National Occupational Standards (standards) provide a clear description of what you need to know and what you need to be able to do to perform a job successfully. Standards exist across many occupational areas and over 4 million people have used them to ensure they perform their job to the national standard.There are very few standards that exist for the creative and cultural sectors. However, Creative & Cultural Skills is working to change this.
"Standards help staff to measure their skills against industry standards and to pick out any gaps in their skills and understanding that they can target for training. Tyntesfield was saved for the nation by the National Trust in 2002 and is in the middle of a massive programme of restoration and conservation work.
"We have a special brief for the Trust, trying new things and involving partnership organisations in using the estate as a learning resource. In 2007 we began a project to develop a skills passport for house teams, to help staff and placements to recognise and develop their skills. This passport was developed using the new Cultural Heritage Suite of National Occupational Standards as a guide."
Katie Laidlaw, Skills Supervisor, National Trust
How are they used?
Employers can use standards to create job descriptions, develop staff training courses and to support the appraisal process. Educationalists use standards to develop Qualifications to ensure that skills needs in the workplace are supported by useful qualifications.
For more details about how to use standards as an employer, employee or educationalist download our guide here.
How are they developed?
Standards are developed through extensive consultation with employers, educationalists and employees. All completed standards are approved by the UK Commission for Education and Skills. We cannot develop standards without your help.
Your involvement
- To find out which standards are currently in development and to contribute to the process, please visit the ‘consultation’ area on this website.
- To find out which standards have been developed recently and to give us your feedback about these please visit the ‘current standards’ area on this website.
- If you want to learn more about standards, please download the frequently asked questions (PDF).
- To view all U.K standards please visit the National Occupational Standards Directory at www.ukstandards.co.uk.
Consultations
- Music Business consultation is closed and standards are in development.
- Cultural Heritage consultation is closed and standards are in development.
- Crafts consultation is closed and standards are in development.
Jewellery Manufacture
Creative and Cultural Skills is reviewing the National Occupational Standards for Jewellery Manufacture. We have appointed Peter Taylor of the Goldsmiths Company to act as Industry Champion for this project and have bought together a working group of industry experts to review the standards.
An initial consultation in October identified the functions for which standards should be developed, this second questionnaire is to confirm the content of the draft standards that have been developed.
The draft standards contain proposed qualification structures which are generic at level 2, but follow occupational pathways at level 3 and level 4. When answering the very short questionnaire it is important that you refer to the qualification structures and respond in relation to the pathways that relate to your area of expertise, not all the standards will be relevant to all occupations.
Please complete the short questionnaire for jewellery standards
Current standards
We have completed the following standards which can be downloaded from this website.
Consultation is ongoing as all standards are regularly updated every 3-4 years. Please let us know what you think should be removed, added or amended in these current standards.You can submit your feedback by downloading and complete the form here and emailing qualifications@ccskills.org.uk .
Partner Sector Skill Councils
- Skillset, the industry body which supports the UK creative media industries maintain and develop standards in these sector areas - view here
- Skillfast-UK, the Sector Skills Council for fashion and textiles, maintain and develop standards in these sector areas - view here
Lifelong Learning UK has begun a review of the National Occupational Standards for Learning and Development. The Standards were last updated by ENTO in 2001 and the suite will be reviewed to ensure they are 'fit for purpose' and still reflect the functions for which they were written.
To learn more and participate in this important consultation please click here
If you are another Sector Skills Council wishing to import or contextualize any of Creative & Cultural Skills Standards please download, complete and email the form here.