Mary Mitchell O'Connor (Dún Laoghaire, Fine Gael)
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221. To ask the Minister for Education and Skills the reason training providers who have submitted community and health services major level 5 awards for validation more than seven months ago have still not received an update from Quality and Qualifications Ireland on their application; if the expiration date for these awards can be extended; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [54050/13]

Ruairi Quinn (Dublin South East, Labour)
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QQI advises providers that applications for validation of programmes leading to their awards take approximately 20 weeks to process. Providers' programmes are submitted to QQI for validation via an online system and evaluated to ensure they will allow learners to meet the required national standards. Providers can track the progress of their application via the online system.

QQI endeavours to process validation applications as efficiently and effectively as possible. Programmes leading to major awards are evaluated on the basis of the detail submitted by the provider in their application. Delays may occur where information contained in the application requires clarification or where providers are asked for additional information. Providers are also required to comply with the legal requirements for Protection for Enrolled Learners (PEL) and if information regarding a provider's PEL arrangements is not provided to QQI then QQI cannot validate the programme.

It is not possible to inform the Deputy of the specific reasons for the delay referred to in the Deputy's question without further detail regarding the particular providers and awards concerned.

With regard to the expiry date of December 2013 for legacy awards, the transition to the Common Award System (CAS) at levels 3 to 6 of the National Framework of Qualifications has been in train since 2009. This transition commenced under FETAC and has continued since QQI was established. It is a process whereby old awards were withdrawn and replaced with CAS awards devised by FETAC to meet in full the requirements of the National Framework of Qualifications. This transition has been a complex activity requiring the input and support of a range of stakeholders and providers, including those in the private sector. Advance planning, briefings for providers and validation procedures for CAS were put in place by FETAC prior to the establishment of QQI. A series of briefings (from 2009 to 2013) were held by FETAC for providers both public and private to inform them about the requirements. Providers have, therefore, had sufficient time to plan programme development in accordance with their quality assurance procedures and to make an application for validation of their programme for the relevant CAS award to ensure continuity of business.