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Cover page of the SCQF Week 2026 Social Media Toolkit. The design has a dark navy background with large white text reading “SCQF Week 2026 toolkit”. Two coloured text panels explain that SCQF Week 2026 celebrates 25 years of the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) and will run from Monday 21 September to Friday 25 September 2026. At the bottom left are illustrations of a desktop computer and a smartphone displaying the SCQF website. The right-hand side features layered pink and purple geometric shapes. In the bottom right corner is the SCQF 25th anniversary logo with the text “25 years of making all learning count”.

Join us to celebrate SCQF Week 2026

26 Aug 2026

Find out how you can take part in SCQF Week 2026.

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Promotional graphic celebrating the 25th anniversary of the Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF). The image has a dark blue background with large white text at the top reading, “Happy 25th birthday to the SCQF!” On the left is a photograph of Stuart McKenna wearing a white shirt and patterned tie. In the centre, a teal quotation graphic contains the text: “It’s a fantastic opportunity to celebrate the achievements of the SCQF over the past 25 years, while looking ahead to how the Framework can continue to support learners, employers, education and training providers.” In the bottom right corner is a purple and pink anniversary logo featuring the number 25 and the SCQF logo, alongside the words “25 years of making all learning count.”

Happy 25th birthday to the SCQF!

With the countdown on until our SCQF@25 conference, host Stuart McKenna shares why he’s looking …

19 Aug 2026
Five Castlemilk High School students stand together in a school corridor, with one student in the centre holding a silver SCQF Ambassador plaque. They are smiling for the camera, with school display boards and examples of students’ work visible behind them.

Every achievement counts: How Castlemilk High School is changing the way young people see themselves

One Glasgow high school went from SCQF bronze to silver in just months - find out how they did it.

12 Aug 2026
Graphic with a dark navy background featuring the large white headline "Call for potential consultants". Below the text is a white line illustration of two overlapping speech bubbles with a lightbulb inside, representing ideas or consultation. In the bottom-right corner is a purple and pink angled graphic containing the SCQF 25th anniversary logo with the text "25 years of making all learning count."

Call for potential consultants

The SCQF Partnership is updating its database of consultants who may be interested in supporting …

5 Aug 2026
Three people in outdoor clothing stand on a grassy hillside overlooking a valley and distant hills. One person wears a large green backpack, another wears a blue jacket, and a third wears a red jacket and points toward the landscape. The scene is lit by daylight under a partly cloudy sky, with a town, fields, and rolling hills visible below.

Doing therapy differently: Outdoor & Adventure Therapy at SCQF level 7

Learn more about the new Outdoor & Adventure Therapy qualification at SCQF level 7.

4 Aug 2026
Swimming instructor wearing a blue shirt labeled “TEACHER” stands at the edge of an indoor pool, demonstrating an exercise while several children in the water, wearing swim goggles and swimsuits, raise their arms overhead and follow along during a swimming lesson. To highlight the new STA Swimming Teacher Qualification at SCQF level 7

Take the plunge with swim teacher qualification at SCQF level 7

A new qualification for swim teachers is making a real splash after being added to the Scottish …

28 Jul 2026
Promotional graphic with a blue background featuring Rob Stroud in a dark navy short-sleeved buttoned shirt and glasses standing on the left. Large white text at the top reads, “Meet the Board: Rob Stroud.” A teal quotation graphic in the centre contains the text: “The Framework, at its heart, is a tool for making learning count. People's time and resources are precious, and when someone commits to a period of learning they deserve to understand clearly what that qualification means, what level it represents, and how it compares to others in the landscape.” The bottom-right corner contains a purple and pink anniversary logo with the text “25 years of making all learning count” and the SCQF logo.

Meet the Board: Rob Stroud

In the latest in our 'Meet the Board' blog series, we talk to Rob Stroud about his role and vision …

22 Jul 2026
Promotional graphic for the "Meet the Board" blog series featuring a head-and-shoulders portrait of board member Gillian Brydson on a dark blue background. Large text reads: "Meet the Board: Gillian Brydson". A highlighted quotation from Gillian states: "The transparency and stability offered by the SCQF has given the system a constant frame of reference during times of much discussion about the need for education and skills reform." The SCQF 25th anniversary logo with the tagline "25 years of making all learning count" appears in the bottom-right corner.

Meet the Board: Gillian Brydson

In a new series of blogs shining a spotlight on SCQF Partnership board members, we speak to Gillian …

16 Jul 2026
Five people stand together pitchside at Celtic Park stadium in Glasgow. Glasgow Clyde College curriculum manager David McGurn is on the far left and Glasgow Clyde College sports lecturer Shaun Gallagher is second from the right. The group stands behind a metal crowd barrier with the football pitch and the stadium’s green-and-white seating behind them. Large white letters spelling “CELTIC” are visible across the stand, with an Adidas logo above. Two foreground signs display the text “PLEASE MIND.” The photograph is taken from pitch level under the covered stadium roof.

A whole new ball game: Football analysis at Glasgow Clyde College

Watching football is one thing. Actually analysing it? That’s a whole different ball game and …

16 Jul 2026

Glossary Term

Authority

Appears at Level 12 only where it is used in the phrase ‘demonstrate substantial authority’, reflecting a recognised high level and depth of expertise/expert knowledge and understanding, along with confidence. It does not mean ‘exercise authority over staff and resources’ etc, as that could clearly apply at earlier levels.

Glossary Term

Exercise

Used in connection with management and/or supervisory responsibility, denotes a requirement of a formal, substantive role.

Glossary Term

Directive

Applied to ‘supervision’, signifies a task or activity that is guided.

Glossary Term

Graphical Data

Encompasses maps, plans, diagrams, tables and graphs.

Glossary Term

Synthesis

Combine discrete elements into a coherent whole.

Glossary Term

Analysis

Examine in detail with a view to explanation and interpretation.

Glossary Term

Present

Set out, put forward, deliver information using a variety of mediums as appropriate.

Glossary Term

Hypothetical

Supposed, assumed for the sake of argument.

Glossary Term

Straightforward

Clear and uncomplicated activity, but not as demanding or systematic and therefore not as advanced as ‘routine’.

Glossary Term

Creativity

Often used in combination with ‘originality’. There is overlap in definition, but the defining characteristic of creativity appears to be imagination.

Glossary Term

Originality

Often used in combination with ‘creativity’. There is overlap in definition, but the defining characteristic of originality appears to be independence.

Glossary Term

Professional

Used throughout as an adjective and applied to terms including level, skills, techniques, practices, contexts, and issues where it bears broad interpretation as ‘behaving appropriately/doing things properly and well and to notions of accepted, (including externally) prescribed standards’, as well as narrow, relating to a specific occupation designated as a profession. In this latter sense, the term applies in all contexts including academic study, eg footnoting properly.

Glossary Term

Unfamiliar

New territory for an activity.

Glossary Term

Routine

Used as an adjective throughout and applied to terms including skills, tasks, elements, practices, contexts, methods and problems where it describes activity that is standard, usual, unvarying, customary, common.

Glossary Term

Everyday

Slightly more advanced and beyond personal but a known experience/activity encountered/applied regularly - less advanced than ‘familiar’.

Glossary Term

Familiar

Often encountered or experienced; common; something one has a good knowledge of - more advanced than ‘personal’ and ‘everyday’, not as advanced as ‘routine’.

Glossary Term

Personal

An experience relating only or primarily to the person – one would expect to start here then widen out into the rest of the world, so not as advanced as ‘familiar’.

Glossary Term

Critical

Fully informed, capable of supporting in-depth analysis and assessment.

Glossary Term

Discerning

Using judgement to recognise differences but not fully equipped/informed to analyse and discuss them in depth, so less advanced than critical.

Glossary Term

Awareness

Consciousness, including a background consciousness. Can be a starting point for further exploration.

Glossary Term

Appreciation

A sense, perception, a hold, fix or grasp of one or more of the various aspects of a subject/discipline/sector.

Glossary Term

Understanding

A thorough and firm grasp of a subject/discipline/sector or an element or elements of it, derived from education/study, experience and reasoning in appropriate combination. Can be defined as ‘know why’, as opposed to ‘know that’. More holistic knowledge of processes and contexts, so more advanced than appreciation and knowledge.

Glossary Term

Simple

Undemanding activity not necessarily part of a formal structure - not as advanced as ‘basic’.

Glossary Term

Knowledge

Facts, ideas, theories and concepts in a subject/discipline/sector acquired through experience and/or education – a surer grasp than appreciation so more advanced.

Glossary Term

Basic

Activity is early stepping stone on a structure or framework that can be built upon – more advanced than ‘simple’.