Why Acas chose NCFE to accredit their workplace mediation training

As an impartial public body focused on improving workplace relations, Acas recognised a gap in the market for a qualification that fully meets the needs of professionals handling workplace disputes.  

Realising that no regulated qualifications existed to fill this gap, Acas decided to develop their own Level 3 Certificate in Internal Workplace Mediation to equip employers, managers, and HR professionals with the necessary skills to implement effective dispute resolution strategies. Acas sought accreditation to enhance the credibility of their qualification and provide learners with a quality-assured qualification. 

Emma Slaven, Certificate in Workplace Mediation Lead at Acas, said: “We wanted to be able to deliver an enhanced course to our customers, to enable them to gain the relevant skills and knowledge to carry out their own internal workplace mediations.” 

Choosing the right accreditation partner 

Recognising the need for a trusted awarding organisation to formally recognise their new qualification, Acas chose to use NCFE’s Customised Qualification available through their Accreditation and Employers Services team after a thorough tendering process.  

Emma explained their reasoning: “NCFE represented value for money, could give easy access to their online portal, have direct claim status from the start, and they are very customer focused. NCFE has clear service level agreements in place which are published on their website, they also provide regular updates throughout the year.” 

Throughout the process, NCFE’s Accreditation and Employer Services team has provided consistent support, being on hand to answer queries, provide helpful guidance and quickly process certification claims. Emma said: “The service they provide is excellent.” 

Meeting organisational goals through high quality training 

The Internal Workplace Mediation Customised Qualification has been beneficial for both individual learners and the organisations they work for. Emma said: “We recently conducted an analysis of our learner feedback, which essentially showed that learners were overwhelmingly satisfied with the training and would recommend it to other people. The learners reported that they had an increased awareness and confidence in conducting workplace mediation.” 

As a result of the training, more organisations are becoming equipped to efficiently manage workplace disputes. Emma said: “One of our organisational strategic aims is to resolve workplace disputes more quickly and effectively. This accredited course encourages more effective dispute resolution through the use of mediation. We have seen a large number of examples where mediation is now becoming written into the early stages of organisational grievance procedures, which results in workplace conflict being resolved quickly and effectively.” 

By partnering with NCFE, Acas has been able to provide learners with a qualification that enhances their skills in their current roles.  

The success of this initiative has had a positive impact on workplace dispute resolution across multiple organisations, demonstrating the value of using a bespoke qualification, with a quality hallmark from NCFE, to address a skills gap and meet the needs of customers.  

If your organisation is looking to enhance its workplace training offer, NCFE’s Accreditation and Employer Services could be the ideal solution.