VetSkill holds successful Dog Groomer IEPA standardisation
On 15 September, a successful end-point assessment (EPA) standardisation event was held at VetSkill Head Office, bringing together our team of Level 2 Dog Groomer Independent End Point Assessors (IEPAs) (pictured above). The session was designed to ensure consistency, quality, and fairness in assessment practices across the board.
The day began with a warm welcome and an overview of the apprenticeship standard, followed by a review of recent assessment outcomes and feedback. Assessors engaged in collaborative discussions around best practices, common challenges, and interpretation of assessment criteria.
Key outcomes included:
Agreement on consistent approaches to grading and feedback.
Clarification of assessment expectations for practical grooming tasks and professional discussions.
Sharing of effective questioning techniques and observation strategies.
Updates on documentation and procedural changes to support assessors.
The event fostered a strong sense of professional community and reinforced the importance of maintaining high standards in EPA delivery. Feedback from attendees was overwhelmingly positive, with assessors valuing the opportunity to network, share insights, and enhance their practice.
A highlight of the day was the presentation of the ‘Going the Extra Mile’ assessor award, which was awarded to Terri Hardwick (pictured below, right) of Career Hounds in recognition of her outstanding commitment and dedication. Terri was commended for consistently going the extra mile to facilitate apprentice assessments on behalf of VetSkill, demonstrating professionalism, flexibility, and a learner-focused approach.
Terri reflects on the day:
“Standardisation may sound like a box-ticking task, but the VetSkill standardisation meetings are relevant, informative and always a pleasure. It's great to get together with the Dog Groomer IEPA team, and being at VetSkill Head Office makes me, as a remote worker, feel part of an organisation that is passionate about what we do and the quality we collectively strive for. It's been very rewarding to be a part of the dog grooming apprenticeship and raising the standards in the industry; achieving the VetSkill award was the highlight of my year. The dog groomer apprenticeship is still relatively new, and we work really hard as assessors to get it right."
Congratulations Terri, and a big thank you to our whole team of Level 2 Dog Groomer IEPAs for attending – you are all exceptional!
Interested in becoming a VetSkill IEPA? Check out our current vacancies.
Learn more about VetSkill’s EPAs here. For further information on becoming an approved VetSkill centre, please visit: Become a Centre — VetSkill. Kiera from the VetSkill Quality Assurance Team will be in contact to arrange an initial meeting to discuss the process and provide support and guidance throughout.