VCSE Performing Arts
VCSE Performing Arts makes heavy literacy demands: learners read and interpret a job brief and a creative brief, write a CV and cover letter, present and justify their ideas, give and take feedback, and evaluate their own work in accurate performing arts terms, with drama learners also scripting and learning lines. Numeracy is light and sits mostly on the production pathways, covering budgeting, measuring for costume and models, and scheduling rehearsals and cues, plus awareness of ticket pricing, seating capacity and funding for the Unit 1 sector test. The single biggest thing KS3 should build is the habit of reading a brief closely and then explaining, in speech and in writing, how their own work meets it.
- Awarding body
- WJEC
- Level
- Level 1 and Level 2
- First taught
- September 2027
- Amount of literacy work
- High
- Amount of numeracy work
- Low
- Specification
- Open the specification
How this qualification is assessed
- Unit 1: Introduction to the Performing Arts Industry: External sector test 1 hour, 50 marks, 20%, set and marked by WJEC, paper-based or on-screen
- Unit 2: Getting Work: Non-examination assessment 4 hours (plus up to two hours of research), 50 marks, 20%, set and marked by WJEC, tasks based on a job brief that changes each year
- Unit 3: Creative Showcase: Non-examination assessment, 60 marks, 60%, set by WJEC, marked by the centre and moderated by WJEC, choice of six creative briefs; page 5 gives 72 hours but Section 3.2 says the assessment takes 12 hours
Skills that use Planning and organising for different purposes, audiences and context
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Writing a CV and cover letter for a specific job
Learners must show how to create a CV and cover letter for a specific job opportunity in their chosen discipline and respond to it appropriately and professionally. This is part of the Unit 2 job brief, where AO4 includes the ability to engage in self-promotion.
Literacy: Planning and organising for different purposes, audiences and context, Vocabulary, spelling, grammar, Connectives and syntax
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils write a short paragraph introducing themselves for a cast list, using formal language rather than chat.
- Year 8
- Pupils write a short letter applying to be a runner for the school show, with a clear opening, two reasons and a polite close.
- Year 9
- Pupils write a cover letter for a mock dancer or set designer job at Wales Millennium Centre, matching each paragraph to a point in the advert and redrafting after peer feedback.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit 2, Section 2.1.2, page 21; Section 3.1, AO4, page 39
“how to create a CV and cover letter for a specific job opportunity”
Progression step 3
I can adapt my writing style and structure to suit the audience, purpose and context, e.g. suitable balance between facts and viewpoints, a precise conclusion.
I can make appropriate choices about vocabulary, idiomatic language and syntax in order to express myself with fluency and clarity for different audiences and purposes.
Progression step 4
I can adapt my writing style, choosing and using the best structures for different contexts and purposes, e.g. to successfully describe, explain, persuade, discuss.
I can select and use appropriate strategies to plan and develop my writing for different purposes and audiences.
I can present my work appropriately in digital contexts using appropriate digital conventions, e.g. thumbnails, language preferences.
Progression step 5
I can select and use appropriate strategies to plan and develop my writing for a challenging range of different purposes and audiences.
I can show sustained awareness of different readers by selecting from a range of styles and structures, and adapting my use of language confidently.
I can understand and use formal conventions of language in a range of purposes, making effective use of reference tools and accuracy aids.
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Writing an evaluation of the response to a brief
Unit 3 asks learners to evaluate how well they understood and met the brief and planned for the audience, venue and purpose, and to set out strengths, weaknesses, mistakes and practical goals for the future. AO3, evaluating skills, is worth 20% of the qualification and sits wholly in Unit 3.
Literacy: Planning and organising for different purposes, audiences and context, Proofreading, editing and improving
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils write three sentences after a performance: what they did, what worked and one thing to change.
- Year 8
- Pupils write a paragraph evaluating their piece against the brief, using "because" and "however" to explain a strength and a weakness.
- Year 9
- Pupils write a structured evaluation of a devised piece with sections on the brief, the process and their own skills, ending with two practical goals and how they would reach them.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Unit 3, Sections 3.4.1 and 3.4.2, page 36; Section 3.1, page 39
“Learners should understand how to review the effectiveness of their response to a creative brief.”
Progression step 3
I can write about my thoughts, feelings and opinions, showing empathy and respect.
I can use paragraphs and make links between them.
I can reflect on, edit and redraft to improve the quality of my expression, and use a range of strategies to ensure greater clarity.
Progression step 4
I can use summary, discussion of issues, detailed explanations and logic when covering a topic.
I can use paragraphs and sections to give coherence to longer pieces of writing.
I can improve writing through independent review and redrafting.
Progression step 5
I can write extended pieces which include detailed evidence and information for different purposes and audiences within and across different disciplines.
I can organise writing in an appropriate form, ensuring content is detailed within and between paragraphs or sections, developing and sustaining ideas coherently.
I can improve the content, structure and accuracy of my writing through critical reflection, review and editing, responding constructively to feedback.
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Reading industry scenarios and writing short answers
Section B of the Unit 1 sector test is worth 25 marks and asks short answer questions, some based on short industry scenarios. Learners must read each scenario and apply what they know about the industry in Wales, such as audience development, funding cuts and the cost of producing work in English and Welsh.
Literacy: Reading strategies, Understanding, response and analysis, Planning and organising for different purposes, audiences and context
Getting pupils ready
- Year 7
- Pupils read a short paragraph about a youth theatre group in a rural village and answer two questions on the problems it faces.
- Year 8
- Pupils read a scenario about a show touring Wales and write three short answers, each using a fact from the text.
- Year 9
- Pupils answer timed short answer questions on scenarios about venues such as Venue Cymru, explaining the impact of funding cuts or bilingual performance in two or three sentences.
Show the specification wording and the LNF statements
Where it is in the specification: Section 3.2, page 40; Unit 1, Section 1.2.1, page 16
“short answer questions some of each could be based on short industry scenarios”
Progression step 3
I can use inference and deduction to understand the text, and can consider the reliability of what I read.
I can show understanding of and use the main ideas and significant details in different texts on the same topic.
Progression step 4
I can use inference and deduction to understand more complex texts, and can consider the reliability and impact of what I read.
I can summarise, synthesise and analyse information to gain in-depth understanding, e.g. of causes, consequences, patterns, using different sources.
Progression step 5
I can read and analyse a range of unseen, printed and digital texts with concentration and independence.
I can gain full understanding of texts using inference, deduction and analysis, understanding the context of the texts that influence the reader.
I can summarise confidently, adapting style and form for the reader or intended audience and purpose for writing.
Good to know
- No marks for spelling, punctuation and grammar are mentioned. All marks sit under AO1 to AO4, and AO3 "Evaluate skills relevant to the performing arts industry." is worth 20%, all in Unit 3 (Section 3.1, page 39).
- Unit 2 written work may be handwritten: "The written parts of the assessment must be submitted digitally, either as scanned handwritten responses or completed digitally." (Section 3.2, page 40).
- Unit 3 written evidence can be spoken instead, "completed as an audio or audio/visual response" (Section 3.2, page 41).
- Unit 2 allows research time before the tasks: "a further two hours can be scheduled for research prior to the completion of the assessment tasks" (Section 3.2, page 40).
- Calculator use is not stated. Section 3 says "The Assessment Pack will include all detailed information relating to assessment." (page 39).
- Each learner must introduce themselves on the recording "using a clear pace and audible volume", with name, candidate number and role (Appendix B, page 52).
Links with other qualifications
Reading a brief, evaluating against it and using subject terms overlap with GCSE Drama, GCSE Dance and GCSE Music, and costume measuring and budgeting overlap with Mathematics and Numeracy and GCSE Design and Technology.
Source: WJEC Level 1/Level 2 VCSE Performing Arts specification, approved by Qualifications Wales, teaching from September 2027, for award from 2029 (© WJEC CBAC Ltd 2026).