Who awards these diplomas, and who regulates them

The chain

Four links between a regulator and a reader

1. Ofqual regulatesThe government regulator recognises awarding organisations, holds them to its General Conditions, and lists each qualification on its register.
2. OTHM and Qualifi awardThe awarding organisations write the specifications, approve and monitor centres, verify assessment and issue the certificates.
3. LSPM deliversLondon School of Planning and Management, the approved centre, admits and registers learners, teaches, marks, and claims certificates once work has been verified.
4. This site advises and refersLearnLoom Consultants, an independent recruitment agent for LSPM, explains the qualifications, answers questions and introduces applicants to LSPM. Nothing more.

The regulator

Ofqual

Ofqual is the regulator of qualifications and assessment in England. An awarding organisation that wants its qualifications regulated must be recognised by Ofqual, meet the General Conditions of Recognition continuously, and submit each qualification for listing on the Register of Regulated Qualifications. Every diploma on this site has an entry on that register, identified by the qualification number on its programme page, recording the awarding organisation, the level, the credit value and its current status.

Ofqual regulates awarding organisations, not centres and not agents. LSPM's obligations run to OTHM and Qualifi under its centre agreements; ours, as the agent, run to LSPM under an agency agreement and to you under consumer law. That is the route by which the regulator's standards reach a classroom, and it is worth knowing where the route stops.

The awarding organisations

OTHM and Qualifi

Both are Ofqual-recognised awarding organisations that design qualifications, publish specifications, approve and monitor centres, verify assessment and issue certificates. They are not universities and do not award degrees. Of the 45 Level 7 diplomas on this site, 19 are awarded by OTHM and 26 by Qualifi.

Where both bodies offer a diploma with the same or a similar title, the two are separate regulated qualifications with different unit structures and different Ofqual numbers. The programme pages set out the structural differences, and choosing between them is a matter of fit rather than of one body being superior to the other.

The approved centre

What LSPM's approval means

London School of Planning and Management holds centre approval from OTHM and from Qualifi. Approval means the awarding organisation has satisfied itself about the centre's staff, resources, policies and quality assurance, and it is kept under review through periodic monitoring. Under that approval LSPM:

• Admits learners against the awarding body's published entry requirements and registers them with the awarding body.
• Teaches the units to the specification and sets assignments against the published assessment criteria.
• Marks and internally moderates the work, then submits samples for the awarding body's external verification.
• Claims certificates only after verification, and runs complaints and appeals procedures the awarding body can inspect.

The certificate you receive is issued by the awarding organisation and names LSPM as the delivering centre. It is the awarding organisation's qualification, not LSPM's and certainly not this site's. LearnLoom Consultants holds no centre approval, and this site is not a centre.

Checking

How to verify a qualification, the centre or a certificate

1. Find the Ofqual numberIt is in the facts panel on every programme page, in the form 603/2181/7.
2. Search the registerEnter the number at register.ofqual.gov.uk. The entry should show the awarding organisation, Level 7, the credit value and a status of available to learners.
3. Verify LSPM with OTHMOTHM publishes a list of approved centres on its website, searchable by name and country. Look for London School of Planning and Management on that list.
4. Verify LSPM with QualifiQualifi's site has a centre-finder and a verification contact. Search for London School of Planning and Management, or email Qualifi with the centre name and qualification title, and ask whether approval is current for the Level 7 diploma you are considering.
5. Check a certificateAwarding organisations can confirm whether a certificate they appear to have issued is genuine. Employers verifying a candidate's diploma should ask the awarding body, not LSPM and not us.

If a verification page does not show what this site says it should, tell us at Enquiry form and we will correct the site or explain the discrepancy.