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Welsh Government
Data Provider: Welsh Government National Statistics Highest qualification levels of working age adults by regions of Wales and qualification
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[Collapse]Gender[Filtered]
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Gender 1[Filter]
Area Codes[Filter]
Year[Filtered]
Working Age[Filtered]
Measure1
QualificationNational Qualification Framework (NQF) level of the highest qualification held. Data have previously been presented as NVQ equivalencies. From September 2004, the National Qualification Framework (NQF) was expanded and the former levels 4 and 5 were divided into more precise levels (4-8). Data are now presented according to this classification.Some additional qualifications have been added to the the list included on the LFS questionnaire for 2004, which will slightly improve the estimates.A full list of the qualifications included for each NQF level can be found in the StatsWales folder that contained this table. However the following are EXAMPLE qualifications that included at each level:Below level 2: NVQ level 1, Entry Level qualifications, Basic SkillsLevel 2: NVQ level 2 or equivalent, 5 or more GCSE A*-C, 2 AS levelsLevel 3: 2 A level passes, 4 AS level passes, NVQ level 3, Advanced Welsh BaccLevels 4-6: First degrees, Foundation degrees, NVQ level 4Levels 7-8: Postgraduate qualifications, NVQ level 5 [Filtered]
[Collapse]AreaDCELLS area of residence North Wales: Isle of Anglesey, Gwynedd, Conwy, Denbighshire, Flintshire, Wrexham; South West / Mid Wales: Powys, Ceredigion, Pembrokeshire, Camarthenshire, Swansea, Neath Port Talbot; South East Wales: Bridgend, The Vale of Glamorgan, Rhondda Cynon Taff, Merthyr Tydfil, Caerphilly, Blaenau Gwent, Torfaen, Monmouthshire, Newport, Cardiff[Filter]
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Area 1
Click here to sortNo qualificationsPersons who reported holding no qualificationsClick here to sortQualified to below level 2Persons who are qualified to below NQF level 2 and no higherClick here to sortQualified to NQF level 2 or abovePersons who are qualified to at least NQF level 2 and includes persons qualified to a higher levelClick here to sortQualified to NQF level 3 or abovePersons who are qualified to at least NQF level 3 and includes persons qualified to a higher levelClick here to sortQualified to NQF level 4 or abovePersons who are qualified to at least NQF level 4 and includes persons qualified to a higher level
[Expand]Wales60.688.1551.4416.0270.0
[Expand]North Wales54.390.4555.4411.0259.5
[Expand]Mid Wales42.072.4585.4458.1290.8
[Expand]South West Wales66.285.3548.6406.9255.9
[Expand]South East Wales63.190.4546.3416.6278.1

Metadata

Title

Levels of highest qualifications held by working age adults by area and gender

Last update

April 2022 April 2022

Next update

April 2023 (provisional)

Publishing organisation

Welsh Government

Source 1

Annual Population Survey, Office for National Statistics

Contact email

post16ed.stats@gov.wales

Designation

National Statistics

Lowest level of geographical disaggregation

Local authorities

Geographical coverage

Wales

Languages covered

English only

Data licensing

You may use and re-use this data free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government License - see http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence

General description

Data are presented for working age adults i.e. on basis of 1. males and females aged 18-64 and 2. males aged 18-64 and females aged 18-59 as referred to in earlier releases (prior to 2015 data) – according to their age at the start of the academic year. Note that data for working age adults, on the basis of males and females aged 18-64, are only available from 2008 onwards.

Data collection and calculation

Source: Annual Population Survey, Office for National Statistics

The data are based on the results of the Annual Population Survey for 2004 onwards, a household survey carried out by the Office for National Statistics.

The survey asks respondents for the highest qualification that they hold. The highest qualifications are subsequently grouped into National Qualification Framework (NQF) levels. Figures are provided for those obtaining qualifications at least at a certain level, and qualifications up to and including a certain level.

Data have previously been presented as NVQ equivalencies. From September 2004, the National Qualification Framework (NQF) was expanded and the former levels 4 and 5 were divided into more precise levels (4-8). Data are now presented according to this classification.

Frequency of publication

Annual

Data reference periods

Since 2004, the annual data have been produced on a rolling annual basis, updated every three months. The rolling annual averages are on a calendar basis with the first rolling annual average presented here covering the period 1 January 2004 to 31 December 2004.

Users, uses and context

The statistics are used within the Welsh Government to monitor trends in qualification levels and specifically are included within the Skills Performance measures and the Tackling Poverty Action Plan.

Rounding applied

Percentages are rounded to one decimal place.

Revisions information

Since the previous publication, the Annual Population Survey data back to 2020 has been reweighted, and this StatsWales cube has been updated with these new data. The reweighted data has made a slight change to data for 2020.

Statistical quality

As the data come from a survey, the results are sample-based estimates and therefore subject to differing degrees of sampling variability, i.e. the true value for any measure lies in a differing range about the estimated value. This range or sampling variability increases as the detail in the data increases; for example local authority data are subject to higher variability than regional data.

Keywords

Qualifications