Independent assessment and quality consultancy
Why hire me?
I’ve spent my career working across vocational and technical education: inside awarding organisations, alongside providers, and in the specialist world of land-based education and skills. That breadth matters because the problems organisations bring to me rarely sit neatly in one area.
Assessment decisions affect curriculum. Qualification design is only as good as the delivery it supports. Having worked across all of it means I can see those connections and give advice that holds together.
Independent advice without a house view to defend or a methodology to sell.
I look at what is actually in front of me and tell you what I think, including when the answer turns out to be simpler than you feared.
I know what scrutiny actually looks for
A lot of the organisations I work with are either preparing for external review or recovering from one. What they need is someone who understands what regulators and quality assurance bodies are genuinely looking for, not just what the guidance says on the surface.
I’ve been involved in regulated qualifications and assessment long enough to know the difference between documentation that looks right and systems that actually work.
Assessment is my core expertise
A lot of consultancy work touches on assessment without really getting into it. I go into it.
The technical detail of validity, the way grading decisions get made, and how quality assurance holds up under pressure are central to how I work.
I understand the land-based sector from the inside
Land-based education is a specialism within a specialism. The employer landscape is fragmented, and the relationship between sector practice and formal assessment does not always translate neatly.
I’ve worked in and around agriculture, horticulture, forestry and arboriculture for long enough to understand how the sector works and what it needs from education and training.
I can write, not just advise
A lot of consultancy ends with a report that sits in a folder. I’d rather it ended with something usable.
I produce guidance documents, qualification specifications, assessment frameworks and briefing papers that people can actually work from. Translating complex regulatory or assessment requirements into clear language is a specific skill, and one I’ve developed over a long time.
Typical commissions
What organisations commission me to do
- Review assessment strategies, systems or materials
- Strengthen quality assurance arrangements and regulatory readiness
- Develop or review qualifications, units, assessment tasks or supporting guidance
- Support apprenticeship assessment design, review and delivery preparation
- Provide land-based education and skills expertise where sector knowledge matters
- Facilitate stakeholder, employer or sector discussions
- Support vocational curriculum review and provider improvement
- Deliver staff training on assessment practice or quality assurance
- Produce technical writing, reports, guidance documents or briefing materials
- Provide independent advice before, during or after a period of organisational change
The organisations I work with tend to leave with greater confidence in their assessment arrangements and a clearer sense of what to do next. That’s what I’m aiming for.
Let’s work together
Get in touch to discuss how I can help.