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Guidance

National professional qualifications frameworks

Description of the national professional qualifications (NPQs) available to teachers and school leaders for providers to use when designing their courses.

Updates to this page

From:
Department for Education
Published:
13 October 2020
Last updated:
23 February 2024
Show all updates

  1. Updated the 'Special educational needs co-ordinators (SENCOs) NPQ framework' document with sub headings in the references section.

  2. Added the NPQ for SENCOs framework. The NPQ for SENCOs will be available from autumn 2024.

  3. Added the 'Leading primary mathematics NPQ framework' and updated the page to reflect that the reformed NPQs are no longer new.

  4. Frameworks updated with referencing to each of the 'Learn that' and 'Learn how to' statements to allow for easier navigation.

  5. Revised a 'Learn how to’ statement related to managing children's behaviour and supporting their personal, social and emotional development in 'National Professional Qualification (NPQ): Early Years Leadership framework'.

  6. Added 'NPQ: leading literacy framework' and 'NPQ: early years leadership framework'.

  7. Updated to reflect changes in funding eligibility and add information about additional national professional qualifications which will be available from autumn 2022.

  8. Updated to include an eligibility list of schools that are within the top 30th percentile in relation to pupils on pupil premium as of the end of the previous academic year.

  9. Updated 'from September 2021' to 'from autumn 2021'.

  10. First published.

Applies to England

Documents

Leading behaviour and culture NPQ framework

Ref: DfE-00184-2020

PDF, 371 KB, 33 pages

Leading literacy NPQ framework

PDF, 414 KB, 31 pages

Leading primary mathematics NPQ framework

PDF, 539 KB, 52 pages

Leading teaching NPQ framework

Ref: DfE-00186-2020

PDF, 498 KB, 45 pages

Leading teacher development NPQ framework

Ref: DfE-00185-2020

PDF, 316 KB, 24 pages

Senior leadership NPQ framework

Ref: DfE-00187-2020

PDF, 570 KB, 61 pages

Headship NPQ framework

Ref: DfE-00182-2020

PDF, 554 KB, 61 pages

Executive leadership NPQ framework

Ref: DfE-00183-2020

PDF, 562 KB, 61 pages

Early years leadership NPQ framework

PDF, 435 KB, 50 pages

Special educational needs co-ordinators (SENCOs) NPQ framework

PDF, 763 KB, 48 pages

Details

This guidance is for:

  • organisations developing the NPQs
  • teachers and leaders considering applying for or participating in NPQs
  • leaders who are encouraging staff to undertake NPQs

The content frameworks set out what participants should know and be able to do after completing an NPQ. They were developed in consultation with expert advisory groups from across the education system and the Education Endowment Foundation.

Providers of NPQs are expected to use these frameworks to design their courses.

These NPQs build on the evidence and expert advice established in the:

They reflect and are coherent with the:

Apply for an NPQ

Find out how to apply for an NPQ.

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