Membership

National Network of Assessment Centres

Membership benefits and criteria

NNAC Ltd is a membership organisation for Assessment Centres providing Disabled Students’ Allowances (DSA) assessment services in England and Wales. Centres may be based in further or higher education institutions or as independent providers. Centres may provide additional services, but must provide DSA assessments and reviews.

The Network exists to facilitate communication and encourage and support good practice in the assessment and support of disabled people, including those with long-term medical, autistic spectrum or mental health conditions, visual and hearing impairments and specific learning difficulties.

Benefits of membership include:

  • Access to support and training including through regional training consortia and the national network;
  • Access to member email forums for managers and assessors;
  • Links with professional colleagues, including the National Association of Disability Practitioners (NADP), the Association of Non-Medical Help Providers (ANMHP) and the British Assistive Technology Association (BATA)
  • Stakeholder engagement with funding bodies including monthly discussion between NNAC representatives and Student Finance England;
  • Opportunities for representation and open discussion at national level with stakeholders, including governmental funding bodies, for example, through representation on groups such as the Disabled Students’ Stakeholder Group (DSSG) and Wales DSA Forums;
  • Representation on task groups and working parties with stakeholders (including DSA procurement, Assistive Technology and NMH provision);
  • Opportunities to contribute to the development and implementation of procedures for formal quality assurance of assessors, including registration of Assessors and our accreditation framework;
  • Opportunities to influence development of services to disabled people in education and employment

Criteria for membership:

Application for membership of the NNAC is open to centres providing Disabled Students’ Allowance assessments that were either accredited by DSA-QAG or are registered with the DFE/Welsh Assembly and operate in compliance with the criteria in the Quality Assurance Framework.

Members are required to adhere to the requirements stated in the NNAC Ltd Articles of Association and Terms of Membership, which includes the payment of fees and attendance at regional meetings and the Annual General Meeting.

Members will be required to demonstrate a commitment to NNAC research, training and service quality enhancement initiatives.   This will include quality assurance and improvement through engagement with assessor registration, training and accreditation and through the development and maintenance of regional support networks.

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