malpractice/substance of the allegations)
  • Why the incident occurred
  • Who was involved in the incident
  • When it occurred
  • Where it occurred – there may be more than one location
  • What action, if any, Julie Driver Pilates Education has taken.

Stage 3: Interviews

  • Interviews should be thoroughly prepared, conducted appropriately and underpinned by clear records of the interviews. For example:
  • Interviews should include prepared questions and responses to questions which should be recorded
  • Interviewers may find it helpful to use the ‘PEACE’ technique:
    • plan and prepare
    • engage and explain
    • account
    • closure
    • evaluation

Face-to-face interviews should normally be conducted by two people with one person primarily acting as the interviewer and the other as note-taker. Those being interviewed should be informed that they may have another individual of their choosing present and that they do not have to answer questions. These arrangements aim to protect the rights of all individuals. Both parties should sign the account as a true record/reflection of what was covered/stated/agreed.

Stage 4: Other contacts

In some cases, learners or employers may need to be contacted for facts and information. This may be done via face-to-face interviews, telephone interviews, by post or email.
Whichever method is used, the investigator will have a set of prepared questions. The responses will be recorded in writing as part of confirmation of the evidence. Investigators should log the number of attempts made to contact an individual. Again, accounts should be signed for agreement with written records to be formatted as non-editable PDF.

Stage 5: Documentary Evidence

Wherever possible documentary evidence should be authenticated by reference to the author; this may include asking learners and others to confirm handwriting, dates and signatures.

Receipts should be given for any documentation removed from Julie Driver Pilates Education.
Independent expert opinion may be obtained from subject specialists about a learner’s evidence and/or from a specialist organisation such as a forensic examiner, who may comment on the validity of documents.

Stage 6: Conclusions

Once the investigators have gathered and reviewed all relevant evidence, a decision is made on the outcome.

Stage 7: Reporting

A draft report is prepared and factual accuracy agreement obtained. The final report is submitted to the relevant staff member within Julie Driver Pilates Education for review and sign-off and shared with CIMSPA and relevant parties.

Stage 8: Actions

Any resultant action plan is implemented and monitored appropriately and CIMSPA notified.
If you would like to refer to CIMSPA policy for Malpractice and Maladministration, please visit www.cimspa.org.uk

Quality Assurance Policy

Julie Driver Pilates Education monitors and evaluates all its systems, policies and procedures for the delivery of regulated qualifications to ensure they are in line with regulatory General Conditions of Recognition*.

Continuous improvement is assured through ongoing monitoring, thus promoting public confidence in the quality of all Julie Driver Pilates Education qualifications.

Prompt action is taken to address any weakness identified, and this monitoring forms part of Julie Driver Pilates Education annual self-assessment activities.

Julie Driver Pilates Education will also monitor and evaluate the following to better inform our processes:

  • malpractice / maladministration events
  • reasonable assessment adjustment and special consideration requests
  • the nature and number of enquiries and appeals.

Ensuring the Standards of our Qualifications and Units

Julie Driver Pilates Education has a responsibility to all learners undertaking our qualifications, to ensure that we stay in accordance with relevant national standards.

In order to meet this responsibility Julie Driver Pilates Education has a set, monitored Internal and External verification process.

Our internal quality assurance systems are checked and monitored by the CIMSPA External verifier and re-assessed by ourselves annually.

(*as published by Ofqual (England), CCEA (Northern Ireland and Qualifications Wales)

Contact

If you have any queries about the contents of the policy, please contact our support team on: Julie Driver at Julie@juliedriverpilates.com

Reasonable Adjustment and Special Considerations Policy

Introduction

This policy is primarily for our learners who are undertaking or have completed a Julie Driver Pilates Education qualification or unit. It is also for use by our staff to ensure they deal with all reasonable adjustment and special consideration requests in a consistent manner.

This policy outlines:

  • Our arrangements for making reasonable adjustments and special considerations in relation to our qualifications.
  • How learners qualify for reasonable adjustments and special considerations
  • The reasonable adjustments we will permit and those where permission is required in advance before they are applied
  • What special considerations will be given to learners

Our Responsibility

It is important that all Julie Driver Pilates Education staff involved in the management, assessment and quality assurance of their qualifications, including our learners, are fully aware of the contents of this policy.

Review Arrangements

We will review the policy annually as part of our self-evaluation arrangements and revise it as necessary in response to learner feedback, changes in our practices, actions from the regulatory authorities or as a result to changes in legislation.

If you would like to feedback any views please contact us via the details provided at the end of this policy.

Arrangements Not Covered By This Policy

Circumstances for both internal and external assessment not covered in this policy should be discussed with Julie Driver Pilates Education before assessment takes place. Please contact us via the details provided at the end of this policy.

Appeals

If you wish to appeal against our decision to decline requests for reasonable adjustments or special consideration arrangements, please refer to our Appeals Policy.

Process for Requesting Reasonable Adjustments and/or Special Considerations

If you wish to make a request, you should complete the Reasonable Adjustment and Special Consideration request form and in doing so supply relevant supporting information:

  • Learner’s name and Julie Driver Pilates Education registration number, nature of, and rationale for the request
  • Supporting information/evidence (e.g. medical evidence or a statement from the invigilator or any other appropriate information)
  • Requests for reasonable adjustments should be submitted a minimum of 20 working days before the assessment.
  • Requests for special consideration should be submitted as soon as possible after the assessment and a maximum of five working days after the assessment. Requests for special consideration may only be accepted after the results of assessment have been released in the following circumstances:
  • Application has been overlooked at the centre and the oversight is confirmed by the centre contact
  • Medical evidence comes to light about a learner’s condition, which demonstrates that the learner must have been affected by the condition at the time of the assessment, even though the problem revealed itself only after the assessment
  • For onscreen assessments where results are immediately available.

If the application for special consideration is successful, the learner’s performance will be reviewed based on the available evidence. It should be noted that a successful application of special consideration will not necessarily change a learner’s result.

How Julie Driver Pilates Education will Deal with Requests

We will aim to respond to all requests within five working days of receipt. If we are unable to respond on the same day we will provide you with an estimated response date.

Definition of Reasonable Adjustments

A reasonable adjustment is any action that helps to reduce the effect of a disability or difficulty that places the learner at a substantial disadvantage in the assessment situation. They are made to an assessment for a qualification to enable a disabled learner to demonstrate his or her knowledge, skills and understanding of the levels of attainment required by the specification for that qualification.

Reasonable adjustments must not affect the integrity of what needs to be assessed, but may involve:

  • Changing usual assessment arrangements, for example allowing a learner extra time to complete the assessment activity
  • Adapting assessment materials, such as providing materials in Braille
  • Providing assistance during assessment, such as a sign language interpreter or a reader
  • Re-organising the assessment room, such as removing visual stimuli for an autistic learner
  • Changing the assessment method, for example from a written assessment to a spoken assessment
  • Using assistive technology, such as screen reading or voice activated software
  • Providing the mechanism to have different coloured backgrounds to screens for onscreen assessments or asking for permission for copying to different coloured paper for paper-based assessments
  • Providing and allowing different coloured transparencies with which to view assessment papers

Reasonable adjustments are approved or set in place before the assessment activity takes place; they constitute an arrangement to give the learner access to the programme. The use of a reasonable adjustment will not be taken into consideration during the assessment of a learner’s work.

Julie Driver Pilates Education is only required by law to do what is ‘reasonable’ in terms of giving access. What is reasonable will depend on the individual circumstances, cost implications and the practicality and effectiveness of the adjustment. Other factors, such as the need to maintain competence standards and health and safety, will also be taken into consideration.

Definition of Special Considerations

Special consideration can be applied after an assessment if there was a reason the learner may have been disadvantaged during the assessment.

For example, special consideration could apply to a learner who had temporarily experienced:

  • An illness or injury
  • Some other event outside of their control and which has had, or is likely to have had, a material effect on that learner’s ability to take an assessment or demonstrate his or her level of attainment in an assessment.

Special consideration should not give the learner an unfair advantage; neither should its use cause the user of the certificate to be misled regarding a learner’s achievements. The learner’s result must reflect his / her achievement in the assessment and not necessarily his / her potential ability.

Special consideration, if successful, may result in a small post-assessment adjustment to the mark of the learner. The size of the adjustment will depend on the circumstances and reflect the difficulty faced by the learner.

Learners should note that:

  • Where an assessment requires the learner to demonstrate practical competence or where criteria have to be met fully, or in the case of qualifications that confer a licence to practice, it may not be possible to apply special consideration
  • In some circumstances, for example, for on-demand assessments, it may be more appropriate to offer the learner an opportunity to take the assessment at a later date.