PERSONAL DEVELOPMENT RECORD

INTRODUCTION

1.         This User Guide is provided as a means to assist you towards making effective use of your Personal Development Record (PDR).

2.         The PDR was introduced as part of the Strategic Defence Review “Learning Forces” initiative. Learning Forces was derived from the government’s “Lifelong Learning” initiative which aims to improve access to learning opportunities whilst encouraging people to take greater responsibility for their own learning.  Copies of the PDR have been issued to all RAF and RAuxAF personnel.

3.                  The PDR seeks to build on the best practices of earlier initiatives to become a single source of information.  Your PDR should be viewed as more than a record of qualifications and experience achieved.  It should be used to underpin a process of forward planning by producing personal development plans. 

AIM

4.         The Aim of this User Guide is to describe the types of information that could be kept in the PDR, how the PDR links in with the Appraisal System and some examples of the individual documents that rest within the PDR.

YOU AND THE PDR

5.         All RAF personnel are issued with a PDR to be retained throughout their service career:

a.   The PDR should be used to plan and record the experience and qualifications gained, and provide opportunities to signpost routes/means for further development. 

b.   The PDR will provide tangible proof to a prospective employer of an individual record of achievement and personal aspirations. 

Full details of Personal Development, the Aims, the Features and Structure and general completion of the PDR are all available in Section 1 of the PDR.

6.         Learning.   Station Training Development Officers (STDOs) and Personal Learning Advisers (PLAs) are available to provide guidance and encouragement to all personnel.  However, it is up to you to decide what personal development you may wish to undertake.  Opportunities to attain qualifications, academic or vocational, during service are available through a variety of means, such as military training courses, computer courses, distance learning schemes, day release or college courses and long-term personal development programmes

7.         Accreditation.  Your PDR should be used to support the expanding and developing culture of the accreditation of military training courses and experience, in terms of national credit ratings, professional academic and/or vocational qualifications.  Other areas such as Key Skills, NVQs and Skills for the Information Age should also be recorded and planned out in your PDR.

8.         Key Skills.     By completing your PDR you will be setting targets and planning how to achieve as well as developing a personal development plan. This will generate a high proportion of the evidence to support the Key Skill Unit ‘Improving your own Learning and Performance’ which encourages the management of personal learning and career development.  The table on page 6 shows how to equate your NVQs and Key Skills within a National Framework.

9.         Specific Learning Difficulties.  For those who may have an Specific Learning Difficulty, screening reports, assessment reports and learning plans from an Educational Psychologist or Specialist Tutor referring to Dyslexia or any other Specific Learning Difficulty could be held in Section 5 of the PDR.

10.       Certification.   The PDR is an ideal document for the storage of a wide range of certificates and qualification information.  For example:

-                      Language Certificates.

-                      Academic Certificates.

-                      Vocational Certificates.

-                      RAF Course Certificates.

-                      University Short Course Programme Certificates.

-                      IT Certificates.

-                      Letters of Appreciation or Commendation.

-                      Conference and Seminar Details.

11.       IIP.  The PDR is a central tool for enabling the RAF to prove that it meets elements of the IIP Standard.  It demonstrates that we are serious about asking personnel to consider the benefits of continuous development and to plan this development formally.  Section 2 of the PDR provides a framework to assist with this planning, while in Section 4 you can build up a record of TORs for the appointments you have held, required competencies, progress with TATs/NVQs etc and your annual reports.  It is important that the PDR is used during annual and 6-monthly reviews so that you can discuss your plans with Line Managers.

12.       Resettlement.  The PDR can provide a cumulative account of the transferable skills gained during your service career, and will assist you in the formulation of your curriculum vitae and in the transition to civilian employment and life.  Regional Resettlement Advisers (RRAs) contactable through your Resettlement and Education Co-ordinator, are available to assist you in planning your resettlement.

PDR AND THE APPRAISAL SYSTEM

13.       The appraisal process requires 3 stages of formal discussion between you and your first Reporting Officer (RO).  These are on joining or at the start of reporting period, mid-report appraisal and at the end of the reporting period.  At each of the following stages the Personal Development Record (PDR) should be reviewed:

a.         On Joining/Start of Reporting Period.  The process of defining and agreeing your key areas of responsibilities should begin with your first RO when you first take up post and at the beginning of each subsequent reporting period.  Your PDR could be used at this time to provide the first RO with a full understanding of your competencies, current development plans and future objectives.  A copy of the appointment’s TORs, covering the core competencies and additional training required, should be retained in Section 4.  This will provide a comprehensive reference as an overview of the main components of your primary duties and tasks, and of any secondary duties held during the reporting period.

b.         Mid-Period Appraisal.  The Mid-Period Appraisal is a mandatory requirement.  Ideally, it should occur at the mid-period point but failing that, typically between 4 and 8 months of a normal annual cycle.  The timing of this appraisal may be adjusted by your first RO in the light of prevailing circumstances.  However, your first RO should ensure that you have sufficient time to allow you to correct any shortcomings that may have occurred.  Your PDR should be reviewed as part of this process.  Your objectives can be reviewed and should be stored in written form in Section 4 of your PDR.

c.         End of Period Appraisal.  At the end of the reporting period, and before carrying out a final assessment, your first RO should discuss your PDR with you.  You should provide your first RO with a précis of your achievements contained within your PDR, as an aid towards compiling your final assessment. Your first RO should then complete the End of Period report and appraise you accordingly.

14.       Below is the outline of the National Framework of Qualifications.  This will be a useful guide for you to assess how your qualifications fit into the grid and what if any are their possible equivalent qualifications.

THE NATIONAL FRAMEWORK OF QUALIFICATIONS

EXAMPLES

15.       Individual Training Plan.   You may wish to keep your Personal Development Plan separate from your Individual Training Plan, which contains the training that is necessary for or that would enhance your current post and should rest within Section 4 of the PDR.  An example of this can be found on p23.

16.       The following pages are illustrations of how people have used the templates within the PDR to develop their own portfolios of information about their careers.  Remember that the success of the PDR depends on the effort that you are prepared to put in to the planning and recording of information.  Use the examples to help you to develop and plan for a successful future.