What are National Professional Recognition Awards for Leadership?
The National Professional Recognition Awards for Leadership are regulated qualifications that provide a vocational route to higher level professional recognition and are:
Comprehensive
the NPRAs are offered in commercial and professional fields. There is no practical limitation to the range of work-related environments, including paid and unpaid roles (eg volunteering), to which they may be related.
Progressive
there is a clear line of progression through from Level 4 to Level 7 through the standards.
Accessible
the NPRAs are open to any learner who meets the requirements and the standards.
Competence-based
the awards recognise the practical application of professional skills, knowledge and understanding, and offer a work-related route to higher level qualifications.
They don’t involve new learning and you won’t have to attend a course. You are simply required to show City & Guilds that you have sufficient experience of leadership and management to justify your award.
A PRA could help you progress more quickly in your career!
PRA APPLICATION FORM
4 Levels of Award
There are four levels of award:
- Licentiateship (LCGI) Level 4
- Affiliateship (AfCGI) Level 5
- Graduateship (GCGI) Level 6
- Membership (MCGI) Level 7
National Professional Recognition Middle Leadership (L4&L5)
Professional Recognition Award PLUS City & Guilds Post-nominal Certification –
Level 4 Licentiateship (Leadership and Management) (LCGI)
Level 4 – you would typically:
- have responsibility for managing your own day to day activities • lead or work collaboratively on a project or multiple projects • manage resources in your own area of responsibility
- constructively work with others to develop and maintain good working relationships
- develop and maintain good stakeholder relationships – identify and access opportunities for professional development – be able to apply professional standards in your own area of responsibility
- communicate effectively and manage information in line with organisational and legal requirements
- consistently meet aims and objectives
- exercise autonomy and judgement in work role
- consider the views and perspectives of others in decision making • address problems that are well-defined but non-routine.
Level 5 Affiliateship (Leadership and Management) (AfCGI)
Level 5 – you would typically:
- have line management responsibilities
- anticipate, plan and lead change
- manage resources
- constructively work with others to develop and maintain good working relationships
- set direction and inspire others to work together to achieve challenging outcomes
- generate creative ideas to inform best practice and continual improvement
- monitor compliance with professional standards
- implement an effective communication strategy
- develop and maintain good stakeholder relationships to support the stakeholder focussed culture of the organisation
- analyse, identify and access professional development
- address problems that are well-defined but complex and non routine
- exercise autonomy and judgement in decision making which takes into account the views and perspectives of others.
Assessment
To achieve a Professional Recognition Award you must provide a concise portfolio of work and evidence which demonstrates your competency for each standard. A piece of evidence may be used to cover more than one of the standards. The standards can be met collectively and holistically, rather than one by one.
Standards
- Commitment to Professional Standards
- Communication and Information Management
- Leadership
- Professional Development
- Working with Others
- Managing Stakeholder Relationships
For each standard there is a set of standard statements which you would be required to evidence your competency against.
To meet the standard you will be required to provide evidence that you are able to:
- analyse the professional standards which apply in your own area of responsibility
- apply professional standards to your own working practice
- support others to comply with professional standards
The Evidence
In order to qualify for you PRA you will need to submit a portfolio of work and evidence OR evidence of a project.
For example, you have managed a project within your workplace such as leading a programme of significant change. Evidence provided by the project enables you to demonstrate in part how you were able to use effective leadership skills (standard 3), work with others to drive change (standard 5), communicate effectively and use information management (standard 2), manage stakeholder relations throughout the change (standard 6), work in accord with professional standards such as legislation, policies and procedures for health, safety and security in addition to organisational policy and procedure (standard 1). You would be able to reflect on the experience of managing a significant programme of change and use this as a platform to inform your own professional development (standard 4).
It is your responsibility as a learner to explain or demonstrate how the work and evidence you present shows that you are competent and that you have met the requirements of each of the standards.
The Reflective Account
At the core of the portfolio is a reflective account.
A reflective account goes beyond description; it should evaluate personal performance and identify areas for further development. It must address each of the competency statements within each of the six standards, focussing on the verbs contained in the standard statements.
Alternative evidence could be …
A work-related project report such as an account of how a programme of significant change was managed or other work-related management activity can be a primary source of evidence for the Professional Recognition Awards.
A work-related project can be presented in two ways:
- A project report with objectives, scope, methodology and outcomes, with appendices and illustrations if required.
- A reflective account explaining what the learner did when carrying out the project
PRA APPLICATION FORM
National Professional Recognition Senior Leadership (L6&L7)
A level 6 National Professional Recognition Award (Graduateship) candidate would typically:
- have senior management responsibilities
- take responsibility for achieving organisational objectives
- take responsibility for managing a programme of substantial change or development
- identify and manage resources to meet organisational objectives
- take responsibility for motivating, delegating and empowering others
- promote innovation and generate ideas for improvement
- take responsibility for promoting, monitoring and maintaining compliance to professional standards
- establish, lead and maintaining effective communication
- develop and implement standards for customer service
- evaluate the impact of professional development on self and the organisation
- address problems that are complex and non-routine
- use autonomy to make judgements, demonstrating an ability to understand different perspectives, approaches and schools of thought
A Level 7 National Professional Recognition Award ( Membership) the candidate would typically:
- have strategic leadership responsibilities
- articulate a vision for the future of the organisation or own area of responsibility
- take responsibility for leading the organisation or own area of responsibility through complex change
- have an in depth understanding of resources and manage them to meet organisational objectives
- establish a culture of mutual support and cohesion which values the contribution of others and recognises success
- promote innovation and generate ideas for improvement
- establish an environment and culture that assures and promotes compliance with professional standards*
- develop a communication strategy for the organisation or own area of responsibility
- represent the organisation to communicate on matters of importance and sensitivity and establish robust methods for managing information.
- establish a strategy for putting the customer at the centre of the organisation or own area of responsibility
- champion professional development within the organisation.
Assessment
To achieve a Professional Recognition Award you must provide a concise portfolio of work and evidence which demonstrates your competency for each standard.
Standards
- Commitment to Professional Standards
- Communication and Information Management
- Leadership
- Professional Development
- Working with Others
- Managing Stakeholder Participation and Expectation
For each standard there is a set of standard statements which you would be required to evidence your competency against.
Just as at Levels 4 and 5, you would be required to submit a portfolio of work as evidence. (See earlier sections on The Portfolio and The Reflective Account.
Support
You will be supported all the way through your PRA journey by your employer who will identify your goals, and by the team at Aspirations Learning Institute.
You can expect an initial assessment to identify:
- any support requirements you may have
- guidance you may need when working towards the award
- any recognised prior learning or evidence which may be used as evidence towards the award
- the appropriate level of the award.
Support materials include a Qualification Handbook, and online resources via the Aspirations Learning Institute website.
Off the Job Training Time
Over the course of one term you will be expected to devote time to study and reflection as well as evidence gathering. Below is an estimate of the total time required for each Award:
- L4 Guided learning time 22h, total qualification time 55h
- L5 Guided learning time 20h, total qualification time 39h
- L6 Guided learning time 18h, total qualification time 32h
- L7 Guided learning time 16h, total qualification time 30h
Costs
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