Accreditation
The quality of education is controlled by the British Government if the institutions are state-funded Further Education and Higher education institutions. Whereas, independent and privately-funded colleges and institutions may voluntarily accredit themselves to the British Accreditation Council www.the-bac.org
It is illegal in the UK to offer degrees or related qualifications without proper authorization. Authorization may be granted under Royal Charter or by Act of Parliament or by a special order of the Department for Education and Skills. In order to award degrees, colleges and universities must demonstrate a commitment to quality assurance and show that they have adequate systems for safeguarding academic standards. The Quality Assurance Agency for Higher Education publishes a code of practice, information on benchmark standards, and qualification frameworks that give details of the quality and standards publicly funded institutions are expected to maintain. This is available on the QAA website www.qaa.ac.uk.
Courses which lead to a vocational or professional qualification may undergo accreditation carried out by the relevant vocational or professional organization. Examples include engineering, law, accounting, medicine and dentistry.
