National Occupational Standards

How NOS are used

NOS can be used in many different ways. Awarding Bodies can create qualifications to train individuals for a job. These qualifications can then be used in an Apprenticeship Framework or a training programme.

Employers can create a job description to recruit new staff or a training plan to develop their skills. Also, individuals can research different types of jobs and match their skills/experience to those that are needed.

National Occupational Standards Strategy 2022 and beyond

Building on the strong foundation of the NOS brand, the strategy aims to make NOS even more usable and accessible and recognises the need for cross-cutting standards for transferrable skills such as leadership and management and digitals skills, to facilitate movement between sectors. The strategy also outlines plans to make NOS processes and systems more agile and accessible which includes continuing work to improve the NOS database and website.  The NOS Strategy 2022 and beyond can be accessed via the following link:

• National Occupational Standards Strategy 2022 and beyond

UK Standards database

All of the completed and approved NOS are kept on a database – UK Standards. This is accessible to everyone across the UK and allows people to search for standards across a broad range of job roles and industries.

To ensure NOS are up to date and fit for purpose, they are regularly reviewed and updated to reflect the needs of industry and new NOS are also commissioned to reflect new and changing industries. A key part of the process for updating and creating NOS is consultation with employers and stakeholders across the UK. This is a chance for you to contribute your views and experiences and influence the future of standards.

For further information on National Occupational Standards in Northern Ireland, email: NOS.Reviews@economy-ni.gov.uk

Achievements

An infographic summarising NOS achievements in 2021/2022 has been published:

• NOS achievements 2021/2022

National Occupational Standards (NOS) Annual Report for 2022/2023 has also been published:

• National Occupational Standards 2022/2023 Annual Report

Reviews

Throughout the year Delivery Partners will be reviewing existing NOS and developing new NOS across a range of sectors. A vital part of this review and development work is seeking feedback from stakeholders.

Feedback is needed from across a wide range of stakeholders to ensure that NOS are up-to-date and fit for purpose and meet the needs of individual sectors. This includes employers, industry experts, training providers, further and higher education and other relevant stakeholders in Northern Ireland.

For anyone interested in contributing to the development of National Occupational Standards, live consultation events will be shared via our social media pages:

• Twitter - @economy_ni
• LinkedIn - Department for the Economy
• Facebook - Economy_NI

National Occupational Standards for retail

People 1st International is undertaking a review of existing National Occupational Standards (NOS) for retail in the UK and would like to invite you to participate.

The NOS are developed in consultation with employers and other relevant stakeholders to ensure that they are truly reflective of the competencies required for the successful completion of each task at the heart of job roles and are used to inform qualifications and apprenticeships.

Why should I participate?

• It’s an opportunity to lead, change and influence the direction of learning and professional development on offer across the retail industry in the UK.
• You will have real and direct involvement in reviewing the standards which drive retail qualifications and apprenticeships.
• You will be part of shaping the future for the industry and those working within it.
• Provides an invaluable CPD opportunity.

What does it involve?

You can choose the level of engagement that you are comfortable with:

• Join an Expert Working Group to directly influence the outcome of the Retail NOS review.
• Participate in an online survey to give feedback on recommended amendments to the existing retail NOS.
• Be kept up to date with developments.

How to participate

Fill in the form NOS Review Retail to state your interest, or get in contact with Jenny Bech at People 1st International (jenny.bech@people1st.co.uk). We are also happy to discuss any aspect or provide more details.

Lantra is looking for industry representatives to help review the National Occupational Standards for Animal Technology

Lantra have secured a contract to review the National Occupational Standards (NOS) for Animal Technology. These were last updated in 2012 so are well overdue for review as there is likely to have been changes in legislation and working practices since then. It is important that the NOS are kept up to date as they form the basis of training and qualifications for animal technologists.

Lantra review of National Occupational Standards for Animal Technology 

Energy & Utility Skills is looking for industry representatives to help review standards for the energy and utilities sector

As the industry skills body for the sector, Energy and Utility Skills have been appointed by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) to review a range of National Occupational Standards (NOS) during 2024-2025.

The following NOS suites will be under review:

• Utility Management Skills 
• Gas Network Engineering Management 
• Sewerage Maintenance 
• Recycling Activities 

In addition to NOS interest is also being established in a review of the Scottish Diploma in Sewerage and Drainage Operations at SCQF Level 5.

Get Involved

To ensure that NOS consider the latest innovation and working practices in the sector and are fit for purpose, Energy and Utility Skills are inviting industry representatives who understand the technical aspects of the job roles associated with NOS, including employers, training providers, and professional bodies to be involved in the reviews.

Launch sessions are being run for each of the NOS suites, providing an overview of each of the NOS under review, the approach and project plan. These will then be followed by a series of industry workshops to review the NOS units in detail.

Dates for these sessions are as follows: (subject to change)

Following the industry workshops, a further opportunity to input on the NOS reviews will be made available as part of the public consultations issued later in the year. 

How to register

To register your interest in either the NOS or Scottish Qualification reviews, please email standardsreview@euskills.co.uk with your contact details and confirmation of the review you would like to be involved in. A member of the team will be in touch.

Skills for Justice – Workforce Development Trust Review of Civil Contingency suite of National Occupational Standards

Against the backdrop of climate change, the Covid-19 pandemic enquiry, and rapid technological advancements, the ability of public and private sectors to anticipate, assess, prevent, mitigate, respond to, and recover from a variety of direct and indirect civil contingency risks, needs to increase. 

With this in mind, the Workforce Development Trust (incorporating Skills for Justice, Skills for Health, People 1st International) has been commissioned by the Cabinet Office to carry out a review of the Civil Contingency suite of National Occupational Standards. This will form the basis for further work being undertaken for Resilience across many sectors within the UK.

Skills for Justice, has launched a public consultation on the civil contingencies suite of National Occupational Standards (NOS) in support of the UK Government Resilience Framework.

Civil Contingencies NOS Consultation 2024 - Resilience 

Please note the consultation closes on 30^th September 2024

More information is available at Helping build a resilient UK – Skills for Justice launch new government consultation

If you have any queries, contact: resilience@wdtrust.org.uk

Contact us

If you have any questions or would like more information about our programme of NOS reviews, please contact us at standardsreview@euskills.co.uk .