Staffordshire University

Initial Teacher Education inspection report

Provider address Institute for Education Policy Research Brindley Building Leek Road Stoke-on-Trent ST4 2DF

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Initial Teacher Education inspection report

Unique reference number Inspection number Inspection dates Lead inspector 22–26 November 2010 Vincent Ashworth HMI achieve excellence in the care of children and young people, and in education and skills for learners of all ages. It regulates and inspects childcare and children's social care, and inspects the Children and Family Court Advisory Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work- based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It rates council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied.

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Initial Teacher Education inspection report

If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. www.ofsted.gov.uk Reference no. 080190

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Introduction

1. This inspection was carried out by Her Majesty’s Inspectors supported by a team of specialist inspectors in accordance with the Framework for the Inspection of Initial Teacher Education (2008-11).

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Introduction

2. The inspection draws upon evidence from all aspects of the provision to make judgements against all parts of the inspection evaluation schedule in the framework. Inspectors focused on the overall effectiveness of the training in supporting high quality outcomes for trainees and the capacity of the partnership to bring about further improvements. A summary of the grades awarded is included at the end of this report.

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Key to inspection grades

Grade 1 Outstanding Grade 2 Good Grade 3 Satisfactory Grade 4 Inadequate

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Explanation of terms used in this report

Attainment is defined as the standard reached by a trainee at the end of their training. Progress is judged in terms of how well a trainee has developed professionally from their starting point to the standard reached at the time of the inspection or at a suitable review point. Achievement is judged in terms of the progress made and the standard reached by a trainee at the time of the inspection or at a recent assessment review point.

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The provider

3. Staffordshire University’s initial teacher education (ITE) is located within the Institute for Education Policy Research. Provision for the secondary phase is relatively small and specialist in nature. The university collaborates with 30 schools to provide secondary ITE courses. It also works in partnership with seven colleges of further education (FE) to deliver in-service training for teachers and trainers who are teaching or intend to teach in the FE system. Programmes offered in the FE phase are validated by the university, are endorsed by Standards Verification UK and satisfy the Secretary of State’s requirements for FE teachers. Provision in five of the seven partner colleges was evaluated during the inspection.

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A commentary on the provision

4. The following are particular features of the university and its initial teacher training programmes:

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A commentary on the provision

 the highly committed and enthusiastic trainees who make good progress in developing their academic and teaching skills  the high level of individual support provided to trainees which underpins the high retention and success rates  the strong partnership culture and high level of collaboration and involvement of schools and colleges.

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A commentary on the provision

5. There are particularly strong features in the secondary phase provision that underpin the high quality outcomes for trainees, these can be attributed to:

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A commentary on the provision

 the high quality discussion and reflection amongst trainees  a clear focus on the principles of students’ learning which underpins all aspects of the training programme  the good balance between centre- and school-based training which accelerates trainees’ progress from the very start of the programme  the highly effective leadership that ensures outstanding communication within the partnership and a consistent focus on trainees’ progress.

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A commentary on the provision

6. The following features in secondary programmes could be applied to support improvement in FE teacher education:

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A commentary on the provision

 the rigorous analysis of data to evaluate the impact of provision on outcomes for trainees  the systematic strategies used to develop trainees’ reflective practice which serves to deepen their understanding of how well their students learn.

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A commentary on the provision

7. In order to improve the quality of outcomes for trainees across all phases, the university should create more opportunities for collaboration and the sharing of ideas across both age phases of initial teacher education.

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Context

8. The university provides postgraduate secondary courses in business education, business and economics, information and communication technology (ICT) and design technology. Courses lead to either a Professional Graduate Certificate in Education (Prof GCE) or the Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) that both incorporate qualified teacher status (QTS). There were 50 trainees enrolled on courses at the time of inspection.

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Key strengths

9. The key strengths are: the commitment and enthusiasm of trainees, combined with their sharp focus on students’ learning, that meet the needs of local schools particularly well the high level of discussion and reflection among trainees which leads to rapid progress the excellent understanding of the context of schools in the partnership which results in very well planned placing of trainees to enhance their training the rapid development of trainees’ skills resulting from the mix of school- and university-based training from very early in the course the high level of individual support which ensures that trainees’ progression through the course is outstanding the excellent support provided for mentors including exceptional levels of communication within the partnership the very prominent role of mentors in assessment leading to consistency in judgements and clarity in target setting the continual improvement that is driven by highly effective leadership.

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Recommendations

10. In order to improve trainees’ progress and attainment, the university should: seek ways to broaden trainees’ understanding of the breadth of definition of diversity so that they meet their responsibilities to all students.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

11. The outcomes for trainees are outstanding as a result of the high quality training. Trainees make excellent progress from the outset; those seen at the start of their placement were all well ahead of expectations for this stage in the course. Trainees were already demonstrating: good reflective skills leading to good progress in developing teaching practice; good classroom management; good awareness of assessment; good planning of learning outcomes; and good awareness of the impact of teaching on learning. The overwhelming majority of former trainees are employed in schools in the region and most in partnership schools.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

12. The high completion and employment rates indicate the recruited trainees are highly suitable for the course. Selection procedures are extremely effective in identifying trainees’ potential. The university has high aspirations for and high expectations of its trainees. Much effective work has been done in increasing applications in all subject areas. Trainees are well qualified, most with at least an upper second honours or masters degree.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

13. There is a track record of meeting recruitment targets across the subjects. Trainees’ initial strengths and areas for improvement are assessed well at selection and lead to individual action plans that draw on the subject skills audit and their prior experience. Individual training plans and the setting of targets are strongly valued by trainees who see the close link between their university- and school-based improvement plans. The initial skills audit is updated four times per year, contributing to trainees’ further development of their subject skills. Schools are very effectively involved in the selection procedures.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

14. Efforts to recruit from minority ethnic and other under-represented groups are starting to have a positive impact. Such trainees reflect the composition of the local teaching workforce. The university has established links with the Stoke Local Authority Diversity Team and through this has employed a local teacher who has been engaging with community groups who are under-represented in ITE. In subjects traditionally dominated by males, there is a good gender balance.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

15. The quality of training across the partnership is consistently high. The development of trainees’ skills in reflective practice is exemplary; a consequence of this is the positive impact this has on students’ learning and progress in schools. The high level of personalised learning and the school-based experiences, matched to trainees’ individual learning needs, support trainees’ excellent progress. University- and school-based training are highly regarded by trainees. The university-based training enables trainees to share experiences and reflect on their developing practice. Particularly impressive is trainees’ ability to analyse why learning strategies may or may not work in their own school contexts. Early strategies to ensure trainees deal with poor behaviour effectively have been very successful. Trainees understand well the need to set routines and standards in lessons. In ICT, trainees adapt their lessons well to respond to unplanned

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

circumstances such as software and technical problems, thinking on their feet to swap lesson content round so that learning is not disrupted.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

16. A key and unique element of the provision is the ‘Learning Study’. As a result of this innovative programme, trainees develop excellent reflective skills that enable them to concentrate on the impact of their teaching on students’ progress. Through collaborative teaching projects, trainees have developed early excellent peer-assessment skills that enable them to share best practice, discuss subject pedagogy, and understand the need to apply the most appropriate teaching and learning strategies that respond to their school context and students’ needs. 17. Trainees develop a strong understanding of the National Curriculum and issues associated with progression between the different key stages. For example in ICT, they understand the different range of abilities that new Year 7 students bring to the lesson and the need to embed good ICT practice from the outset. The ‘topics’ training sessions in all subjects have ensured that trainees have the necessary

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

subject skills to teach from Key Stage 3 to A level. As a result of the weekly school-based lesson observations, mentors identify clear targets that ensure trainees make accelerated progress. As a result of the close links between the university and placement schools, and the accuracy of the reviews of trainees’ progress, intervention for trainees whose progress is less than that expected is swift, strongly supportive and highly effective. Trainees concentrate on their areas of weakness, and make good use of peer and mentor support to apply different strategies to overcome their difficulties, often dealing well with challenging behaviour. Trainees are very clear about the extent of their progress. A representative comment from one trainee was, ‘My perception of what it means to be a learner and practitioner is a million miles away from where it was in September’.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

18. There is highly rigorous and coherent review and monitoring of trainees’ performance that tracks their progress against the Standards. School-based training is high quality with consistently strong mentoring across the partnership. This is underpinned by processes such as moderation visits by mentors between schools and by the quality assurance role of the partnership manager. Assessment procedures are comprehensive and accurate in judging trainees’ final attainment. Consistency is facilitated by the final grade being determined by the mentor in collaboration with the professional tutor, university subject tutor and trainee. The provider has a very clear philosophy which balances judgements made about the quality of a trainee’s teaching with their ability to reflect on their own practice and identify ways in which they can continually improve it.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

19. Trainees have excellent subject knowledge and a well-developed understanding of associated pedagogy. Training to support subject knowledge is highly regarded and highly valued by trainees. As a result, they plan lessons in detail and incorporate a range of interesting activities to help maintain good pace and good levels of learner engagement. Trainees also develop an understanding of the implications of their subject across the curriculum and within other aspects of learning. In addition, trainees are very willing to be involved in the wider aspects of school life and consequently are well placed to make a strong contribution to the all round development of their students. For example in business education a trainee skilfully involved her young enterprise club sixth formers in her Year 10 business studies lesson.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

20. Staff resources at the university are exceptionally well deployed to support trainees. The university’s pastoral support and structure are outstanding. Excellent pastoral support has made a significant difference to trainees’ achievements in a number of partner schools. Administrative staff make a valuable contribution to supporting the trainees and surveys of former trainees identify this as an important contribution to their success. 21. The virtual learning environment (VLE) is used well to support the administrative functions of the programme and ensures that all trainees, mentors and tutors use the current documentation. For trainees, the VLE provides a good reference source for course documentation and bibliographies. However, beyond the sharing of documentation, ideas, lesson plans and discussion topics, its use as a support and communications device is less well developed.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

22. The various elements of the training programme combine well to give trainees the confidence to teach in a culturally diverse society. For example, former trainees in business education have had, as one put it, ‘our eyes opened to the different views of the role of interest in finance within the Islamic community’. This understanding makes their teaching more culturally aware. Many trainees demonstrate a good awareness of the socio-economic differences between groups and are careful to select teaching materials that meet the specific needs of this group of learners. All are aware of their school’s anti-bullying policies. Newly- qualified teachers who trained at the university have a secure knowledge of this area. They have had effective experiences of working with students who have special needs and/or disabilities and those who are gifted and talented. However, the training does not develop sufficiently, trainees’ understanding of the full range

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 1

of diversity strands. For example, some trainees are unclear about how issues such as homophobic bullying can be tackled effectively. The university has already identified this as an area for development.

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Grade: 1

23. Leaders and managers work extremely effectively to constantly review provision and seek further improvement. Self-evaluation is open and honest; it provides an accurate identification of priorities for improvement with no sense of complacency. The process of self-evaluation is underpinned by rigorous analysis of data focussed on outcomes for trainees. There has been year-on-year improvement in the course. For example, following feedback from previous years’ trainees, all trainees now visit their first school placement on the Friday before the Monday so that they are more familiar with the key staff and know where they need to report to on the first day. The use of external examiners’ reports support change very well. The course leadership responds very quickly and flexibly to ensure that school based training is effective and to ensure that partnership agreements are enforced to the benefit of the trainees. As a result of

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Grade: 1

the improvements that have taken place, the effective working of the partnership and the commitment of key staff, inspectors found that the capacity to improve further is outstanding.

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Grade: 1

24. One way in which high quality is maintained is through the excellent support for mentoring. Meetings are well attended. Newly appointed mentors who have not yet attended meetings are supported effectively by the provider who visits them individually. The university is very quick to respond to individuals in difficulty and urgently arranged school visits make an important difference to the trainees. Schools find the university’s documentation to be rigorous, clear and therefore helpful; expectations are understood well. The role of the partnership manager is highly effective in, as described by one mentor, ‘digging around under the rocks’ to ensure that provision across the partnership is of a high standard. Excellent examples were given of robust action taken where placements were not working, for example excluding subject departments from the partnership.

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Grade: 1

25. The provider has responded with rigour to national priorities. For example, many of the trainees work with pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities and have applied early training appropriately to their lesson planning, ensuring that lesson content responds to the very wide ability range in each lesson. Trainees plan effectively for the differences found in the very wide range of reading and writing ages in lessons which have often spanned a range of 3 to 4 years.

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Grade: 1

26. In the partnership schools visited the capacity of leadership and management to support trainees was at least good, and in many cases outstanding. Some mentors and professional tutors are known by the university as leaders of good practice in their subjects and are used to provide central training. The university responds well to requests from partner schools. For example, partner schools were keen that all trainees should receive child exploitation and on-line protection (CEOP) training before they undertook personal, health, social and economic lessons. As a result, the CEOP qualification is now embedded within the programme. The professional issues programme includes key national priorities such as a lot of emphasis on provision for students with special needs and/or disabilities. The university supports regional links for the building of subject knowledge enhancement for potential trainees. University staff are

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Grade: 1

involved in a wide range of initiatives and groups at both a regional and national level. Current and recent staff associated with the programme, are national leaders in associated research.

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Grade: 1

27. Improvement planning is informed particularly well by self-evaluation. The success of actions taken to improve is monitored in terms of the impact on trainees’ outcomes. Schools are clear about the priorities for improvement and their role and responsibilities in bringing them about.

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Context

28. The university recruits trainees onto courses leading to either a Diploma in Teaching in the Lifelong Learning Sector (DTLLS) or Post Graduate Certificate of Education (PGCE). Trainees can opt to undertake concurrently to their generic programme, an additional Diploma in teaching literacy, numeracy or ESOL. There were 353 trainees enrolled on courses across the partner colleges at the time of inspection. Five trainees were undertaking the Additional Diploma.

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Key strengths

29. The key strengths are: trainees who make good use of ICT to support their own learning and that of their students the particularly strong progress made by those trainees with no prior experience of higher education and trainees who receive additional support in their learning the good personal support provided by trainers that enables most trainees to develop in confidence and independence and complete the course successfully the constructive and developmental feedback to trainees on their teaching and assignments which underpins the good attainment of a large majority of trainees partners’ strong commitment to continuous improvement seen through high levels of collaborative working and high attendance at partnership events the university’s outstanding contribution to raising the skills of the FE workforce which ensures good opportunities for trainees to continue with their professional development beyond initial teacher training.

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Required actions

30. In order to improve the quality of provision, the partnership must: ensure greater consistency in the quality of mentoring, in particular for those trainees who are employed in the wider FE sector, so that all trainees benefit from expert guidance on teaching their specialist subjects.

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Recommendations

31. In order to improve trainees’ progress and attainment, the partnership should: develop a partnership-wide system for tracking trainees’ progress and grading trainees’ attainment so trainers can pinpoint the extent of trainees’ academic and professional development improve the quality of individual targets so all trainees are clear about how they can become good or outstanding teachers ensure that all trainees find ways in which they can promote community cohesion and prepare their students to live and work in a diverse society. 32. In order to improve the partnership’s capacity to improve, the partnership should: increase the rigour of self-evaluation undertaken by a minority of providers, by making better use of university data to systematically evaluate the quality of provision in relation to its impact on identifiable groups of trainees ensure that individual providers’ improvement plans are sharply focused on

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Recommendations

outcomes for trainees and that all partners are clear about the partnership’s priorities and their role in securing them identify ways in which trainees’ views of the quality of provision and their experience of both centre- and work-based training can be gathered more systematically and used to make improvements ensure that external monitoring gives full attention to the consistency of assessment of trainees’ teaching practice.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

33. The overall effectiveness of the partnership in securing high quality outcomes for trainees is good and improving. In 2010 most trainees attained the professional standards at a good or better level. Most trainees consistently make good progress; the many trainees with no prior experience of academic study and those who receive additional support in their learning make particularly rapid progress and achieve as well as, and sometimes better than, their peers. The overall success rate for the partnership is high; there are no significant differences in the achievement of any identifiable groups of trainees. Former trainees are a credit to the partnership; they demonstrate clearly how the training has added value to their careers and personal development. As true champions of lifelong learning, many continue with their education and progress onto related degree and masters programmes at the university.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

34. Trainees gain in confidence and competence over the course. Around two thirds of trainees have no prior experience of academic study. These trainees in particular make outstanding progress in becoming good teachers because of the very close attention to developing their study skills. As a consequence, by year 2 of the programme trainees develop well as independent learners; they relish opportunities to research wider education policies and theories and apply these to their own practice. This is particularly evident in the high quality of trainees’ written work.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

35. Trainees are highly enthusiastic and committed to raising standards and improving opportunities for their students. They establish good working relationships with their students that foster positive attitudes to learning. In planning their lessons they systematically seek ways to enable their students to make progress, many of whom are reluctant learners or who have themselves previously experienced barriers to learning. The best trainees plan their lessons carefully to ensure that the needs of individual students are met. 36. Trainees are well qualified in their subject areas; they take particular care to draw on their prior experience and industrial expertise to make their lessons interesting and relevant. Practical workshops are often very well organised, reflecting industry standards. Trainees manage practical demonstrations competently and students are well-briefed about how to perform tasks safely.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

Trainees are committed to continuing professional development and often benefit from the wider staff development and enrichment opportunities offered to them; many have successfully completed assessor and verifier awards.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

37. Inspectors saw some good examples of trainees developing well as reflective practitioners. However, this is not consistently the case across all providers. The development of trainees’ reflective practice is too piecemeal across the programme, as a consequence some trainees do not systematically draw on their personal experiences to develop their critical thinking skills and improve their classroom practice.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

38. The programmes meet local needs well. A recruitment information pack secures consistency of approach and common entry requirements across the partnership. The proportion of trainees from minority ethnic backgrounds is higher than that of the regional population. Similarly the proportion of trainees who declare a disability is well above national statistics. Rigorous selection processes carried out by human resource departments at partner colleges underpin the high success rate for trainees employed in those colleges.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

39. The high number of trainees who continue beyond the two years of the expected end date of the course is symptomatic of the impact of the wider economic climate on FE providers. A minority of trainees have faced redundancy, a reduction in teaching hours or a change of job during their training. The high success rate of those trainees who return to complete their qualification in the third year is testimony to the partnership’s commitment to inclusive practice. Partner colleges have been highly proactive in maintaining contact with trainees who have been disadvantaged by loss of teaching, and have been successful in overcoming barriers to their achievement.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

40. Arrangements for initial diagnostic assessment of trainees’ literacy, numeracy and ICT skills are good. Where individual support needs are identified, trainees are systematically referred to specialist support units within their colleges or to independent study materials on the college’s learning portal. Their individual needs are particularly well met and, as a consequence, they sometimes make even better progress than that of their peers.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

41. Systems to measure the extent of trainees’ progress, and their achievement in relation to the professional standards, are underdeveloped. Nevertheless, inspection evidence identified a high degree of accuracy in the judgements made by trainers in relation to trainees’ pedagogic development and their current level of achievement. Trainees’ individual learning plans are not used consistently well and do not model best practice in FE. Individual learning plans lack explicit targets and often lack specific actions for the development of trainees’ specialist subject pedagogy. As a consequence, trainees do not always have a sufficiently clear view of the precise steps they need to take to become good or outstanding teachers.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

42. As a result of the good quality of training, which is consistent across the partnership, most trainees attain well and make good progress. Trainers are very well-qualified. They engage in continuing professional development and have a good understanding of their roles and responsibilities. Trainers act as good role- models and regularly demonstrate examples of best practice in post-compulsory teaching. They are skilful in drawing on the wide range of backgrounds and experience that individual trainees bring to the groups. Trainees are constantly encouraged to consider how to apply the learning outcomes of the session to their own specialist subject teaching. The content of sessions is matched well to the qualification requirements and results in trainees developing a broad awareness of issues across the FE system.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

43. Trainers are very committed and supportive of their trainees. They make themselves available to trainees and give freely of their time outside of formal scheduled sessions. Tutorials, although helpful to trainees’ writing of assignments, are not fully exploited for review, development and target setting of trainees’ teaching skills. Trainees benefit from good access to specialist facilities and workshops which support them well in developing their expertise in teaching their specialist subjects. A consistently strong feature of trainees across the partnership is the extent to which they use ICT not only to support their own learning but also to engage and motivate their own students. Inspectors saw particularly good use made of VLEs in individual colleges.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

44. The assessment of trainees’ written work is extremely rigorous. Feedback on their written work is highly detailed and constructive which contributes significantly to the good progress made in developing their study and action research skills. This is a significant improvement since the last inspection. The feedback offered to trainees following an observation of their teaching practice is thorough and accurate; it provides them with a clear understanding of how they can improve. There are no formal procedures for moderation of judgements made about trainees’ teaching practice at individual provider level. Quality assurance systems do not cover the contributions made by mentors; consequently there is no clear overview of where subject specific development is strong or where it is weak. Some trainees do not benefit from clear and focussed guidance on how to teach their specialist subject.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

45. Trainees feel valued and well supported; they are confident that any concerns will be handled sensitively and effectively. They are secure in their awareness of processes and procedures to safeguard students and have a sound understanding of equality and diversity. However, there are missed opportunities in their lessons for them to actively prepare their own students to live and work in a diverse society. Weaker trainees are unable to identify how they can use their teaching to help learners understand day to day aspects of equality and diversity.

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Grade: 2

46. Leaders and managers have worked successfully to build strong links and establish a dialogue with FE providers across the region. Partners’ high level of collaborative working and high attendance at partnership events demonstrate their strong commitment to continuous improvement. Procedures for self- evaluation are well-established and result in a targeted development plan for the partnership with clear success criteria that are linked to improving outcomes for trainees. Data produced by the programme team at the university are reliable and are used to inform self-evaluation at partnership level. The data are interrogated to identify patterns or trends in outcomes for identifiable groups of trainees in terms of gender, ethnicity and graduate status. This is not consistently the case however at individual college level. The partnership’s evaluation of its performance is appropriately self-critical and results in an

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Grade: 2

accurate identification of key strengths and where improvement is required.

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Grade: 2

47. The ‘learner voice’ has not been given a sufficiently high priority within the self- evaluation process; module evaluations do not provide trainees with sufficient opportunity to reflect and comment on the totality of their experience. The response rate for some module evaluations is very low; consequently this does not provide a reliable and meaningful basis for self-evaluation. External examiners’ reports, which contribute to the university’s annual monitoring report, have provided only limited basis for self assessment and improvement planning, as the focus of reporting has been based on trainees’ academic development only.

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Grade: 2

48. Appropriate steps have been taken to address most of the weaknesses identified at the previous inspection. For example, strategies have been implemented to ensure trainees gain sufficient breadth of teaching experience. Similarly the extent to which trainees now support the development of their own students’ literacy and numeracy skills is good; this was a weakness at the last inspection. However, trainees’ experience of mentoring varies too much across the partnership. The vast majority of mentors have responded supportively to trainees’ needs for guidance, and have met these through ad hoc meetings, joint planning and informal discussions. Meetings between mentors and trainees are not documented systematically. Links between centre-based trainers and mentors are too informal, consequently too many mentors feel isolated and unclear about their role. Support in the workplace for trainees who are

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Grade: 2

employed in the wider FE system remains too inconsistent.

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Grade: 2

49. The university has recently taken decisive steps to address weaknesses in mentoring. Partners have agreed a framework for mentoring which will take effect from January 2011. This ensures that resources are allocated to secure good quality mentoring for all trainees, regardless of where they teach. A partnership manager has been employed to oversee the implementation of this new framework and there are proposed strategies to evaluate the impact and hold partners to account for the quality of mentoring they provide to trainees. 50. The partnership has been very effective in implementing the national workforce reforms for FE teachers. New programmes have been embedded successfully and success rates show an improving trend. An imaginative programme of study has been tailored to the strengths of individual partners who readily share good practice. The university’s response to meeting the training, continuing

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Grade: 2

development and qualification needs of the regional FE workforce is outstanding. University provision has been developed in a way that secures incremental skills development and accreditation from initial teacher training, through to professional formation and masters level study. The high number of trainees from a skills and crafts background who advance their academic study is testimony to the success of this strategy.

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Grade: 2

51. The quality of action planning has improved recently and is good overall. However, the links between the improvement plan for the partnership as a whole and those of individual providers are tenuous. As a consequence partners are not sufficiently clear about their role in addressing partnership priorities or how they can best make use of university data to monitor the impact of steps taken to improve outcomes for trainees.

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Annex: Partnership colleges

The partnership includes the following colleges of further education: Ashton under Lyne Sixth Form College Burton on Trent College Newcastle College South Staffordshire College Stafford College Stoke on Trent College Walford and North Shropshire College

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Summary of inspection grades 1

Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding; grade 2 is good; grade 3 is satisfactory; grade 4 is inadequate.

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Overall effectiveness

How effective is the provision in securing high quality outcomes for trainees? 1 2

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Overall effectiveness

Trainees’ attainment How well do trainees attain? 1 2 Factors contributing to trainees’ attainment To what extent do recruitment / selection arrangements support high quality outcomes? 1 2 To what extent does the training and assessment ensure that all trainees progress to fulfil their potential given their ability and starting points? 1 2

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Overall effectiveness

To what extent are available resources used effectively and efficiently? 1 2 The quality of the provision To what extent is the provision across the partnership of consistently high quality? 1 2

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Overall effectiveness

Promoting equalities and diversity To what extent does the provision promote equality of opportunity, value diversity and eliminate harassment and unlawful discrimination? 2 3

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Capacity to improve further and/or sustain high quality

To what extent do the leadership and management at all levels have the capacity to secure further improvements and/or to sustain high quality outcomes? 1 2

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Capacity to improve further and/or sustain high quality

How effectively does the management at all levels assess performance in order to improve or sustain high quality? 1 2 How well does the leadership at all levels anticipate change, and prepare for and respond to national and local initiatives? 1 2

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Capacity to improve further and/or sustain high quality

How effectively does the provider plan and take action for improvement? 1 2

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Capacity to improve further and/or sustain high quality

1 The criteria for making these graded judgements are in the Grade criteria for the inspection of ITE 2008-11; Ofsted November 2009; Reference no: 080128. set out in the guidance ‘Complaints about school inspection’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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