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National Occupational Standards

National Occupational Standards (NOS) are, at their simplest, definitions of competence that can be applied to job roles or occupations. These standards are set by Sector Skills Councils, like Government Skills, working with employers, employees and other stakeholders (such as training providers) from across the sector. Standards are used by all of these groups to aid skills development.

Written as statements of competence, NOS capture the performance, behaviours and knowledge, and understanding that an individual must demonstrate to be considered competent to carry out a particular task. This means they are a powerful tool for describing the skills that employers need in their workforce and the skills an individual needs to have or gain to be succesful in their job.

NOS help with a wide range of skills development and HR-related acitivities. For example, they can be used to:

• describe good practice in particular areas of work
• provide managers with a tool for a wide variety of workforce management and quality control tasks, such as training needs analysis or appraisal
• offer a framework for training and development
• form the basis of National Vocational Qualifications (NVQs), Scottish Vocational Qualifications (SVQs) and Vocationally Related Qualifications (VRQs).

Consultation on standards

So that Government Skills can properly represent the interests of employers, we need to consult with them on a regular basis. Government Skills also consults with employees and other key stakeholders with an interest in the sector. This is particularly the case as we develop standards and qualifications.

Watch this space for future NOS projects and how you can help shape standards for our sector.

If you have any questions on consultation, please contact:

• Nicole Suter – 0203 300 8821

Consultation to develop standards for policy makers

Many thanks to all those who contributed during July 2008 to our NOS consultation, by reviewing the draft standards and providing feedback and quality assurance.

The final drafts are now being agreed and will then be submitted to the regulator for approval. We will publish a link to the NOS once approval is granted.

Development of NOS for Civil Contingencies

Do you work in Civil Contingencies? If so standards are now available for you.

For more information, please visit the Skills for Justice website – Civil Contingencies NOS [External website].