Qualification, assessment and curriculum design offer
Firm launches expanded offer to exam boards, professional bodies, universities and others…
Since the firm was founded by Prof. Matt Hamnett in 2018, we have done a huge amount of work with awarding and accreditation bodies – leveraging our market insights and expertise in strategy, policy, digital, service design, programme management and delivery.
Over that time, we have become increasingly involved in our clients’ product development activities – adding colleagues like Gemma Gronland, Helen Claydon and Emme Goode to our team – each of whom possess deep expertise in product strategy, qualification, assessment and / or curriculum design.
That’s why we’re now calling out our capability in this area as a discrete offer to our awarding and professional body, and other accreditation clients…
Product strategy
We can help you think about what qualifications and other products you should develop to realise your strategic, social, and commercial objectives.
We’re experts in the completion of awarding-market and competitor research; the interrogation of publicly available data about participation in education and training – and where other awarding organisations play; the exploration of labour market data showing trends in demand - and the knowledge, skills and behaviours employers expect for a given occupational role; and the systematic application of agreed decision-criteria to support your consideration of new opportunities – and the investment decisions associated with them.
Qualification design
We can help you develop all types of new qualification products, at all levels, and for all industry sectors - leveraging our team’s deep expertise, and our proven approach to engagement with sector and occupational experts. In this area, you might:
Wholly or partially outsource the development of a new qualification, or suite of qualifications, to us. You might, for example, ask us to look at a particular sector, cluster of occupations, or product type; or include us as a development partner in your T Level proposal(s) to the Institute for Apprenticeships and Technical Education (IfATE).
Ask us to embed members of our team in your qualification development team, providing you with the additional capacity and capability you need to deliver your qualification development roadmap – with our experts using your systems, methods and tools to deliver with you.
Ask us to review all or part of your existing qualification portfolio, either to provide you with some constructive challenge on development best practice – and / or to help you ensure that qualifications in your portfolio are consistent with evolving regulatory requirements.
Ask us to explore and address thematic issues across your portfolio, including for example identifying where you prescribe similar requirements differently in different assets within your portfolio – creating operational challenges for you, your customers, and learners.
Colleagues involved in apprenticeship trailblazer groups might also ask us to support the standard development or review process end-to-end.
Assessment design
We can help you develop all types of assessment strategy, sample and live assessment materials – for all product types, at all levels, and for all industry sectors. Our team includes colleagues with deep, technical and operational expertise – including with respect to formative, summative, practical, assignment, multiple-choice, synoptic, exam and high-stakes assessments, and the role of digital technologies in assessment.
In this area you might: outsource the development of assessment strategies, sample and live materials for a new qualification or suite of qualifications; ask us to embed members of our team in yours to provide surge capacity; or ask us to review assessment materials for existing qualifications in your portfolio – including to identify opportunities for harmonisation.
Colleagues involved in apprenticeship trailblazer groups might also ask us to support the development of end-point assessment plans for the standards they are developing.
Curriculum design
We can help you develop curriculum materials to support your customers’ delivery of your qualifications – including course overviews, schemes of learning, session plans and activities, and teacher support materials. You might ask us to develop a package of provider support materials for qualifications which we develop with you - or ask us to develop materials for a particular area in which providers are asking for more support from you.
We’re passionate about the opportunity to leverage insights gleaned from our engagement with employers and practitioners in the qualification development process into curriculum materials – recognising how well-placed awarding organisations and professional bodies are to do this.
Our wider offer
Our expertise in qualification development, assessment and curriculum design is an extension of our wider consulting offer to awarding and accreditation organisations. We have done great deal of work with colleagues on, for example: organisational strategy development, digital strategy development, exploration of opportunities for radical innovation, consideration of new market opportunities, exploration of merger and acquisition targets, transformation, process improvement, and major programme delivery.
Our team
James Sowray
James is a partner in MH&A who has fifteen years’ experience leading product development, operations and transformation teams to deliver exceptional outcomes. As a curriculum leader, he oversaw large, national apprenticeship provisions in the digital and professional services sectors; he grew the largest traineeship provision in the country - and had his traineeship provision rated outstanding by Ofsted. In MH&A, he has supported the development, review, and operational delivery of technical qualifications including new T Levels and other flagship level three products focussed on the 16-19 market.
Dr Gemma Gronland
Gemma is an expert in curriculum and assessment. She holds a master’s degree in education from Harvard University, and a doctorate from University College London’s institute for education for her work on prevent. She has worked with a large awarding organisation to develop several new T Level qualifications; has led work to review the quality and regulatory compliance of existing qualifications and assessment materials for another large awarding client; and, supported development of ambitious product strategy work for another.
Elise James
Elise has worked with government departments, agencies and awarding organisations to design and develop technical qualifications for sectors including business, construction, hospitality, and tourism. She is particularly expert in the development and assurance of assessment strategies, having project managed the development and review of assessment plans, qualification strategies, specifications and sample assessments, for Ofqual, CCEA, BIS and DfE. She has provided expert advice to apprenticeship trailblazer groups on assessment strategies and created teaching support materials for the sector.
Emma Goode
Emma has developed a wide range of vocational and licence to practice qualifications, and apprenticeship end point assessment materials, at levels one through six for sectors including construction, education, early years, and healthcare. She was worked with several new end point assessment providers to help them secure Ofqual recognition and mobilise robust, compliant assessment operations – leveraging her deep knowledge of the regulatory environment and its implications for qualification and awarding practice.
Joel Bild
Joel has led the development of vocational and technical qualifications and assessments, including apprenticeship end-point assessments, T levels, licence to practice qualifications, internal vocational qualifications, and bespoke employer qualifications at all levels, from entry to level seven. He has worked successfully across a range of sectors including business, digital, education, health, retail, and sport – plus functional skills and essential digital skills.
Get in touch
If you’d like to hear more about the firm’s qualification, assessment and curriculum design capability - or would like to discuss how we might support your work, please drop James a line; he’d be delighted to chat.