The charity Vocational Training Charitable Trust (VTCT), is delighted to announce that they have acquired the leading Awarding and End-Point Assessment organisation, Skillsfirst Awards Ltd. As of 4th March, Skillsfirst has become a part of the VTCT charitable group of companies.
The move combines the strengths of both VTCT and Skillsfirst to fortify their position as leaders within the education and apprenticeship market and enhance the services offered to employers, centres and learners.
Skillsfirst is one of England’s leading Awarding and End-point Assessment Organisations, with a growing international client base. Its significant achievements include: first-class, end-point apprenticeship assessments across sixteen apprenticeship standards; introducing remote proctoring across Functional Skills assessments; and advocating for equality, diversity and inclusion through the development of an innovative suite of LGBTQ+ qualifications.
Skillsfirst’s dedication to innovation, dynamism and outstanding learner outcomes placed them as the preferred organisation to help VTCT grow and consolidate its charitable objective of seeking to advance education for the benefit of the public.
Myra Wall, Managing Director of Skillsfirst, said,
“Since establishing Skillsfirst in 2009, the business has been dedicated to providing an outstanding level of quality and service to our customers and learners. From our humble beginnings, I am incredibly proud that over 500k people have now achieved a Skillsfirst qualification and we are privileged to work with many leading employers and providers.
I have no doubt that joining the VTCT charitable group of companies will enable Skillsfirst to grow and continue to build on its success.”
Alan Woods OBE, Chief Executive of VTCT, said,
“We were keen to ensure Skillsfirst joined the VTCT group of companies because it’s highly respected in the assessment and awarding sector and with the employers, centres and learners they serve. Crucially, Skillsfirst also shares our values and ambitions, emphasising quality assurance, learner success, employer recognition and exceptional customer service. We will protect and develop the Skillsfirst brand and ethos whilst ensuring it meets our charitable objectives.”
“This widening of our group structure aligns with our growth strategy to continue the development of our portfolio. This strategy includes working more widely in the independent training provider market and working more directly with employers, particularly supporting apprenticeships and functional skills, where we already partner with Skillsfirst. We are incredibly excited about the strong innovation profile that Skillsfirst brings, evidenced by its remote proctoring solution for functional skills assessments and working with nationally recognised companies in the Early Years and Care workforce. We hope to develop that offer further by deploying significant financial resources to support customers and learners to achieve their goals. We are also delighted that all the existing Skillsfirst Team will remain within the organisation. ”
“We are confident that by bringing together Skillsfirst, iTEC and VTCT as a charitable group, we will be able to enhance further the experience offered to learners while continuing to provide the excellent service our approved centres expect from us.”
“We would like to assure both Skillsfirst and iTEC/VTCT approved centres that there will be no interruption to your service, and you will continue to be supported as usual in the best way possible by your usual team. Should you have any queries about this, please speak to your Skillsfirst or VTCT contact, who will be happy to help you with any questions you may have.”