Leido Academy, The Netherlands

Leido Academy, The Netherlands's logo

Leido is a network organisation in the Netherlands, operating nation-wide. It is involved in issues and developments concerning ‘lifelong learning’, bringing together people working in institutions for ‘vocational education and training’ and ‘higher professional education’, and organisations that are involved in developments concerning this type of education (government, accreditation bodies, employers’ organisations, knowledge centers, and so on) to discuss them. Using all kinds of activities for this, the outcomes of them will be published in newsletters, reports and other documents to feed the public discussion.

Leido was founded in 2003. The management of the network and the working groups is in the hands of people who also work or have been working in vocational and professional education. Not as managers but as coordinators, teachers, tutors, professionals in quality assurance, developers of curricula, etc. This ensures that it really comes to daily affairs, knowing that problems have to be simply solved. That makes Leido unique.

Leido has nearly 1500 ‘members’, people who are involved in those themes that are part of the daily work as network organisation. Examples of such themes are: quality assurance, permeability between VET and HE, work-based learning, adult education, flexible learning pathways and regulations for professional education.

Leido is strongly involved in the use of qualifications at level 5 of the NLQF (and the EQF). The formal one is the Associate degree, to be seen as SCHE in higher professional higher education. A new initiative started by Leido, is the introduction of a non-formal type of such a qualification at level 5, the so-called Higher Professional Diploma. This qualification can be used for composing tailor-made programmes for business to make employees better prepared for future jobs. The use of ‘learning outcomes’ for this diploma makes an underlying programme ready for a VNFIL-procedure.

Leido is active in international organisations (EURASHE, WFCP, CHAIN5, VET4EU2) and is also a partner in some European projects. There are good contacts with organisations in the USA, leading to study trips once a year.

See the Project Partner's website