Introducing the Digital Badging Commission

Improving the quality and interoperability of digital badges

Digital badges and micro-credentials are playing an increasingly important role across the world, providing a record of people’s non-accredited learning throughout life. Digital badges in particular are predominantly issued to motivate, reward and recognise learning; encompassing both traditional and non-traditional learning and professional certifications.

In recent years the demand for digital badges has grown, particularly in the UK, in response to calls from industry, civil society, higher and further education organisations to reward shorter, more flexible learning opportunities, as well as learners and individuals looking for better ways to demonstrate the full breadth of their skills.

To date, this has been happening organically and without a framework to ensure quality that would enable badges to be consistently and universally recognised.

Group of adults discussing digital badging

Our aims

Practical outcomes and
policy recommendations

Practical outcomes and
policy recommendations

The commission aims to deliver practical outcomes as well as policy recommendations, including:

  • Building a movement towards greater understanding, development, and adoption of digital badging by accrediting bodies, policymakers, and employers, including other micro-credentialling providers outside of our mutual networks

  • Exploring the quality and interoperability of digital badges used by key awarding and accrediting organisations

  • Making the case for a lifelong digital record of learning using digital badging and micro-credentials

  • Examining the feasibility of applying QA frameworks to digital badges so that they could be used to reward flexible learning pathways (e.g. in line with the lifelong learning entitlement)

Woman checking her micro-credentials on a mobile phone

Commission objectives

  • Co-creation of a new high-quality common digital (micro-)credential framework with key stakeholders in the assessment and credentialling sector

  • Examining the use of our framework against existing and new digital (micro-)credentials

  • Making recommendations to policymakers, employers, and learning providers for their wider adoption

Ufi VocTech Trust + RSA

Delivered in partnership

Delivered in partnership

In a global first, Ufi VocTech Trust and the RSA launched the Digital Badging Commission in May 2024, bringing together leading experts from across higher and further education, commerce and technology to broaden the understanding, development and adoption of digital badges by accrediting organisations and employers.

We aim to build a new consensus around the development and deployment of digital badges and micro credentials, transforming skills and qualifications in the UK.

This work continues the RSA’s legacy of policy and partnership for social regeneration, the ‘Rebalancing adult learning’ report (2022) produced in collaboration with Ufi, and Ufi’s mission to champion the power of vocational technology to get adults learning.