VCSE Retail and Customer Service
VCSE Retail and Customer Service asks learners to research a real retail business online, use customer service data such as online reviews, live chat transcripts and response times, and produce a report, staff guidance, customer replies for digital platforms, a brand mood board, mock-up digital adverts and pitch slides. Unit 1 tests knowledge of retail technology such as AI chatbots, RFID and self-checkout in a one-hour sector test taken on paper or on screen, while Units 2 and 3 (80% together) are NEA tasks that need IT and software and are submitted digitally. The single biggest thing KS3 should build is confidence turning research and customer data into clear, branded documents, adverts and slides for a real audience using everyday Office tools.
- Awarding body
- WJEC
- Level
- Level 1 and Level 2
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of digital work
- Medium
- Specification
- Open the specification
- Step before
- Foundation Retail and Customer Service, Entry Level and Level 1
How this qualification is assessed
- Unit 1: Introduction to the Retail and Customer Service Sector: External assessment (sector test) 1 hour, 20%, 50 marks, set and marked by WJEC, available on paper or on screen
- Unit 2: Developing Customer Service Skills: External non-examination assessment 6 hours 30 minutes, 20%, 60 marks, set and marked by WJEC, tasks based on a case study released on the WJEC Portal and changed every year
- Unit 3: Retail Marketing and Promotion: Non-examination assessment 19 hours, 60%, 90 marks, set by WJEC, marked by the centre and externally moderated by WJEC, five tasks based on an assignment brief
Skills that use Storing and sharing
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Handling customer information safely and lawfully
Learners must understand that remote customer service means following data protection procedures when handling customer information and checking IT systems to confirm details, and that customers expect service in line with the Data Protection Act 2018. A role play on which personal information can be shared and which must be protected is suggested as a learning experience that is not directly assessed.
DCF: Identity, image and reputation, Storing and sharing, Digital rights, licensing and ownership
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils sort examples of customer details, such as a name, a card number and a home address, into what a shop assistant may share and what must stay private.
- Year 8
- Pupils role play a phone call where a caller asks for another customer's order details and practise refusing politely while still helping.
- Year 9
- Pupils read the privacy notice of a supermarket loyalty app and summarise what data it collects, why it collects it and what rights a customer has under data protection law.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit 2, Section 2.1.1, page 25; Unit 2, Section 2.2.2, pages 28 and 29; Unit 2 learning experiences, page 32
“following data protection procedures when handling customer information”
Progression step 3
I can identify the benefits and risks of giving personal information and device access to different software.
I can understand how to protect myself from online identity theft, e.g. identifying secure sites, phishing, scam websites.
Progression step 4
I can use strategies for guarding myself against identity theft and online scams that try to access my personal information.
I can show an awareness of simple encryption and its purpose, e.g. to send sensitive data more securely.
Progression step 5
I can identify and describe the data protection policies of a variety of organisations located in different countries, and how this affects the way that they work.
I can identify the key points required for creative work to be considered fair use and comply with data protection laws by exploring the legal and ethical considerations involved in using the creative work of others.
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Preparing and submitting NEA evidence as digital files
The Unit 2 assessment must be submitted digitally, either typed or as scanned handwritten responses, and Unit 3 evidence for external moderation must be submitted in the same way. Learners need to save, name, combine and convert files reliably, including scans of any handwritten or hand-drawn work.
DCF: Storing and sharing
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils save their work in a named OneDrive folder using a clear file name and hand it in through a Teams assignment.
- Year 8
- Pupils photograph a hand-drawn advert sketch with Office Lens, save it as a PDF and attach it to their assignment.
- Year 9
- Pupils combine a typed report, a mood board and a scanned sketch into one PDF, check it opens correctly, and use version history to recover an earlier draft.
Show the specification wording and the DCF statements
Where it is in the specification: Section 3.2, Unit 2 and Unit 3, page 43
“The assessment must be submitted digitally, either as scanned handwritten responses or completed electronically.”
Progression step 3
I can manage files and folders locally or online, e.g. move files to a folder.
I can upload files from a local drive to online storage.
Progression step 4
I can use appropriate advanced file management techniques, e.g. version history, restore previous version, tagging, compression.
Progression step 5
I can make informed choices about file types and understand compatibility issues, e.g. the difficulties of editing PDFs, differences between sound files.
Good to know
- Unit 2 needs a computer but bans AI: 'Learners must have access to IT and appropriate software. The use of AI is not permitted.' (page 24).
- Unit 3 learners must have access to 'suitable hardware and software to produce the non-examination assessment evidence' and 'the internet to produce research materials and specified section of the assessment where the internet is permitted' (page 34). No software is named anywhere.
- The Unit 1 sector test is 'Available in two formats: paper or onscreen' (pages 5 and 12), with objective question types such as 'drag-and-drop, hot spot questions' (page 42). The centre chooses the format, so on-screen testing is not required.
- Typing is optional but submission is digital: Unit 2 'must be submitted digitally, either as scanned handwritten responses or completed electronically', and Unit 3 evidence for moderation follows the same rule (page 43).
- Appendix A (page 51) maps Digital Competence to Units 2 and 3 only, with Citizenship mapped just to '2.1.1' and nothing mapped to Unit 1, even though Unit 1 teaches retail technology.
- The front cover warns that 'The UK Government has announced plans to restrict social media use by children under 16', which may affect content on social media marketing and digital customer service.
Links with other qualifications
Researching a local business, writing a report from data and the digital marketing content overlap closely with GCSE Business, and the customer service content is shared with the VCSE in Hospitality and Catering. The mood board, mock-up adverts and pitch slides use the same groundwork as GCSE Digital Media and Film and the VCSE in Creative and Media Production, and Technology.
Source: WJEC Level 1/Level 2 VCSE Retail and Customer Service specification, approved by Qualifications Wales, teaching from September 2027, for award from 2029 (© WJEC CBAC Ltd 2026).