Skills for Work: Working in Wales
Working in Wales is a Pearson Skills for Work unit about the Welsh job market: types of jobs, sectors and major employers, trends such as homeworking and technology, how Wales fits into the international economy and which overseas companies operate here, and the skills needed in at least three sectors at Level 1 and Level 2. It is one 10 hour unit that learners combine with others into a Pearson Skills for Work Award, Certificate or Diploma, from Entry 1 to Level 2, assessed internally by the centre. Digital demand is low: no criterion requires technology. Digital work sits in researching sources, presenting findings, the influence of technology and AI on jobs, and acknowledging sources and AI.
- Awarding body
- Pearson
- Level
- Entry Level 1 to Level 2
- Guided learning hours
- 10
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of digital work
- Low
- Specification
- Open the specification
How this unit is assessed
- Entry Level (Entry 1, Entry 2, Entry 3): One assessment criterion at each of Entry 1, Entry 2 and Entry 3, rising from stating basic features of the local job market and generic skills for one sector to identifying features of the Welsh labour market, global companies in Wales and skills for two sectors. There are no mandatory evidence requirements. Internally assessed by the centre through a centre-devised assignment or Pearson's adaptable Authorised Assignment Brief, subject to Pearson standards verification, graded Pass or Fail. 10 guided learning hours.
- Level 1 and Level 2: One assessment criterion at each of Level 1 and Level 2: describe (Level 1) or explain (Level 2) the key features of the Welsh job market, how it relates to other countries and the international economy, and the skills required in a range of at least three sectors. Level 2 learners research and present this information. Internally assessed by the centre, subject to Pearson standards verification, graded Pass or Fail. 10 guided learning hours.
The digital skills in this qualification
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Researching the Welsh job market
Entry 3 learners gather information from given simple sources, Level 1 learners select and use information from a limited range of provided sources, and Level 2 learners research and present information using a variety of sources, including some they choose themselves. Annexe C links the unit to online searching. Research is required at Level 2, though it need not be online.
DCF: Sourcing, searching and planning digital content
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils use Careers Wales job profiles to find three jobs in their local area and save the links in a class document.
- Year 8
- Pupils search for the largest employers in their region, changing keywords to narrow the results, and record each source.
- Year 9
- Pupils research one Welsh sector using at least three sources they choose themselves, and note which source was most reliable and why.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Essential information for assessment decisions, Level 2, page 99; Levels of supervision and support, page 99; Annexe C, SfW 19 Digital Links, page 122
“identify, select, and use information from a variety of sources, including some self-selected sources”
Progression step 3
I can adjust keywords and search techniques to find relevant information.
I can begin to reference sources used in my work, and consider if content is reliable.
Progression step 4
I can search a variety of sources using relevant search techniques with increased complexity.
I can evaluate the reliability of sources of information, justify my opinions and reasons for choices, and reference using appropriate methods.
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Presenting sector research
Level 2 learners research and present information on the skills and knowledge needed to be a successful employee in at least three sectors of the Welsh economy, and Level 1 learners organise their findings and present them clearly. The format is the centre's choice, so a digital presentation is suggested rather than required.
DCF: Creating digital content, Evaluating and improving digital content
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils make a one slide fact file about a local employer with its logo, what it does and one job it offers.
- Year 8
- Pupils build a short slide show comparing two sectors in Wales, with a table of the skills each needs.
- Year 9
- Pupils create a presentation on three Welsh sectors, choosing charts and images that suit a Year 9 audience and checking the layout is clear.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Essential information for assessment decisions, Level 2, page 99; Levels of supervision and support, Level 1, page 99
“research and present information on the skills and knowledge required to be a successful employee”
Progression step 3
I can use a range of software to select, produce and edit a range of multimedia components for a purpose, such as:
- text and images, e.g. format text (bold, underline, italics, highlight); insert and edit text boxes; columns; use refine tools (spellchecker, find and replace); word wrap; crop; alter size and shape; alter images; add effects; trim and split sound and video clips; transitions; onion skin
- presentation, e.g. page orientation; animations; transitions; remove and alter images; use background; use action buttons to create hyperlink; embed objects.
I can ensure my output is appropriate for specific purposes.
Progression step 4
I can select and use a variety of appropriate software, tools and techniques to create, modify and combine multimedia components for a range of audiences and purposes, such as:
- text and images, e.g. explore and use effectively image manipulation techniques; explore and use appropriately the many aspects of document layout; use animation, video and audio effects such as echo, tempo, envelope, layering, frame rate, key frames
- presentation, e.g. use design tools; adapt themes and colours to suit the purpose; create master templates.
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Understanding how technology and AI change jobs
Level 1 guidance gives technological influence as an example of trends in the Welsh job market, and Level 2 guidance gives technology and AI influences alongside homeworking and flexible work. These appear as examples, so learners may discuss them but are not required to.
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils list jobs in a supermarket that are now done by machines, such as self-service tills, and discuss one benefit and one drawback.
- Year 8
- Pupils interview a family member about how technology has changed their job and share one example with the class.
- Year 9
- Pupils investigate how AI tools are changing one Welsh sector, such as customer service, and explain which skills workers will need more of.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Essential information for assessment decisions, Level 1, page 98, Level 2, page 99
“technology and AI influences, types of jobs, major employers, homeworking”
Progression step 3
I can identify the wider positive and negative influences of technology, e.g. on my life, on society, on the environment.
Progression step 4
I can reflect on the role of digital media in my life and habits.
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Acknowledging sources and AI use
At every level learners must certify that their evidence is their own and reference any sources and any AI they used, and final work must be in their own words. Using AI without acknowledging it is malpractice, which matters for the research this unit needs at Level 2.
DCF: Digital rights, licensing and ownership, Sourcing, searching and planning digital content
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils add the names of the websites they used to the end of a fact file about a local employer.
- Year 8
- Pupils write a simple reference list for a sector poster, giving the website name, page title and date visited.
- Year 9
- Pupils keep a source log for a sector presentation, including any AI tool they used and how they checked its facts, and add a references slide.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Requirements relating to permitted/prohibited resources, page 100
“they have clearly referenced any sources and any artificial intelligence used”
Progression step 3
I can understand that copying the work of others and presenting it as my own is plagiarism.
I can cite sources when researching and explain the importance of this, e.g. create simple lists for the referencing of digital and offline sources.
Progression step 4
I can evaluate the reliability of sources of information, justify my opinions and reasons for choices, and reference using appropriate methods.
Good to know
- The unit is "SfW 19" with 10 guided learning hours (Unit summary, page 5), the same size as the WJEC Working in Wales unit. "Learners can only achieve each unit once, at a single level" (Rules of Combination, page 6).
- Unlike the WJEC unit, the Pearson unit does not teach or assess the Welsh language: "This unit is not designed to develop Welsh language skills" (footnote to the Purpose and Aim, page 97), even though the aim mentions "the skills to communicate bilingually" as an example of a workplace skill.
- Level 2 requires independent research: learners "research and present information" on at least three sectors (Essential information for assessment decisions, Level 2, page 99) and use "a variety of sources, including some self-selected sources" (Levels of supervision and support, page 99).
- The centre chooses the evidence: "there are no mandatory evidence requirements" (page 98), and teaching content is in Pearson's separate Teaching and Learning Support document (Unit content, page 98).
- AI may be used only if acknowledged: "A learner will have committed malpractice if they use AI tools without acknowledging them" (Requirements relating to permitted/prohibited resources, page 100).
- Annexe C gives "online, search" as the only digital link and "No direct link" for numeracy (page 122).
- Page 8 of this Skills for Work specification has an editing slip: "Every unit in our Skills for Life qualifications includes an Authorised Assessment Brief".
Links with other qualifications
Work on sectors, major employers, trade and global companies in Wales links with GCSE Business and GCSE Geography, and changing patterns of work such as homeworking link with GCSE Social Studies. Researching sectors gives a natural bridge to the vocational qualifications on the page, for example VCSE Built Environment, VCSE Hospitality and Catering, VCSE Travel and Tourism and VCSE Public Services. Within the WJEC Skills Suite, Jobs of the future and Understanding the changing labour market cover neighbouring labour market ideas. Compared with the WJEC Working in Wales unit, which has the same 10 hours, the Pearson unit leaves out the Welsh language outcome entirely and gives more weight to Wales in the international economy, including naming a company from abroad that operates in Wales at Entry 3.
Source: Pearson Entry Level 1 to Level 2 Skills for Work Award, Certificate and Diploma Qualifications Specification, Issue 1, August 2026, Unit SfW 19: Working in Wales.