In this session, we guided you through the new QAR suite detailing how to use the new feature and the outputs in reporting. The session covers the following areas;
- What makes up the QAR and how we process your files
- Uploading you files to our ILR upload portal
- Report and CSV walk-through
- Next steps for QAR
If you missed our webinar, you can watch it below:
Useful Links
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: Why do you need us to upload our ILR files?
In order to get the most accurate indicative QAR calculation we need the same data you have provided to the ESFA. For the calculations we follow the ESFA methodology of running QAR (Found here) This requires us to look at up to 6 ILR files, cross-match the data to bring in the latest programme aim record for a learner and use that in the overall calculation.
Note: Where a year in the middle of the sequence is missed, we will only calculate back to the latest consistent upload. For example, by submitting years 1, 2, 3 and 5 we will only run calculations back to years 1-3.
Q: Do we have to upload all the ILR files each time we want a QAR report?
No, the ILR upload portal will store the files you upload for use whenever you need your report. You are however able to delete files from storage in the portal if it needs replacing.
Q: Who can access this feature?
The ILR upload portal is available for all ILR Administrator users only.
The report access can be given to any user through the Reports > QAR Report permission. The report access will allow the user to access the full QAR values report, supplementary reports and csv exports. Speak with your System Administrator to request access to the new reports.
Q: Do we need Data Warehouse access to be able to use the QAR reports and will this be available in the Data Warehouse?
The report and CSV extracts are fully embedded in the platform and so can be viewed by anyone with the QAR Report permission, no Data Warehouse connection is needed.
The fields are not currently available in the data warehouse however we will be investigating the possibility of supporting this access. The CSV extracts should give you all the fields you need to run additional analysis or reporting you need.
Q: How does this differ to the QAR Value in the accountability Framework Report
For the Accountability Framework, we use the ILR files stored in the Datawarehouse, as this is a live connection, it will not mirror the submissions made to the ESFA each month as well as not containing some complex elements of the QAR calculation such as overdue breaks and some exclusion reasons.
We will be investigating options to update the Accountability Framework to utilise the new QAR suite.
For more information on the accountability framework calculations and where they differ, view our helpdesk article here:
Q: Can we extract the data to run more detailed analysis?
All elements of the report are exportable via the pre-existing functionality of our reporting. For more information on how to export directly from the report, read hour knowledge base article here. We also provide a full CSV export for both QAR years which will give you access to all fields used in the calculation enabling you to run detailed analysis and reconciliation.