Partners in Quality is a training, information and consultancy business, specialising in quality and quality assurance in higher and further education.
Partners in Quality is the Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education's (QAA's) newly established and rapidly developing wholly-owned trading subsidiary. Incorporated in April 2011, Partners in Quality has been established in order to bring to market a range of products and services that complement the work undertaken by QAA.
What does Partners in Quality do?
Quality and quality assurance in education is hugely important - for the individual student, the course, the institution and for the development and successful delivery of high quality education in the UK and globally. It is a rapidly growing area and Partners in Quality has been able to build on the considerable knowledge, experience and track record of QAA in all matters to do with quality processes, procedures, standards and outcomes.
Who are our customers?
Partners in Quality is a new business but its range of activities is growing all the time. It offers services to customers and sectors within education both in the UK and overseas. Specifically these include:
- training, consultancy and audit work in quality assurance for higher education institutions and organisations overseas - current contracts include projects in Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Hong Kong and Pakistan
- workshops and advice covering all matters to do with quality assurance in higher education for staff from publicly and privately-funded colleges
- consultancy, scoping and developmental work for colleges in the UK wishing to improve and embed their quality processes
- national conferences for all staff in education who have a concern for quality in education
- fulfilment of contracts in quality for public sector organisations and professional, statutory and regulatory bodies (PSRBs)
- research and publication of material regarding quality in higher education
- promotion of the importance of quality in higher education today.
How does Partners in Quality operate?
Today, many charities and publicly-funded organisations have commercial subsidiaries in order to develop business and operations and to raise extra revenue without detracting from the work of the charity itself.
All monies raised by the subsidiary is gift aided back to the charity at the end of each financial year enabling it to maintain and improve its services, not least in a climate where other funding can be in short supply.
Partners in Quality is a limited company, receives no public monies and is entirely self-funding. It has its own Board of Directors largely drawn from QAA's Board of Trustees. The Chair is Sir Rodney Brooke, who is also the Chair of QAA.
Currently, Partners in Quality operates with a small core team of staff. It is, however, able to draw on a wide pool of experienced and approved 'Associates' who are able to deliver work on behalf of both Partners in Quality and QAA.
How do I find out more about Partners in Quality and QAA?
We would be delighted to tell you more about what we are doing, our plans for the future and how we might be able to help you. For more information, contact Virginia Isaac, Business Development Manager (01452 557163; v.isaac@qaa.ac.uk) or Rachel Curtin (01452 557145; r.curtin@qaa.ac.uk).