Reasonable adjustments: remove barriers, protect the standard

Begin with the barrier, not an assumed solution

An apprentice may experience a particular assessment format differently from everyday work. Start by asking what makes it harder to demonstrate competence: reading on screen, sustained concentration, hearing spoken questions, using a venue or interacting with unfamiliar technology. Listen to the apprentice’s own account and record only the information necessary for the request. A diagnosis alone does not describe every practical barrier, while the support that worked during learning may need specific authorisation for assessment. Discuss concerns early rather than waiting for a booking to be confirmed.

Distinguish adjustments from special consideration

Ofqual requires clear reasonable-adjustment arrangements, and treats special consideration as a separate process for temporary illness, injury or events outside the learner’s control. An adjustment is intended to allow competence to be demonstrated without changing what is being assessed. Ask the assessment organisation which process applies, what information it needs and when a decision is required. Avoid promising a particular outcome before approval. If the assessment is imminent and circumstances have changed, use the urgent contact process rather than silently adapting the arrangements.

Write a specific and proportionate request

Identify the apprentice using the reference required by the assessment organisation, state the standard and version, and identify the method affected. Describe the barrier in practical terms, the support requested and why it is likely to help. Examples for discussion might include accessible formats, rest arrangements or assistive technology, subject to the assessment requirements and individual decision. Explain any existing way of working that is relevant. State what has already been tried and whether it worked; do not attach an entire sensitive history when a focused record would answer the question.

Handle information carefully

Agree who needs to see the request, who will send it and where the decision will be kept. Use the organisation’s authorised secure channel rather than a general enquiry form for sensitive documents. Tell the apprentice how their information will be used and direct privacy questions to the responsible organisation. Restrict the shared cohort tracker to operational status such as “decision awaited”; it rarely needs a medical narrative. Check the applicable lawful basis, access permissions and retention rules with your data-protection lead rather than treating a signed form as the whole privacy process.

Plan how the approved arrangement will work

An approval letter is the beginning of implementation. Confirm the equipment, software, venue, facilitator role, timing and backup arrangements. Where suitable, run a technology or access check using non-live material. Check compatibility with any security controls before the day. Record who has briefed the assessor and who will confirm that the agreed arrangements are in place. If an arrangement cannot be delivered as approved, raise the issue promptly; a well-meant substitution may create a different barrier or change the assessment conditions.

Explain decisions and routes for review

Share the decision with the apprentice in understandable language, including any conditions and practical next steps. If the requested support is not approved, obtain the reasons and consider whether further information or an alternative arrangement would address the barrier. Ofqual’s appeals framework includes decisions about reasonable adjustments and special consideration. Use the assessment organisation’s published review or appeal process and deadlines; do not assume that a disagreement automatically pauses a planned assessment. Keep an accurate record of communications and make sure the apprentice knows who can help.

Review the experience and improve the system

After the session, ask whether the approved support was delivered and whether any unexpected barrier arose. Keep this separate from an assumption about the result: an apprentice can achieve while still experiencing an avoidable access problem. Record factual issues, agreed actions and the process for raising concerns. Use anonymised themes to improve future booking, communication and technology checks. The downloadable request worksheet is an adaptable preparation template, not Avenor’s final approved policy and not a substitute for the assessment organisation’s required application form.

• Raise access needs early and revisit them when the method changes.
• Check approval status before confirming operational arrangements.
• Avoid placing health information in open cohort spreadsheets.
• Provide the apprentice with the decision and the next contact.

Worked example: convert a request into a deliverable arrangement

An apprentice explains that fatigue and processing speed make a long remote session difficult. The learner-support lead records the barrier and how it affects the planned activity, with the apprentice’s agreement, rather than copying a diagnosis into the cohort tracker. The assessment organisation requests further information and then confirms an arrangement with conditions. The coordinator tests the approved technology and timings, briefs the relevant people and gives the apprentice one written summary of what will happen. The outcome is recorded separately from the original request.

Common errors include promising an adjustment before a decision, assuming a support plan transfers automatically, sending medical detail to people who only need logistics, substituting a different arrangement on the day and treating a successful result as proof that no barrier occurred. The apprentice describes the barrier and preferences; learner support coordinates the request; the assessment organisation makes its decision under its process; operations deliver the approved arrangement; a privacy owner limits access to sensitive information.

Use this guide to choose the next action. If the need is only suspected, have a private conversation and identify the relevant process. If a request is ready, send the minimum necessary information through the authorised route and track the decision. If approval exists, move to operational testing and named ownership. If the delivered conditions differ, record the facts and use the published review, complaint or appeal route as applicable. Do not improvise support that changes the assessment conditions.