Part of the debate – in the Senedd at 4:58 pm on 29 April 2020.
Deputy Presiding Officer, I think I have, in previous answers to colleagues this afternoon, addressed some of the points that Mr Asghar has raised. I would just repeat: with regard to qualifications, Qualifications Wales are very clear on their website about how they will award vocational qualifications. Where a calculated grade is possible, that will happen. Where calculation is not possible, consideration should be given to adapting existing assessments, and that too will happen. But for some—and Mr Asghar talked about professional competencies—that may have to be delayed, but we are working with the sector very closely to ascertain ways around this. It is true to say that it may not be possible for some of those technical assessments to be carried out in the current conditions, but we will keep that under review.
As I said earlier, we have given assurance to colleges around the nature of their funding going forward, and we have made £2 million available to support mental health initiatives in FE. I would like to commend the sector for the excellent work that they have been doing keeping in touch with their learners, especially their most vulnerable learners. They have been very good at doing so.