VQ DAY EVALUATION PUBLISHED

Independent tracking research to gauge the effectiveness of the first ever VQ Day in July 2008 has revealed that over half of people (51 per cent) now agree that vocational qualifications are as important as GCSEs and A-levels - up from 44 per cent before VQ Day was launched in April 2008.
The evaluation report into the day, published today, also reveals that one in five adults in the UK heard one of the VQ Day-related news stories and one in ten have heard of the day itself.
Over 50 events were held across the UK to celebrate the day, including national events in London - attended by senior politicians from all three parties and hosted by Alesha Dixon - and at the Royal Welsh Show.
Led by independent education foundation Edge, on behalf of a steering group representing the vocational qualifications community, the implementation of the nationwide celebrations were delivered by Band & Brown Communications, working with it's sister agencies Thirst (design) and Brando (event management). The website - www.vqday.org - was delivered by digital agency PublicZone and national print advertising brought by Phd.
Writing in the report, Andy Powell, Chief Executive of Edge, commented:
"There are many paths to success, but every year we only see A-level and GCSE students celebrating their results in the TV news pictures and there has never before been one national day of celebration for the millions of people who gain vocational qualifications each year. In February 2008, the VQ Day steering group met for the first time with the aim of creating such a celebration. In just six months, the VQ Day steering group - led by Edge - has succeeded in laying a marker in the sand for future years to build on."
For more details, download the evaluation report or email vqday@bbpr.com