So, you might ask, why is this happening? Well vocational qualifications are becoming an increasingly popular route to learning and developing. In order to maximise on this and respond to what both employers and learners want out of a qualification the QCF pathway is being introduced. The purpose of this change is to provide a more flexible approach and choice to gaining a full qualification with a credit award system. It will still recognise and reward individual’s skills and achievements, but will ultimately support and benefit both the learner and employer in the delivery of relevant learning.

It will achieve this by breaking the learning process down into smaller steps allowing knowledge to be built up bit by bit. Qualifications will be tailored to meet the needs of the industry each individual works within. And most importantly all work based training will be to a nationally recognised standard.

Based on this new structure the Financial Services Skills Council (FSSC) believes that the QCF pathway delivers a competence based qualification and therefore no longer sees the need for NVQ qualifications. Consequently as of July 2010 all NVQ’s will end.

This change will only affect those new to learning. Those who are already studying under the NVQ or Diploma pathway prior to July 2010 will continue to finish their studies along this route.

With practice papers on hand individuals can use such resources to familiarise themselves with the software and question types. As with a paper based exam CBE’s have a 3 hour time allocated window for completion. There is no difference between the two in terms of difficulty – the CBE is basically an electronic version of a paper based exam.

“This is a great tool to add to our training facilities. Significant investment has been put into this opportunity and we hope that the students benefit from it” states Victor from AAt.

Currently CBE’s are only available for AAT Level 2 and 3 qualifications across a few select papers that include:

1. Introductory accounting (IAC)
2. Preparing ledger balance and an initial trial balance (PLB)
3. Maintaining financial records and financial accounts (FRA)
4. Recording and evaluating costs and revenues (ECR)

One of the added advantages to this is that results can be obtained literally within a couple of minutes of completion! This takes away the additional stress and strain of waiting months for results. Though these are only provisional results they are a good indication of a students’ performance. If unsuccessful then exams can be repeated after just one week.

For further details about Computer Based Exam’s at Anglia Accountancy training or to book your next exam slot then please speak to a member of the team on 01733 312120.

As 2009 continues to fly by, Anglia Accountancy training celebrates yet another important milestone. It is hard to deliver success year on year yet AAt do this and maintain their uniquely high pass rate of 93%, with 285 passes out of 305 exams sat. Students performed exceptionally well in papers PLB, PCR and PTax achieving a 100%pass rate, whilst all other papers by far exceeded the national averages.

“Across all AAT papers the students of Anglia Accountancy training have shown what hard work and determination can deliver,” –  Jenny Gidney. We’d also like to say well done to the students taking their CIMA qualification and the 92% pass rate achieved. Congratulations to everyone who has passed!

It was a busy night, with over 40 students and staff attending, with a mix of good and bad luck between them, “I seem to recall Jenny standing there at 1:00am in the morning counting her winnings – so I’m glad at least one of us did well out of it,” – stated Victor.

A big thank you goes to Mandy Hasdell for arranging the event. Aside from just being a good team night out, it posed the perfect opportunity to celebrate the success of a few select students who won the ‘Student of the Year’ title. “We believe that it is important to recognise the achievements of the students. There are some who just take that extra step further and show real dedication and passion that we feel should be rewarded” – commented Jenny.

This year’s winners included: Student of the Year – Nicola Dixon, Apprentice of the Year – Samantha Inman, Intermediate Student of the Year – Matthew King and Foundation Student of the Year – Tracie Dorman.

Unfortunately, Nicola was unable to make the event due to attending her Nan’s 84^th birthday party. “Nicola worked really hard this year so we are really pleased to present her with this award,” commented Victor.

Samantha, awarded Apprentice of the Year, was funded by Boston College and was nominated by Sally Tebbs. Her employer at Hereward Care Services, is extremely proud of her achievements. Samantha started work for HCS back in December 2007 and quickly settled into her role to become a valuable member of the team. “The speed at which she learns and the amount of work she gets through (always accurately) never ceases to amaze me,” states Anita Flanz, Samantha’s Manager. Anita being no stranger to studying herself passed all her AAT exams last year so can fully appreciate the hard work and dedication put into such achievements, “I have no doubt in my mind, that Samantha will achieve all her ambitions and be at the top of her field one day.”

Matthew was selected by Victor Gidney for his hard work and commitment to completing his Intermediate qualification. “As Matthew couldn’t be at the presentation evening we were looking for other ways to present his award. It just so happened that he was at the East of England Show the same time that David Hasslehoff visited the city, but unfortunately we couldn’t track Matthew down in time for the award to be presented,” laughs Victor.

Finally, but by no means least, Tracie was nominated for her award by Emma Osgood. “Tracie worked really hard all year round, putting in 100% effort. She certainly impressed all the staff with her improvement,” comments Emma.

Thinking about career progression Lisa heard about AAT qualifications through a colleague and subsequently signed up at the local Regional College for her studies. “Working for an American based company, they really value their workforce and the merits of training, so they were more than happy to support me with funding and day release for my studies.”

Following a first year at the Regional College Lisa did not enjoy her time there, and along with a couple of other students, moved to Anglia Accountancy training (then based in Netherton) to continue with her studies. “Being in my mid 30’s and going back to school is a daunting experience, though I never felt intimidated. Victor and the team really support all the students; nothing is ever too much trouble. I remember sitting with Victor at lunchtime as he helped me with a certain piece of work. They created a lovely relaxed atmosphere in which to learn. Studying during the day meant that I was in a classroom with students who had just finished school to other mums looking to get back into work. A real mix of experiences and skill sets to draw upon.”

Following Lisa’s success at AAt she now heads up the Finance department for the Perkins site in Peterborough, looking after a workforce of 80 members of staff. With other challenges on the horizon Lisa is looking to develop her career further, stretching outside of the financial arena using her skills and experience gained to date. When asked, would you recommend others to study at AAt she answered, “Yes, definitely. I’ve already put some employees through the courses myself.”

So what does Sally’s day to day role actually involve? “I spend a lot of time out on the road visiting employers, the training advisors and the students themselves. Offering them support as they progress throughout the course, both from an academic and emotional perspective.” The pastoral care side of things is what makes Sally unique and very good at what she does. “She manages to take on everybody else’s problems and still get on with it” states Lynn Ladds, Sally’s boss “she is a great ambassador and genuinely understands the needs of the learner”.

During Sally’s time working with both Victor and Jenny she has assisted and looked after over 500 students helping them to achieve their accountancy qualifications – a mean feat for anyone. “I’ve seen AAt grow from the small training establishment in 1996 to what it is today. Each year is different seeing peaks and troughs in the number of students coming through. As with any other industry the current economic climate is giving cause for concern, yet  the number of students still involved in training programmes such as accountancy remains strong. “It will be the funding and support that is most essential at this time, making Sally’s role even more valuable,” states Victor.

Within an academic year Sally takes care of, on average, 50 students working closely with them as individuals and their employers. This is to tailor a study plan suitable to the student as well as to the employer. One thing that has become more apparent over the years is the diversification into other industries. It is not just the traditional accountancy firm that requires staff to be trained. Every firm has an accounts department and therefore it is as important as any other to provide exemplary training facilities to these too, whether it is the NHS, Council or local business.

As a core member of the team there was no escape for Sally as she hit her milestone birthday of 50 in February. “Well I was supposed to go to AAt on the Tuesday where they had a cake ready for me but unfortunately I couldn’t make it so they ate it!” laughs Sally. “But on the Wednesday Victor had gathered everyone together. About 50 students sang happy birthday and presented me with flowers and a huge card signed by everyone – I was very touched”.

So what does 2009 hold for Sally Tebbs? “I just want to continue to provide a professional service with the best regional training organisation and secondly to have fun and enjoy what I do for another couple of years”.

Another big change reflected in the recent exams meant that students had to show understanding of the questions and be much more analytical in their answers. It wasn’t a case on relying on good arithmetic.
As a result these changes impacted on the national averages which suffered a decline, whereas AAt maintained its strong performance. “We anticipated changes to the exams this time, papers evolve and therefore so do our teaching techniques. We expect a similar style will continue through to the June exams, but we are working hard with the students already preparing them for this,” states Jenny

Other papers that did really well include the Foundation and Personal Tax both achieving a 90% and 97% pass rate respectively. “Again this is a reflection of all the hard work put in by students’, staff and employers. Great work – here’s to another good year of study!” Victor, Jenny & the AAt Team.

We all know that the cost of  recruitment can be an expensive and time consuming process but what some businesses fail to realise is the wealth of experience, knowledge and drive they have available to them in the form of current employees. Anglia Accountancy Training offer a variety of courses designed to suit the individual needs of each student and business, supporting them throughout. With dedicated staff they will be there to assist students through coursework and exams, offering a flexible timetable and assistance with funding if applicable. There is no better attribute to a business than loyal members of staff, so it can be rewarding to all to invest in training and develop skills internally.

Following a recent OFSTED inspection Victor and Jenny are pleased to announce that Anglia Accountancy training successfully passed with flying colours. “This is a credit not only to the whole team whose dedication over the past year has helped us achieve this, but also to the students who have worked extremely hard,” states Jenny. On top of the OFSTED inspection AAt have also just renewed their licence to teach until 2012, following an intensive inspection. “After 12 years of practice we are used to the demands and high standards required for a licence, so we are really pleased to have achieved this again” states Victor. Anglia Accountancy training looks forward to taking this success into 2009 and would like to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a wonderful 2009. Victor, Jenny and the Team

We are pleased to announce that the wait is over and that student Anita Flanz has passed all three levels of AAT within the last eighteen months. Congratulations! We hope the birthday celebrations went well and that you continue to celebrate on your qualification success.

Anita works for Hereward Care Services Ltd as an Accounts Technician and has been at the firm for 3 years. When Edward Tyner took Anita on he was keen for her to gain some qualifications and therefore approached Anglia Accountancy training with the task to successfully get Anita through all three qualifications starting with AAT Foundation level. “I believe Anita enjoyed the course, it was difficult for her to go back to school and balance work and study as well as being a mother, but she did very well and knuckled down,” commented Edward. Aside from just passing the exams it is essential that students understand the techniques they have been taught and are able to reflect them within the workplace benefiting both the student and the employer. “This was one of the most important factors for me, something which I feel Anita has achieved with the help and guidance of AAt,” states Edward. We wish Anita a well deserved rest and hope she will consider developing her career even further with the support of her employer and the assistance of AAt.