Level 1 Functional Skills English

The Department for Education (DFE) state the purpose of each of the qualifications to be:

‘A qualification for work, study and life. Achievement of the qualification demonstrates the ability at

an appropriate level to read, write, speak, listen and communicate in English, and to apply these

skills effectively to a range of purposes in the workplace and in other real life situations’

.

1

Furthermore, the DFE outlines the aims of the qualifications, stating that Functional Skills English

qualifications at levels 1 and 2 indicate that learners should be able to speak, listen, communicate,

read and write clearly, accurately and confidently, with effectiveness and an increasing level of

independence. Learners should be able to:

• listen, understand and make relevant contributions to discussions with others in a range of

contexts;

• apply their understanding of language to adapt their delivery and content to suit the

purpose and audience;

• read a range of different text types confidently and fluently, applying their knowledge and

understanding of texts to their own writing;

• write texts of varying complexity, with accuracy, effectiveness, and correct spelling,

punctuation and grammar; and

• understand the situations when, and audiences for which, planning, drafting and using

formal language are important, and when they are less important.

Learners should be able to use these functional skills autonomously, applying them to a range of

formal and informal contexts, in the workplace and in real life.

Each qualification is internally and externally assessed and consists of THREE mandatory

components:

• Reading (externally assessed)

• Writing (externally assessed)

• Speaking, Listening and Communicating (internally assessed)

The qualification outcome is pass or fail.

The qualifications support progression to further study (e.g. GCSE) and are suitable for delivery in a

wide range of learning environments either as stand-alone qualifications or as part of a larger

programme of study (e.g. an apprenticeship).

The content of the functional skills qualifications is determined by a range of skills called ‘subject

content’2

. Learners are required to demonstrate their ability to use these skills autonomously, applying

them to a range of formal and informal contexts that a learner would expect to encounter in the

workplace and in real life.

The subject content is split into 3 components:

• Speaking, Listening and Communicating

• Reading

• Writing

Centres should note that subject content at each level of qualification includes and builds on the

content of lower levels.

Learners should be familiar with the subject content before sitting the assessment.

There are no formal entry requirements for learners wishing to take these qualifications

Each qualification is internally and externally assessed and consists of THREE mandatory

components:

• Reading (externally assessed)

• Writing (externally assessed)

• Speaking, Listening and Communicating (internally assessed)

The qualification outcome is pass or fail.

Flexible