The UK qualifications regulator, Ofqual, has imposed a £25,000 fine on OTHM Qualifications after identifying what it described as serious and repeated shortcomings in the way allegations of malpractice involving colleges and training providers were managed.
The development was disclosed in a statement published on Thursday on the UK Home Office website.
According to Ofqual, the failures occurred over a period of more than four years and included allowing institutions accused of malpractice to investigate themselves, keeping inconsistent records and failing to report serious incidents to the regulator between 2018 and 2024.
The action is considered significant because qualifications issued by awarding bodies such as OTHM are used by millions of students, including international students, and depend on public confidence in the integrity of the system.
OTHM Qualifications is a UK-based awarding organisation regulated by Ofqual. It develops vocational qualifications delivered through approved colleges and training providers in the UK and overseas, and its programmes are commonly used for career advancement and progression to bachelor’s and master’s degree top-up programmes at partner universities.
Ofqual said its investigation began in February 2024 after it received 12 allegations of malpractice connected to OTHM qualifications.
The regulator found that in several cases OTHM asked colleges that were the subject of malpractice allegations to investigate themselves, including institutions that had been warned they could lose their accreditation if wrongdoing was confirmed.
Ofqual also reported weaknesses in OTHM’s record-keeping, saying the organisation produced different malpractice registers on different occasions and was unable to provide investigation reports for four cases that, under its own policy, should have been retained.
The regulator further stated that OTHM’s records showed dozens of malpractice and maladministration incidents that met the reporting threshold between 2018 and 2024, yet only one notification was submitted to Ofqual during that period, limiting the regulator’s ability to intervene earlier.
Ofqual said OTHM has since introduced a detailed action plan and invested in its systems, processes and staff to prevent similar failures. The organisation has also agreed to submit regular progress reports, which will be independently audited.
Ofqual Executive Director for Delivery, Amanda Swann, said event notifications should be viewed as a sign of good governance rather than a sign of failure, adding that regulators cannot act to protect learners if they are not kept informed.
Swann said OTHM had acknowledged the problems and taken steps to address them, but stressed that the £25,000 penalty was intended to reflect the seriousness of the breaches and the importance of maintaining trust in qualifications.
