The UK vocational assessment landscape is changing and research has a key role in helping to identify trends and anticipate emerging issues and challenges. This review collates the messages from recently published research about specific issues that have been found to affect the measurement of vocational learning. It also highlights issues that have been found to influence learner access to vocational qualifications. The data collection method was a structured literature review of material published since 2002. The review used three different types of search: a search of articles found in a selected group of internationally respected peer-reviewed academic journals; an online database search; and a search of articles written by respected authors working in the vocational assessment field.