MITIE

Overall effectiveness Good

Effectiveness of leadership and management Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Quality of teaching, learning and assessment Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Personal development, behaviour and welfare Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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This is a good provider

 The proportion of learners who complete their qualifications is very high.  Learners are highly motivated and enthusiastic, acquiring broad knowledge and skills which enhance their career progression opportunities.  Good information, advice and guidance ensure that learners make informed decisions about their career pathways.  Well-planned teaching, learning and assessment match well to learners’ and employers’ requirements.  There is highly effective support for learners both during and between tutors’ visits to the workplace.  Extremely effective partnership working with the subcontracted training provider maintains the quality of the provision.

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This is a good provider

 Not enough learners complete their qualification within the stipulated time frame.  Inconsistent use of target-setting and written feedback does not enable learners, especially higher-level learners, to know precisely what they need to do next in a minority of sessions.  There is insufficient involvement of managers in the planning and review of learning in a small minority of workplace visits.

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Information about the provider

 MITIE is a very large outsourcing and asset management company providing facilities management, property and engineering services for the public and private sectors across Britain. It employs over 66,000 people across approximately 7,000 client locations. The facilities management division, which runs the apprenticeship programmes, is the largest of four divisions within the company and consists of cleaning, environmental, security and catering services. The programme is also run in their domiciliary and complex care businesses.  The company has held a work-based learning contract since November 2008 and subcontracts all aspects of its provision to Jigsaw Training (Jigsaw). One MITIE manager (the people director responsible for group functions) oversees the provision, supported by a small administration and audit team.  All learners are MITIE employees and are recruited by the human resources department or senior

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Information about the provider

operational managers within MITIE. Jigsaw provides all the training for apprentices, including literacy and numeracy support. MITIE also provides additional training for their apprentices where appropriate, which includes health and safety, working at height, firefighting and first aid.

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What does the provider need to do to improve further?

 Provide additional support with clear time-bound targets to enable more learners to complete their qualifications within the stipulated time frame.  Ensure that target-setting and written feedback are sufficiently clear and detailed to enable all learners to know precisely what they need to do next to complete their qualification.  Encourage all managers to participate in planning and reviewing learners’ progress with tutors at each workplace visit. Inspection report: MITIE, 17–20 May 2016 Page 3 of 9

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

 Leadership is very effective. Senior managers in MITIE have a clear vision of offering training opportunities to all staff and encouraging them to participate in the apprenticeship schemes. Managers have high expectations of learners, many of whom have low initial aspirations.  Managers are very focused on ensuring that learners get a good learning experience and that they achieve their qualification. This focus contributes towards the high overall success rates but has also prevented some learners from completing their qualification in the allotted time as tutors allow some learners to take longer.  Management of the subcontracted provision is very good, with monthly contract management meetings and excellent communication between the contract manager and senior staff in Jigsaw. Jigsaw also has monthly quality and standardisation meetings to check and improve upon the quality of the provision.

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

Course documentation and learners’ files are audited carefully, although some aspects relating to target- setting and feedback are not always sufficiently recorded.  The self-assessment process is thorough, with iterative consultation with all staff and good inclusion of learners’ views. The self-assessment report is concise, judgemental, accurate and used well to structure the quality improvement plan. Areas for concern identified at the previous inspection have been rectified.  Leaders and managers place a high priority on the provision of English and mathematics. Learners understand the importance of English and mathematics and have improved their skills in these subjects compared with their starting points.  Partnership working between MITIE and Jigsaw is excellent. They work well together to ensure that all employees get offered the opportunity to progress into training and that this is aligned to local employers’

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

and the community’s needs.  Managers use data well to monitor performance overall and analyse the performance of different groups so that none are disadvantaged. Managers are aware of some very small differences in achievement between groups with respect to completing their qualification on time.  MITIE provides good impartial guidance to enable learners to make informed decisions about their current learning and their future careers, both within MITIE and opportunities outside.  Managers place great emphasis on promoting equality and diversity throughout the organisation. Recruitment is robust and ensures that selection is fair and employees’ profiles typically match the community profile for the areas within which they work. Policies and procedures to ensure that learners are aware of bullying and harassment and that they are protected from these behaviours are stringently applied. Information about safety online is good and learners have a good understanding of what

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

constitutes acceptable behaviour.  All staff promote a wider understanding of equality and diversity well. Tutors in particular include up-to- date interesting topics for discussion to explore issues concerning ethnicity, faith, gender and related subjects.  Tutors and assessors provide good resources within the sessions to promote fundamental British values and these are being developed well so that all learners are prepared for successful life in modern Britain.  Leaders and managers have demonstrated that the quality of the provision can be maintained and improved over time. Minor slippages, with few exceptions, have been identified and rectified by managers.  The governance of the provider The group human resources director is the line manager of the contract manager and provides support and challenge for proposals for the strategic management of the provision. The strong working partnership between MITIE and Jigsaw provides ample opportunity to debate the

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

further development of the provision and its operational delivery.  The arrangements for safeguarding are effective All required checks have been completed on staff and the managers maintain a central list of these checks and monitor their renewal dates. Policies and procedures are comprehensive and learners have easy access to them in the induction pack and also electronically. Learners feel safe and know what to do in the eventuality of an incident or a concern about their safety. They know how to keep themselves safe physically and online. Potential safeguarding issues have been identified, and resolved quickly, and the one incident that occurred has been managed effectively. Inspection report: MITIE, 17–20 May 2016 Page 4 of 9 Good progress has been made to promote learners’ and staff awareness of extremism and radicalisation through training in the government’s ‘Prevent’ duty. Staff and most learners are

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Effectiveness of leadership and management is good

knowledgeable about the ‘Prevent’ duty. A small number of learners’ understanding of the issues around extremism and radicalisation is vague.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

 Tutors and assessors use effective strategies to develop learning. They use questioning very effectively and check learners’ understanding thoroughly. They inspire learners and respond well to their different needs. Learners enjoy their learning and appreciate the difference that their increased knowledge and skills make to their job role.  Tutors are very knowledgeable and experienced. They engage learners in good professional dialogue, drawing on their professional experience to illustrate technical issues with real-life examples.  Learners benefit from frequent and flexible visits from tutors to meet their needs as well as the business needs of their employers. Due to the nature of the employment, visits often have to be rescheduled and tutors readily accommodate these changes. Tutors’ visits are fair, informative and much valued by learners.  Support for learners is very good. Resources for the subject matter of the apprenticeships are good.

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

Resources for the teaching of English and mathematics are good and embedded well into other teaching materials.  Learners get good support between visits with frequent emails and texts from tutors. Tutors are quick to respond to any learner needs.  MITIE has an excellent intranet resource which promotes all aspects of the organisation. It has a particularly good focus on the training opportunities available to all staff and the wide range of learning packages to support these. Managers set learning goals for learners on this system and monitor progress towards achieving these goals.  Initial assessment is thorough, quickly identifies additional learning needs and leads to appropriate support being provided for the learner. Initial assessment is used well to plan teaching sessions to ensure that the individual needs of the learners are met. All learners progress at their own speed towards the achievement of their qualification resulting in very high overall success rates, but many learners do not

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

achieve within the time allocated.  Managers and tutors assess learners regularly and there are now rigorous systems in place to identify learners at risk of not completing on time. They then put into place the support necessary for learners to succeed.  Learners generally receive good-quality, detailed, clear and informative verbal feedback so that they know what they have to do to improve their knowledge and skills and reach their full potential. This feedback is not always documented sufficiently well for learners to access the detailed information after the tutor’s visit has taken place.  Tutors do not always set sufficiently clear targets for learners to know exactly what they need to do next and when they need to complete the action specified. A small minority of learners are rather vague about what they need to do next.  Tutors promote learners’ understanding of equality and diversity well using imaginative topics from recent

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Quality of teaching, learning and assessment is good

news articles to generate active and enjoyable discussion. Tutors raise awareness of discrimination, harassment and bullying, and learners understand the issues and what to do about them.  Tutors work hard to support learners to develop their skills successfully in English and mathematics and to develop their employability skills. Many learners have been promoted or have had their job responsibilities increased as a result. English is not always promoted sufficiently well in written work.  Tutors in a small minority of sessions fail to challenge learners sufficiently and do not encourage learners to contribute as much as they could during the session. Higher-level learners are not made to take enough responsibility for their learning and to set their own targets.

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are good

 Learners behave with integrity and professionalism in their workplace. They value and respect the substantial vocational knowledge and insight of their assessors, and how they are able to benefit from it as learners. Inspection report: MITIE, 17–20 May 2016 Page 5 of 9  Learners really appreciate the confidence, knowledge, skills and abilities they acquire as a result of undertaking apprenticeships. They value the challenges associated with the programme and recognise how it increases their progression and career opportunities.  Tutors ensure that apprentices receive a suitable blend of taught content to the learning programme, as well as developing their work-related skills as part of their job roles. In addition, most tutors support learners to develop their competence in English and mathematics. Most learners make good progress in developing these skills, using them with increased confidence, and successfully achieve their functional

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are good

skills qualifications as part of the apprenticeship framework.  Most learners receive good information, advice and guidance at all stages of their programme. In the first instance, potential apprentices undertake detailed discussions with their line manager and tutors to identify a suitable programme that will add value to their vocational role and increase their opportunity to progress in their careers. Tutors then complete a comprehensive induction programme, ensuring that learners fully appreciate the content and structure of the course, the mode of assessment, and the learners’ commitment to the programme. As learners progress through the apprenticeships, they receive regular, supportive visits from the assessors, as well as detailed information about possible progression opportunities and further qualifications they might consider on completion of the programme. Learners recognise the benefit of being able to contact their tutors by email or phone between visits if they require

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are good

additional support or guidance, both on course-related and personal issues.  Tutors often work with learners to identify additional apprenticeship units that would add further value to their programme, over and above the core course components. They actively encourage learners to acquire these alongside their main programme. Learners recognise the value that these additional units add to their skills development.  As employees of MITIE, all learners have suitable access to additional professional support and guidance through the employer’s confidential telephone counselling and helpline service.  Learners feel safe in their workplaces. Tutors provide good advice and guidance on safe working practices in the workplace. They provide particularly detailed guidance on personal safety to learners who work in higher-risk settings such as those undertaking lone working in clients’ homes, or those working in

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are good

magistrates’ courts, power stations or the security industry.  Learners report that they do not experience any bullying in the workplace; they are clear about the actions that they would take in the event that they came across bullying or intimidation.  Learners have a varied understanding and appreciation of the risks associated with extremism and radicalisation. Those learners in higher-risk security settings, such as power stations and banks, have a very good understanding of these issues; however, a significant minority of learners in other settings, such as care and business administration, were less familiar with the risks faced by them and others.  In a few instances, tutors place learners on programmes at too low a level, relative to their prior ability. They generally choose this approach to instil confidence in learners who have been away from education and training for a significant period of time. However, in these circumstances, the learning activities do

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are good

not stretch the learners sufficiently to achieve their full potential.  A small proportion of learners are slow to develop their English and mathematics skills. As a result, they take longer than expected to achieve the full apprenticeship framework.

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Outcomes for learners are good

 In 2014/15, virtually all learners successfully achieved their apprenticeships. Data for the current year indicates that a high proportion of apprentices continue to make good progress and achieve the framework, and virtually all learners currently on programme are on track towards successful completion.  Tutors set suitably challenging targets for the majority of learners. This helps motivate learners, who respond positively and enthusiastically to the challenge. Learners develop a broad cross-section of vocationally specific skills and knowledge. They produce a good standard of work and develop valuable employment-related skills.  Tutors support learners in increasing their confidence and skills in English, mathematics and ICT, in particular the verbal skills of those learners for whom English is not their first language. Learners recognise the importance of developing these core competencies and work hard towards successfully

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Outcomes for learners are good

achieving their learning goals in these areas.  Learners recognise and appreciate the broad range of skills they acquire and the positive progress they make. They indicate how their new-found skills and qualifications help them improve their performance and job prospects by gaining promotion, career advancement and often progressing on to a higher-level of study.  As an employer, MITIE is highly committed to developing its staff. In particular, managers work hard to Inspection report: MITIE, 17–20 May 2016 Page 6 of 9 honour their commitment to individual apprentices who transfer to alternative employers prior to completing their apprenticeship. In these circumstances, managers liaise with the new employer and, subject to the new employer’s agreement, they support the learner through to successful completion of the qualification.  The proportion of learners who achieve the full apprenticeship framework in the stipulated timescale is

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Outcomes for learners are good

too low. Managers recognise this as an area for development; however, they have made the conscious decision to prioritise the high quality of the support learners receive, the value it adds to their performance and the very high number of learners who successfully achieve their apprenticeships, over timely completion. They now set more rigorous timescales to ensure all learners complete within the time allocated.  In a small minority of cases, tutors do not make best use of the target-setting process. In these instances, targets do not always challenge learners sufficiently. Occasionally, learners and employers are not suitably involved in helping to devise these targets, particularly on higher-level courses. As a result, tutors do not ensure that learners take enough responsibility for their own development and learners are not always clear about specifically what they need to do to make the best progress.

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full contract year

Principal/CEO Ruby McGregor-Smith, CBE Website address www.mitie.com

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Intermediate Advanced Higher

16-18 19+ 16-18 19+ 16-18 19+ 8 1,064 3 142 N/A N/A Number of traineeships 16-19 19+ Total N/A N/A N/A Number of learners aged 14–16 N/A

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Intermediate Advanced Higher

Funding received from Skills Funding Agency (SFA)

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main subcontractors:

 Jigsaw Training Inspection report: MITIE, 17–20 May 2016 Page 8 of 9

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Inspection team

Charles Clark, lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Peter Nelson Her Majesty’s Inspector Stephen Masterson Ofsted Inspector Christine Blowman Ofsted Inspector Kanwaljit Dhillon Ofsted Inspector Ian Goodwin Ofsted Inspector Karen Tucker Ofsted Inspector Joyce Guthrie Ofsted Inspector

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Inspection team

The above team was assisted by the contract manager, as nominee. Inspectors took account of the provider’s most recent self-assessment report and development plans, and the previous inspection report. Inspectors used group and individual interviews, telephone calls and online questionnaires to gather the views of learners and employers; these views are reflected within the report. They observed learning sessions, assessments and progress reviews. The inspection took into account all relevant provision at the provider. Inspection report: MITIE, 17–20 May 2016 Page 9 of 9 guidance ‘Raising concerns and making complaints about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234 , or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

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 and Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, further education and skills, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It assesses council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. 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 reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team,

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Inspection team

The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Inspection team

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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Inspection team

T: 0300 123 4234 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.ofsted.gov.uk Learner View is a website where learners can tell Ofsted what they think about their college or provider. They can also see what other learners think about them too.

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Inspection team

To find out more go to www.learnerview.ofsted.gov.uk

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Inspection team

Employer View is a new website where employers can tell Ofsted what they think about their employees’ college or provider. They can also see what other employers think about them too.

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Inspection team

To find out more go to www.employerview.ofsted.gov.uk

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