Guidance for Malpractice and Maladministration

Occupational Safety Office acts in accordance with regulations and procedures established by Awarding Organisations and with the aim to assure compliance the following Guidance for Malpractice and Maladministration has been established.

In the event that an Invigilator/Assessor observes or suspects a learner of cheating, that learner should be asked to stop and if the action is considered serious enough, the learner’s examination paper and answer sheet will be collected and the learner will be asked to leave the examination room.  If this is the case a written report will be requested from the invigilator/assessor and the Awarding Organisation will be notified of the incident.

I. Introduction

Occupational Safety Office has prepared this document to reflect the actions that will be taken when faced with dealing with incidents of malpractice and/or maladministration.

 II. Definition of Malpractice

Malpractice is essentially any activity or practice with deliberately contravenes regulations and/or Occupational Safety Office procedures or policies which compromises the integrity of the internal or external assessment process and/or validity of certificates.  It covers any deliberate actions, neglect, default or other practice that compromises or could compromise:

1. The assessment process;
2. The integrity of a regulated qualification;
3. The validity of a result or certificate;
4. The reputation and credibility of Occupational Safety Office;
5. The qualification or the wider qualifications community.

Malpractice may include a range of issues from the failure to maintain appropriate records or systems to the deliberate falsification of records in order to claim certificates.

For the purpose of this guidance, this term also covers misconduct and forms of unnecessary discrimination or bias towards certain individuals or groups of learners.

 III. Definition of Maladministration

Maladministration is essentially any activity or practice which results in non-compliance with administrative regulations and requirements, and includes the application of persistent mistakes or poor administration.

 IV. Occupational Safety Office’s responsibility

Occupational Safety Office will ensure that:

1. Robust procedures are in place for preventing and investigating incidents of malpractice or maladministration which are up to date and communicated to all key personnel;
2. Regular review of procedures are undertaken for preventing and investigating incidents of malpractice or maladministration and make any improvements necessary to ensure they remain relevant and fit for purpose;
3. Reasonable steps are taken to prevent incidents of malpractice or maladministration from occurring;
4. Reasonable steps are taken to investigate any suspected incidents of malpractice or maladministration and rectify any negative impact of these incidents;
5. An action plan will be developed for managing and rectifying the negative impact of any incidents or malpractice or maladministration;
6. Appropriate and proportionate action will be taken against those responsible for the malpractice or maladministration to ensure it does not recur in the future;
7. Awarding organisations are notified promptly of any incidents of malpractice or maladministration in line with the requirements of relevant policy; Occupational Safety Office’s Centre Manager, or a nominated deputy, will notify the Account Manager at the Awarding Organisation via email of any incidents of malpractice or maladministration.  This initial contact will be followed by a full written report as appropriate;
8. Access to documents, records, data, staff, third parties, subcontractors, learners or any other resource required by the Awarding Organisation during an investigation, is provided;Full co-operation of any internal investigation will be provided;

This policy and any subsequent updated versions will be distributed to all trainers who understand the importance of ensuring all learners are aware of the policy and that a copy is available on request.

Reduction of Risk

Occupational Safety Office accepts that it is impossible to completely remove the risk of maladministration or malpractice occurring, Occupational Safety Office will make every effort to reduce the risk by:

1. Ensuring all staff are aware of all policies and procedures;Ensuring that all staff have clear and defined roles;
2. Ensuring that all internal quality assurance policies are documented and in place;Ensuring that all internal standardisation arrangements are documented;Ensuring that learners are informed of their roles and responsibilities, and the policies and procedures in place;
3. Ensuring that all assessment and internal verification activities are accurately recorded and carried out in accordance with internal quality assurance arrangements; and
4. Ensuring all registration and certification records are subject to appropriate internal review before submitting to the Awarding Organisation.

 During Assessment/Examination

Occupational Safety Office will ensure that the following is adhered to:

1. The examination room will be inspected to ensure suitability and the seating arranged in such a way to avoid malpractice;
2. All learning aids, such as wall posters or accessories that may assist the learners will be removed or covered;
3. All learners turn off and put away mobile telephones, smart devices, laptops and/or any other form of device that could be classed as a learning aid;Absolute silence will be maintained throughout the examination;

Signature

Hajar BELMAATI, Certification and Training Senior Manager

08/01/2025