Awarding bodies, Ofqual and the approved centre
Four parties stand between you and a Level 6 certificate: the regulator that recognises the awarding body, the awarding body that owns the qualification, the approved centre that teaches and assesses it, and this site, which advises and refers. Their roles do not overlap, and it helps to know which is which.
RegulatorOfqual
Ofqual, in full the Office of Qualifications and Examinations Regulation, is the statutory regulator for qualifications in England. It does not award anything. It recognises awarding organisations that meet its conditions, holds them to those conditions, and maintains the public Register of Regulated Qualifications, on which every award on this site appears with its own number. Regulation by Ofqual is what makes a Level 6 diploma a regulated qualification, and it is the reason the level on the certificate means the same thing wherever it is read in England.
To verify any diploma here, search the register by the qualification number printed in the particulars table of its page. Each page links to that search directly.
Awarding bodyOTHM Qualifications
OTHM is an awarding organisation recognised by Ofqual, with a portfolio of vocational and professional qualifications in business, health and social care, education, computing, logistics, tourism and safety. It writes and owns the specifications, sets the assessment criteria, registers learners, quality-assures the centres that deliver its awards, and issues the certificates. It publishes Total Qualification Time and Guided Learning Hours for each award, which is why those figures appear on the OTHM pages here.
8 of the diplomas on this site are OTHM awards:
- Level 6 Diploma in Accounting and Business
- Level 6 Diploma in Business Management
- Level 6 Diploma in Teaching and Learning
- Level 6 Diploma in Health and Social Care Management
- Level 6 Diploma in Information Technology
- Level 6 Diploma in Logistics and Supply Chain Management
- Level 6 Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety
- Level 6 Diploma in Tourism and Hospitality Management
Awarding bodyQualifi
Qualifi is likewise recognised by Ofqual and offers qualifications from Level 3 to Level 8, chiefly in business, management, health and safety, education and technology. Its role is the same as OTHM's: it owns the specification, sets the standard, approves and monitors centres, and certificates learners. Qualifi does not always publish TQT and GLH in the specifications we consulted, so several Qualifi pages here show "See specification" in those rows rather than an unverified figure.
6 of the diplomas on this site are Qualifi awards:
- Level 6 Diploma in Business Administration
- Level 6 Diploma in Business Management, Leadership and Innovation
- Level 6 Diploma in Global Teaching Practice
- Level 6 Extended Diploma in Global Teaching Practice
- Level 6 Diploma in Health and Safety Management
- Level 6 Diploma in Occupational Health and Safety Management
Approved centreLondon School of Planning and Management
The approved centre for every diploma on this site is London School of Planning and Management (LSPM), of Office 7, 35-37 Ludgate Hill, London, EC4M 7JN. Approval is granted by each awarding body after a review of the centre's staff, resources, policies and assessment practice, and is kept under review through quality-assurance visits and sampling of marked work.
As the approved centre, LSPM registers learners with the awarding body, employs the tutors, sets the timetable, teaches the units, marks assignments against the awarding body's criteria and submits results for external verification; the awarding body confirms them and issues the certificate. Tuition fees are LSPM's; registration and certification fees are the awarding body's and are passed on within LSPM's published fee. A centre does not write the qualification, cannot alter its units or criteria, and cannot certificate anyone itself. If a centre ceased to be approved, learners' registrations would remain with the awarding body, which has arrangements for transferring them.
How to verify the centre yourself
Do not take approval on trust from a website, including this one. OTHM publishes a searchable list of its approved centres on its own site under its centre directory; search it for "London School of Planning and Management". Qualifi likewise publishes an approved-centre list, and its enquiries team will confirm a centre's status by email if you give London School of Planning and Management and the qualification title. If either body cannot find LSPM, stop and ask before enrolling. The Ofqual register, linked from every programme page, confirms the qualification but not the centre; the centre check is a separate step.
This siteWhere level6diploma.org fits
The chain runs in one direction. Ofqual regulates OTHM and Qualifi. OTHM and Qualifi write the qualifications and approve LSPM to deliver them. LSPM teaches, assesses and enrols. This site sits outside that chain: it is published by an independent recruitment agent for LSPM, a consultancy that explains the qualifications, answers enquiries and introduces applicants to LSPM's admissions team, and that is paid by LSPM when an introduced learner enrols. Nothing on this site is an act of the regulator, an awarding body or the centre, and no approval attaches to the site itself. The about page names the agent and sets out the relationship in full.
Ask someone who will say if this is wrong for you
An independent adviser at LearnLoom Consultants, not LSPM's sales desk, replies within two working days. Then a short advice call, if you want one. Nothing is sold on it.
- Enquire
- Advice call
- Apply to LSPM
- Enrol