Health & Safety Training Limited

Store Street Manchester M1 2WD T 0300 123 4234 www.gov.uk/ofsted

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Mr Phil Binks Health & Safety Training Limited Unit 6, Wesley Way Benton Square Industrial Estate Newcastle upon Tyne NE12 9TA

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Short inspection of Health & Safety Training Limited

Following the short inspection on 21 and 22 June 2017, I write on behalf of Her Majesty’s Chief Inspector of Education, Children’s Services and Skills to report the inspection findings. The inspection was the first short inspection carried out since the provider was judged to be good in June 2013.

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Short inspection of Health & Safety Training Limited

You and other leaders have a clearly defined strategic ambition that Health & Safety Training Limited (HST) will provide high-quality training in warehousing and plant operation to enable unemployed adults to obtain employment. HST has established strong partnerships with Jobcentre Plus, the National Careers Service and local employers. You use these successfully to enable an increasing number of adults, many of whom have been unemployed for some time, to gain the skills, certificates of competence, licences and confidence that they require to gain employment. By training and accrediting learners to use competently a variety of warehousing and construction plant, HST is also very successfully meeting the needs of local and regional employers.

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Short inspection of Health & Safety Training Limited

You have maintained the strengths identified at the previous inspection and made good progress in addressing areas for improvement. For example, trainers now plan activities that enable learners to improve their written and verbal English skills. A few weaknesses remain, which you and other leaders are fully aware that you need to resolve. For example, performance management arrangements do not set trainers sufficiently clear guidance on how they can improve aspects of their training and assessment.

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Short inspection of Health & Safety Training Limited

Leaders and managers have ensured that safeguarding arrangements are fit for purpose and that action is taken to safeguard all learners. Managers ensure that safeguarding policies and procedures are clearly communicated to and followed by all staff and learners. They maintain good links with other agencies and keep a secure log which clearly records the very few safeguarding concerns that have been raised by staff and the appropriate actions taken. Managers maintain up-to-date records of the regular safeguarding training undertaken by staff, including online training on the ‘Prevent’ duty.

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Short inspection of Health & Safety Training Limited

All staff reinforce and rigorously implement health and safety procedures, safe working practices and the appropriate use of specialist personal protective equipment in training activities. As a result, learners have a very good understanding of the risks associated with the plant, tools and access equipment that they use and show an excellent awareness of how to protect themselves and others while using these.

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Short inspection of Health & Safety Training Limited

During comprehensive inductions to programmes, staff raise learners’ awareness well about the range of steps they can take to stay safe in everyday life; learners improve their understanding about how to stay safe when online and how to recognise the risks of radicalisation and extremism. However, too often during programmes, trainers do not reinforce sufficiently issues about staying safe that relate to learners’ everyday lives as citizens in modern Britain .

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Inspection findings

 Leaders and managers maintain a good oversight of the impact that HST has on meeting the needs of employers and providing learners with the skills, qualifications and licences they need to obtain work. They recognise new and emerging training requirements within the warehousing and construction transport and plant sectors. As a result, they have clear and well-founded plans in place to grow the business in a controlled way to introduce new courses, additional specialist plan, and vehicle training modules that maximise learners’ opportunities to find work.  Managers use a good range of activities to monitor the quality of teaching, learning and assessment provided by trainers and the outcomes that learners achieve as a result. However, following these, trainers are not set sufficiently clear actions with target dates to clarify the steps they need to take to address any aspects of their practice that require improvement. For example, although

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Inspection findings

managers have identified the use of questioning by a few trainers as an area for improvement, no trainers have been set specific development targets to improve this aspect of their professional practice.  Trainers support learners well both in classrooms and the practical training environment to ensure that they develop good occupational and safe working skills in operating a variety of mechanical lifting equipment. Learners benefit greatly from small group sizes and the personalised instruction that this allows. They enhance their personal skills through effective interaction with their peers and trainers during the well-planned training activities.  Trainers regularly check and reinforce learning and skill development through formative assessment tasks that enable learners to recognise the good progress that they are making. They use specialist resources well and effectively involve those learners who are not involved directly with the use of a vehicle. For

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Inspection findings

example, learners who are not operating machinery are required to watch and learn from their peers while being asked to record any errors made by the operator for later discussion. When assessing learning, a minority of trainers do not effectively check individual learners’ understanding and progress. A few trainers are too quick to provide the answers to their own questions when learners do not give a full enough response, rather than probing further with follow-up questions.  Jobcentre Plus mandates the majority of learners that follow training programmes to HST. Trainers receive very few details about learners’ previous experience, qualifications or support needs before they start their programmes. This prevents them from being able to plan to meet learners’ individual needs and circumstances until learners start their programmes. However, once learners enrol, trainers quickly and effectively develop personalised programmes that

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Inspection findings

meet learners’ individual needs well. They provide learners with good advice about the best training options for their preferred career pathways.  Leaders, managers and trainers successfully encourage learners to undertake additional qualifications and gain machine and equipment licences in conjunction with their primary qualifications. These focus mainly on improving learners’ awareness of safe working practices in the workplace to prepare them better for future employment. For example, learners on a level 1 warehouse and storage course also complete a level 1 health and safety awareness qualification to broaden their knowledge of this area. The majority of learners who attain the level 2 qualification in operating a counterbalance forklift also learn how to operate a pedestrian forklift, a useful enhancement to the range of skills they can bring to potential employers.  Arrangements for ensuring that learners improve their skills in English and

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Inspection findings

mathematics have improved since the last inspection and are now good. Trainers make good use of well-planned tasks in vocational subjects that promote accurate spelling and use of correct technical vocabulary. Trainers reinforce the importance of mathematics well in training activities by, for example, directing learners to calculate safe working loads for different machines and tasks. Trainers support learners to plan and structure their writing, as reflected in coursework files which clearly model good practice in setting out written work. Small group sizes mean that learners benefit from frequent active participation which effectively develops their spoken communication skills.  Learners, many of whom have had negative experiences on other training programmes that they have been mandated to attend, speak enthusiastically about the skills and qualifications that they gain with HST. Learners are confident

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Inspection findings

that these will enable them to obtain employment. Managers have established an effective partnership with the National Careers Service which benefits learners greatly in obtaining employment. An adviser visits the training centre on a weekly basis and provides learners with good advice and guidance about employment options and how to progress these. As a result of this good partnership, when learners complete their training with HST they understand how the National Careers Service can continue to support them to find work through help with preparing curriculum vitae, job search techniques and participating in mock interviews.  A high proportion of learners gain their qualifications, and the proportion who obtain work as a result of their training is high. Managers have taken effective steps to reduce the number of learners for whom information about their next steps is unknown.

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Next steps for the provider

Leaders and those responsible for governance should ensure that:

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Next steps for the provider

 building on the detailed information provided to learners during their inductions, trainers continue to reinforce with learners how to stay safe in their everyday lives and how to recognise and protect themselves and others from the dangers of radicalisation and extremism  trainers are set clear actions following observations of their teaching, learning and assessment activities and other quality monitoring processes, that clarify the steps they should take and the training they require to bring about any required improvements to their practice, with target dates and details of how the progress they are making will be monitored  managers continue to develop their links with key partners to ensure that as much information as possible about learners’ prior experience, qualifications and support needs is available to trainers prior to the start of learners’ courses so that they can take this into account fully when planning learning activities and support

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Next steps for the provider

I am copying this letter to the Education and Skills Funding Agency. This letter will be published on the Ofsted website.

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Information about the inspection

Inspectors were assisted by the training and quality manager. We met with senior leaders. We observed lessons and assessments taking place. We held meetings with, or spoke to, managers, trainers and learners. We scrutinised learners’ work and assessment records. We scrutinised key documents relating to the provider’s strategy and implementation plans, self-assessment and improvement planning and safeguarding. We considered the views of learners through discussions during learning sessions and through the responses received through Ofsted’s online questionnaire.

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