EQAVET peer review Spain

Policy development
Practical measure/Initiative
Spain
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Timeline
  • 2022Implementation
  • 2023Completed
ID number
45288

Background

A brief overview of the context and rationale of the policy development, explaining why it is implemented or why it is important.

The National reference points (NRPs) in the EQAVET network are requested to conduct so-called peer reviews at system level based on the overarching Council Recommendation on Vocational Education and Training.

Objectives

Goals and objectives of the policy development.

To strengthen the supranational exchange in quality assurance in vocational education and training in the European area, to provide more transparency and to provoke for further development in the subject area.

Description

What/How/Who/For whom/When of the policy development in detail, explaining its activities and annual progress, main actors and target groups.

The 2020 Council Recommendation on VET calls on the EQAVET network to develop a specific methodology for EQAVET peer reviews, with the objective of supporting the improvement and transparency of quality assurance arrangements at system level in the member states. Over the course of 2021, with the support of DG EMPL and the EQAVET Secretariat, the EQAVET network agreed on a joint methodology and prepared a peer review manual. The quality assurance national reference points from 21 member states agreed to take part in the first phase of the EQAVET network's peer review initiative.

2022
Implementation

The first EQAVET peer review was hosted by the Spanish Ministry for Education and Vocational Training, General Secretariat of Vocational Training and took place virtually on 30-31 March. EQAVET network members from the following five countries acted as peers: Austria, Belgium-NL, Greece, Italy, and Portugal.

In this first peer review meeting, the topic of the discussion was the project 'Quality EQAVET Model for Spain' (QEMS), launched by the Spanish Ministry for Education and Vocational Training, through the General Secretariat of Vocational Training. QEMS has the objective to design and implement:

  1. a quality model based on the EQAVET framework for the vocational training system in Spain, that includes the self-assessment by training providers and that allows the measurement of success and the identification of areas for improvement;
  2. a quality assessment system that facilitates the collection of relevant, sufficient and updated data from all stakeholders involved in the VET system. The data will feed into evidence-based decision-making processes to ensure the quality of VET in Spain.

At this meeting, the five participating peer countries reflected on the information gathered during the peer review and shared their initial feedback on the strengths of the suggested model, and the risks and challenges identified with the host country.

2023
Completed

The project ended in August 2023, and as a result, the basis for a quality model was developed. This model serves as a proposal for a national reference framework for vocational training aligned with the European EQAVET framework, the ISO 9000 internationalisation standards, and other international quality models.

Bodies responsible

This section lists main bodies that are responsible for the implementation of the policy development or for its specific parts or activities, as indicated in the regulatory acts. The responsibilities are usually explained in its description.
  • Ministry of Education and Vocational Training (until 2023)

Target groups

Those who are positively and directly affected by the measures of the policy development; those on the list are specifically defined in the EU VET policy documents. A policy development can be addressed to one or several target groups.

Other

Policy makers

Thematic categories

Thematic categories capture main aspects of the decision-making and operation of national VET and LLL systems. These broad areas represent key elements that all VET and LLL systems have to different extents and in different combinations, and which come into focus depending on the EU and national priorities. Thematic categories are further divided into thematic sub-categories. Based on their description, policy developments can be assigned to one or several thematic categories.

Governance of VET and lifelong learning

This thematic category looks at existing legal frameworks providing for strategic, operational – including quality assurance – and financing arrangements for VET and lifelong learning (LLL). It examines how VET and LLL-related policies are placed in broad national socioeconomic contexts and coordinate with other strategies and policies, such as economic, social and employment, growth and innovation, recovery and resilience.

This thematic category covers partnerships and collaboration networks of VET stakeholders – especially the social partners – to shape and implement VET in a country, including looking at how their roles and responsibilities for VET at national, regional and local levels are shared and distributed, ensuring an appropriate degree of autonomy for VET providers to adapt their offer.

The thematic category also includes efforts to create national, regional and sectoral skills intelligence systems (skills anticipation and graduate tracking) and using skills intelligence for making decisions about VET and LLL on quality, inclusiveness and flexibility.

Further developing national quality assurance systems

This thematic sub-category refers to further development of national quality assurance (QA) systems for IVET and CVET, for all learning environments (school-based provision and work-based learning, including apprenticeships) and all learning types (digital, face-to-face or blended), delivered by both public and private providers. These systems are underpinned by the EQAVET quality criteria and by indicative descriptors applied both at system and provider levels, as defined in Annex II of the VET Recommendation. The sub-category concerns creating and improving external and self-evaluation of VET providers, and establishing criteria of QA, accreditation of providers and programmes. It also covers the activities of Quality assurance national reference points for VET on implementing and further developing the EQAVET framework, including the implementation of peer reviews at VET system level.

Subsystem

Part of the vocational education and training and lifelong learning systems the policy development applies to.
IVET
CVET

Country

Spain

Type of development

Policy developments are divided into three types: strategy/action plan; regulation/legislation; and practical measure/initiative.
Practical measure/Initiative
Cite as

Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). EQAVET peer review Spain: Spain. In Cedefop, & ReferNet. (2025). Timeline of VET policies in Europe (2024 update) [Online tool].

http://www.cedefop.europa.eu/en/tools/timeline-vet-policies-europe/search/45288