Standards Manager in Warrington

This role is offered on a full-time basis or 4 days a week.

Cogent skills have an exciting role, the Standards Manager is responsible for overseeing and leading all of Cogent’s standards, frameworks and qualifications activity, including the development, review and continuous improvement of National Occupational Standards (NOS), English apprenticeship standards, assessment plans and industry skills frameworks and industry training standards.

The role ensures coherence, alignment and consistency across all standards‑related products and activity, supporting employer‑led skills systems in science‑based industries.

The role leads the coordination of employers, national skills bodies (including Skills England and Skills Development Scotland), awarding organisations, providers and professional bodies and regulators to design and maintain high‑quality, policy‑aligned apprenticeship and standards solutions.

Acting as a trusted expert and advocate, the Standards Lead ensures that standards, frameworks and assessment approaches remain relevant, robust, aligned and future‑focused, keeping pace with technological advancement, including digitalisation, artificial intelligence, regulatory and sustainability requirements, as well as evolving policy and workforce needs.

The role will support SIAS, Cogent’s awarding organisation to ensure that where relevant products developed align to recognised industry standards.

Package

• Pension – employee contribution 6%
• Opportunity to buy-back 5 extra days annual leave (FTE)
• Day off for your birthday
• Optional Private Health Care package
• Hybrid role based in Warrington
• Employee Assistance Programme
• Access to Training & Development Opportunities

Key Responsibilities

• With the support of external technical resource where needed, lead the development, review and revision of:
• English Apprenticeship Standards and Assessment Plans
• National Occupational Standards
• Apprenticeship Frameworks and qualifications across the devolved nations
• Own the strategic development, maintenance and review of Cogent’s skills frameworks and industry training standards, ensuring a coherent and aligned approach across all standards related activity including SIAS qualifications.
• Work with Skills England, and other sector bodies where appropriate, to establish and manage practical timelines for revisions to occupational standards, assessment plans across all standards used by Cogent Industries.
• Work with Skills Development Scotland processes to implement the recommendations of the recent NOS Review; planning a robust timeline of activity, securing funding and delivering contracted activity to time and within budget.
• Oversee planned review cycles and horizon scanning activity to ensure standards, frameworks and training standards remain current and future focused, keeping pace with technological and industry change including digitalisation, AI and sustainability.
• Build and maintain a strong network of employer relationships to support effective engagement in the development and refinement of standards.
• Bring employers, providers, awarding organisations, professional bodies and regulators together to develop and review products and to agree assessment and delivery models.
• Lead high level discussions with employers and awarding organisations to determine assessment approaches and quality assurance expectations.
• Work with employers to develop supplementary guidance documents (outside assessment plans) clarifying awarding organisation requirements.
• If applicable, lead or support the development of behavioural analysis or assessment tools in collaboration with employers and awarding organisations.
• Act as an internal and external expert on apprenticeship funding and system requirements across the devolved nations of the UK.
• Work with the Policy Lead to monitor Skills England priorities and policy reform on standards, providing advice and guidance to employers, stakeholders and internal Cogent staff.
• Maintain apprenticeship frameworks and related data across all nations, including management of national databases and registration systems where required.
• Lead or support apprenticeship registration, certification, audit and compliance activities (including FISSS and equivalent systems).
• Act as lead for commissioned standards and frameworks programmes, proactively identifying and securing funding and investment opportunities, and ensuring delivery to agreed timescales, quality standards and contractual requirements
• Coordinate internal colleagues and external stakeholders to deliver complex, multi strand projects.
• Work with Sector Leads to identify future occupational standards activity requirements aligned to employer and sector needs.
• Ensure alignment and coherence across occupational standards, apprenticeship standards, skills frameworks and qualifications throughout their lifecycle, avoiding duplication and gaps.
• Support internal teams to understand policy changes and implications for employers and provision, delivering CPD and briefings to internal staff on new or updated standards, frameworks and products.
• Lead effective engagement with SIAS, ensuring they are informed early of standards and framework developments and reviews, enabling timely review, adaptation or development of qualifications.
• Provide authoritative guidance to SIAS and other internal teams on the implications of standards and framework changes for qualifications, assessment and delivery.
• Support project delivery where relevant through both personal and commissioned expertise
• Key Performance Indicators
• Commissioned standards, frameworks and NOS programmes delivered to agreed timescales, quality standards and assurance requirements.
• Funding and investment successfully identified, secured and delivered for standards, frameworks and NOS activity in line with agreed priorities.
• Route reviews, standards and framework reviews completed to agreed schedules with documented employer endorsement.
• Clear and demonstrable alignment across occupational standards, skills frameworks, apprenticeship standards and qualifications, with no material gaps or duplication.
• Timely qualification review, adaptation or development by SIAS in response to standards and framework changes.
• Positive feedback from employers, awarding organisations and system partners on facilitation, leadership and clarity of standards and assessment activity.
• Standards and frameworks reflect technological and industry change, including digitalisation, AI and sustainability, informed by proactive horizon scanning.
• Improved internal understanding of standards and policy reform evidenced through CPD, briefings and effective advisory support.

Essential Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Degree or equivalent qualification, or substantial relevant experience in skills, standards or apprenticeship development.
• Proven experience developing and revising occupational standards, apprenticeship standards or frameworks in a science‑based or technical industry.
• Experience leading employer‑led groups and complex stakeholder partnerships.
• Strong understanding of assessment plans, awarding organisations and qualification development processes.
• Knowledge of apprenticeship funding systems and regulatory environments.
• Demonstrable ability to deliver high‑quality programmes of work to time and budget.
• Excellent facilitation, communication and written skills, with the ability to explain complex policy and technical concepts clearly.
• Strong problem‑solving skills and the ability to operate effectively in a fast‑changing policy environment.
• Ability to work independently, lead projects, and coordinate colleagues and external partners.

Desirable Knowledge, Skills and Experience

• Experience across the four UK nations’ skills and qualification systems.
• Knowledge of apprenticeship registration, certification and audit processes.
• Experience working with Skills England, devolved agencies or sector bodies.

Understanding of current and emerging skills priorities across process industries, engineering, science and health sectors.

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