Skills for Work: Personal Development Planning
Personal development planning is an Entry 1 to Level 2 Skills for Work unit in which learners identify their skills, interests and experiences, use feedback to find strengths and areas to develop, set goals, write an action plan and review their progress. It is one 20 hour unit that learners combine with other 10 or 20 hour units into a Skills for Work, or Skills for Life and Work, Award, Certificate or Diploma. Literacy sits in talking and writing about themselves, responding to feedback, writing goals and plans, and reflective journals. Numeracy is light: setting timescales for SMART goals at Level 2 and measuring progress.
- Awarding body
- WJEC
- Level
- Entry Level 1 to Level 2
- Guided learning hours
- 20
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of literacy work
- Medium
- Amount of numeracy work
- Low
How this unit is assessed
- Entry Level (Entry 1, Entry 2, Entry 3): Four learning outcomes (personal skills, interests and experiences, areas for personal development, simple personal goals, and taking part in activities to develop personal skills), each with separate Entry 1, Entry 2 and Entry 3 assessment criteria. Evidence goes in a portfolio, internally assessed by the centre and externally quality assured by WJEC. 20 guided learning hours.
- Level 1 and Level 2: Four learning outcomes (personal skills, interests and experiences, strengths and areas for development, planning personal development goals, and reviewing progress and skills developed), each with separate Level 1 and Level 2 assessment criteria. Evidence goes in a portfolio, internally assessed by the centre and externally quality assured by WJEC. 20 guided learning hours.
Skills that use Strategic competence
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Setting timescales and measurable targets
At Level 2 learners must develop SMART goals, which the amplification defines as Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound, and create an action plan including timescales. This means turning goals into countable targets with dates. Below Level 2 the criteria ask only for simple steps, so numeracy demand is low.
Numeracy: Measurement, Strategic competence
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils use a school calendar to set a date four weeks away for a reading goal and work out how many pages a week they need to read.
- Year 8
- Pupils set a measurable fitness target, such as running 2 km, and plan weekly steps on a calendar up to a deadline six weeks away.
- Year 9
- Pupils break a revision goal into steps on a timeline, estimate the hours each step needs, check the total fits the time available and adjust the plan.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Level 1 and Level 2, learning outcome 3, assessment criteria L2 3.1 and L2 3.2, page 6; amplification of LO3, page 8
“Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant and Time-bound”
Progression step 3
I can use and interpret calendars, timetables and schedules to plan events and activities, and make calculations as part of the planning journey.
I can prioritise and organise the relevant steps needed to complete the task or reach a solution.
Progression step 4
I can identify, measure or obtain required information to complete the task.
I can prioritise and organise the relevant steps needed to complete the task or reach a solution.
Good to know
- The unit codes are S662E1, S662E2, S662E3, S662L1 and S662L2, one for each level, and the unit is 20 guided learning hours: "GLH 20" (Unit overview, page 3).
- Spoken and visual evidence counts: "extended written work is not required unless appropriate" and judgements should not focus on "spelling or presentation unless specifically assessed" (Sources of evidence, page 9).
- The pack says "Literacy is embedded through reading and writing tasks such as journals, worksheets, and action plans" (Curriculum for Wales, page 4), and evidence includes "learner journals, logs or reflective diaries" and "records of professional discussions or questioning" (Sources of evidence, page 9).
- Support depends on level: Entry 1 learners may need "use of symbols, or assistive technology" and Entry 2 learners "may require prompts, guided questioning or scaffolded templates" (specification Section 4.2, page 19).
- AI use is allowed only when acknowledged: "When properly referenced, this can be acceptable", but misuse includes "Using AI to complete parts of the assessment so that the work does not reflect the learner's own work" (specification Section 4.6, page 21).
- Suggested assessment tasks "are not mandatory". Teachers "may choose to use these suggestions, adapt them, or develop their own alternatives" (specification Section 4.1, page 18).
- Appendix A of the specification (page 29) ticks Literacy, Numeracy, Digital Competence, Critical thinking and problem solving, and Planning and organisation for this unit.
Links with other qualifications
The pack names GCSE Business as a linked WJEC qualification. Within the Skills Suite it lists Exploring career pathways, Overcoming barriers, Work experience, Teamwork, Applying for jobs, Interview confidence and techniques, Working in Wales and Building a growth mindset as closely related units. Overcoming barriers shares reflective writing and action planning, Exploring career pathways shares reading and presenting information about jobs and training, and Applying for jobs and Interview and confidence techniques give a reason to describe skills and experiences clearly in writing and speech.
Source: WJEC Personal development planning unit delivery and assessment pack, read with the WJEC Entry 1 to Level 2 Skills for Life and Skills for Work specification, approved by Qualifications Wales, teaching from September 2027 (© WJEC CBAC Ltd 2026).