Syllabus
The syllabus sets out what each training programme of the Education Department of the Velocity Interoperability Network teaches, how long is given to each part and the examination paper in which it is assessed. It is the same whether a programme is delivered by the Department or by an approved provider, and the Department's examinations are set to it and to nothing else.
This is edition 1 of the syllabus, published on 6 September 2026. It applies to every sitting on the examination timetable up to and including March 2027. The Department will publish any changes for later sittings at least ninety days before the first sitting to which they apply.
The three programmes build on one another. The foundation programme gives the vocabulary and structure that the operator programme assumes, and the operator programme gives the practical understanding of certified systems that an assessor must have before judging how others run them.
What each programme leads to
- A certified foundation holder
- Can explain what the Network's standards are for, find and read the standard that applies to a given system or activity, use its vocabulary correctly and describe how certification and the registers work.
- Foundation programme. Three days, 18 hours.
- A certified operator
- Can bring a system into service to a Network standard, run it in conformance, apply changes without losing conformance, recognise and report an incident, and keep the records the standard requires.
- Operator programme. Five days, 30 hours. Foundation certification required.
- A certified assessor
- Can plan and carry out an assessment of an organisation or an inspection of a training provider on behalf of the Department, gather and weigh evidence, and report findings that the Department can act on.
- Assessor programme. Five days, 30 hours. Two years as a certified operator required.
- The refresher paper
- Tests knowledge of the standards as they currently stand, with emphasis on changes made since the candidate was last certified. There is no refresher programme; a reading list of changes is published with each edition of the syllabus.
- One hour. Sat for renewal and for conversion of transitional certification.
Foundation programme
| Module | Content | Hours | Assessed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| F1 The Network and its members | What the Velocity Interoperability Network is, who its members are, what interoperability means for them and why a common set of standards is needed. | 3 | Written paper |
| F2 Vocabulary | The defined terms used throughout the standards, the difference between a requirement, a recommendation and a permission, and how to read a clause. | 3 | Written paper |
| F3 Structure of the standards | How the standards are numbered and grouped, which apply to systems and which to organisations, and where to find the current edition of each. | 3 | Written paper |
| F4 Governance | How a standard is proposed, drafted, consulted on, adopted and withdrawn, and the bodies of the Network responsible for each stage. | 3 | Written paper |
| F5 Certification and the registers | What certification of a person and of an organisation means, how it is obtained and renewed, and what the two registers record. | 2 | Written paper |
| F6 Case studies | Worked examples of interoperability succeeding and failing between member organisations, and revision of modules F1 to F5. | 4 | Written paper |
Operator programme
| Module | Content | Hours | Assessed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| O1 Reading a standard as an operator | Identifying the requirements of a standard that bear on the installation and running of a system, and recording how each is met. | 3 | Written paper |
| O2 Installation and commissioning | Bringing a system into service to a Network standard: configuration, interface testing against a reference, and the commissioning record. | 6 | Practical paper |
| O3 Operation and monitoring | Running a certified system day to day: the checks an operator performs, the measures that indicate conformance and how to read them. | 6 | Practical paper |
| O4 Maintenance and change control | Planned maintenance, applying changes without losing conformance, and the records that must be kept for each change. | 4 | Written and practical papers |
| O5 Incidents | Recognising a loss of interoperability, containing it, restoring service, and reporting to the organisation and to the Department. | 4 | Written paper |
| O6 Obligations of an operator | What the standards and the organisation's certificate of conformance require of the individual operator, and the consequences of not meeting them. | 3 | Written paper |
| O7 Supervised practice | A full cycle of commissioning, operation, change and incident on training equipment, observed by an instructor. | 4 | Practical paper |
Assessor programme
| Module | Content | Hours | Assessed in |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1 The role of an assessor | The assessor's duties to the Department, to the organisation being assessed and to the Network; independence, confidentiality and conduct. | 3 | Written paper |
| A2 Planning an assessment | Defining the scope, identifying the applicable standards, deciding what evidence will be needed and agreeing a programme with the organisation. | 4 | Written paper |
| A3 Evidence | Gathering evidence by inspection, observation, interview and record review; sampling; weighing evidence that conflicts. | 6 | Written paper and supervised assessment |
| A4 Findings and reporting | Distinguishing a non-conformance from an observation, agreeing a remedy and a date, and writing a report the Department can act on. | 5 | Supervised assessment |
| A5 Assessing organisations | Applying modules A2 to A4 to an organisation's systems, procedures and records for a certificate of conformance. | 6 | Written paper and supervised assessment |
| A6 Inspecting providers | Inspecting the premises, equipment and teaching of a training provider seeking approval, and observing a sample of teaching. | 3 | Written paper |
| A7 Mock assessment | A complete assessment of a training scenario, from planning to report, reviewed by an instructor. | 3 | Supervised assessment |
Common questions
Using the syllabus
Candidates should use the syllabus to check that their programme has covered every module before registering for an examination, and to direct their revision: the written papers draw questions from every module marked as assessed in them, in roughly the proportion of the hours shown. Providers should use it to plan their timetables and to confirm to the Department, when registering a cohort, that every module has been delivered.
For how the papers are marked and what a result means, see Examinations. For the programmes as they are delivered, see Training. Comments on the syllabus, and requests for it in an alternative format, may be sent to contact@education.gov.vin.