Celebrating its 175th anniversary year, NCFE is an awarding organisation, leader in technical and vocational education, and also a registered educational charity.
Emma Hoare, Head of Governance at NCFE, explains more about the organisation, the work they’re doing that is having a social impact, and the benefits of working for a charity.
What makes NCFE a charity?
To be registered as a charity, an organisation must be established exclusively for public benefit and have aims that fall into a predefined category that the law says are charitable. Here at NCFE, our aim is the advancement of education – our core purpose is promoting and advancing learning to create a fairer society, and our beneficiaries are our learners.
As well as being a charity, we’re also a registered company limited by guarantee, which means we don’t have shareholder returns to satisfy, but we do have a Board of Trustees and Directors.
What does NCFE do as an educational charity?
NCFE was first born in 1848 from the belief that no learner should be left behind – a cause which continues to drive our people today.
We believe that through shaping smarter learning, we can empower a fairer society, facilitate excellent learning experiences, create opportunities to progress and change lives for the better. We exist to help individuals to realise their true potential – whatever their starting point, and whatever their destination.
So how do we do this? From world-class qualifications and content to new innovative assessment methodologies, from technology platforms to effective partnerships – we seek to develop and invest in solutions which provide the highest learning quality experiences for all.
For example, our £1 million Assessment Innovation Fund is helping to break boundaries in assessment through investment to support and pilot new ideas. One such pilot has just been run by The Sheffield College, which has been testing the effects of how virtual reality (VR) can be used effectively in summative and formative assessment.
Further investments and partnerships that we’re proud to have established include our work with the unique social impact project Good for ME Good for FE, our project with the Greater Manchester Learning Provider Network (GMLPN) to increase apprenticeship opportunities for young autistic people, and our Centre of Excellence programme which develops worldclass educators in partnership with WorldSkills UK.
What are the benefits of working for a charity?
Charities have a very clear sense of purpose and aim to make society better, which can bring much stronger motivation and job satisfaction than working in a commercial sector.
They can also bring together people who care deeply about a cause and who feel a connection to the purpose – for us here at NCFE, that means making a difference to learners and ultimately, society.
This was the case for our People Product Manager, Holly Ferdinando, who explains the importance of working at a charitable organisation with a clear vision.
She said: “Having originally started my HR career in the charity sector by chance, I quickly realised the importance for me personally in working for an organisation whose purpose and values strongly align with my own, and who aims to make a real difference through what they do.
“Since then, I have specifically sought out roles just within the charity sector, and it was a key reason for applying to work at NCFE. Working at a charity in a support function such as HR has enabled me to meaningfully make a wider contribution to an overall purpose and feel connected to this through my work.”
How is the culture at NCFE impacted by being a charity?
By having a clearly defined purpose, our colleagues understand how they can contribute and make a difference through the work they do, and this is something we’re proud of. Our People Services team runs quarterly engagement surveys and one of the most consistently highestscoring responses is – ‘I understand how my work contributes to our core purpose.’
As a charity we want all our people to connect deeply with our purpose and to feel inspired by our vision for the future, which impacts how we set organisational goals and objectives so that colleagues can feel fulfilled and valued by their contributions.
To find out more about life at NCFE and explore the current career opportunities that are available, visit our careers page www.ncfe.org.uk/careers