Remit Group Ltd

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

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Mrs Kathryn Gundle Head of Quality Remit Group Ltd 4 Orchard Place Nottingham Business Park Nottingham NG8 6PX

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Short inspection of Remit Group Ltd

Following the short inspection on 29–30 January 2018, 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 December 2014.

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Short inspection of Remit Group Ltd

Senior leaders and managers have established a caring learning environment that helps apprentices to make good progress and achieve. Apprentices are enthusiastic about participating in their studies. As a result, the large majority of apprentices develop their skills and knowledge well. This enriches their personal lives and allows them to become valued employees.

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Short inspection of Remit Group Ltd

Since the previous inspection, the senior leadership team has enacted well-planned actions so that apprentices continue to receive good-quality training. You have ensured that the pace of improvement is appropriately rapid by deploying significant financial investment in learning facilities and resources. For example, an automotive training centre has recently opened in Derby. This offers apprentices a high- standard learning environment. The introduction of your online learning site and electronic portfolios has ensured better synchronisation of dedicated training and work time. The phasing out of subcontractor provision has given managers more control over training quality and led to improvement. Managers have maintained an unrelenting drive to raise the quality of teaching, learning and assessment. Consequently, a high proportion of apprentices achieve their goals within the planned timescale.

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Short inspection of Remit Group Ltd

Senior leaders and managers have exploited industry links well to establish an extensive and effective employer levy-funded apprenticeship provision. Your expansion of the training offer to a wider range of sector areas has made a good contribution to addressing employers’ training needs. The senior leadership team has a realistic understanding of the provision’s strengths and areas for improvement. They have made good progress in addressing the areas for improvement identified at the previous inspection. However, managers rightly recognise that more needs to be done so that all training is of a consistently high standard.

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Short inspection of Remit Group Ltd

Senior leaders and managers continue to give a very high priority to protecting all apprentices from harm. Safeguarding arrangements are comprehensive and fit for purpose. Managers use suitable policies and procedures to inform the safe recruitment and vetting of staff.

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Short inspection of Remit Group Ltd

Managers assess the training centre for risks appropriately. Apprentices participating in courses requiring them to be away from home overnight receive good support to keep them safe. Since the previous inspection, managers have implemented quality assurance processes that have raised the standard of care that apprentices receive.

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Short inspection of Remit Group Ltd

Designated safeguarding officers respond quickly to incidents where staff or apprentices raise concerns. The detailed records kept by the officers show they instigate well-considered and appropriate actions to protect apprentices. Managers make very good use of external agencies to refer apprentices for specialist support.

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Short inspection of Remit Group Ltd

Apprentices report feeling protected during their training and at the workplace. They know how to raise any concerns about their safety or welfare. Apprentices have a good appreciation of how to protect themselves from the dangers posed by radicalisation and extremism. Their understanding of fundamental British values is good or better. Apprentices apply this knowledge appropriately when responding to situations encountered in their workplace and personal lives. Apprentices have a good appreciation of how to use both web-based and social media safely. Apprentices adhere strictly to safe working practices.

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Inspection findings

 The quality of taught sessions and individual coaching is good. Tutors plan comprehensive off-the-job training sessions that link well with on-the-job training. All tutors make good use of apprentices’ individual profiles to produce particularly detailed schemes of work and lesson plans. Consequently, taught sessions cater for apprentices’ individual development needs very effectively. This helps apprentices to make good or better progress when compared to their starting points.  Tutors and assessors have good industry-relevant knowledge and experience. They are enthusiastic and committed to ensuring that all apprentices achieve to their full potential. As a result, apprentices quickly grow in confidence and develop a good attitude to learning.  Tutors and assessors make very effective use of a wide range of teaching and training techniques to engage and inspire apprentices to learn. For example,

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Inspection findings

during a session on fundamental British values, apprentices matched cards outlining relevant themes to possible scenarios. This stimulated a lively discussion on how to deal with the issues raised. Apprentices’ understanding of the application of the ‘Prevent’ duty to their personal experiences was well reinforced and extended.  Assessment arrangements are good. Apprentices receive frequent and regular workplace visits for training and assessment purposes. Apprentices usually have a good understanding of their progress. They know what they must do to achieve their short- and long-term targets. However, in a small minority of cases, short- term targets are not effective in supporting apprentices’ development. Too often, these targets contain insufficient detail to guide apprentices’ actions for improvement. In a few cases, assessors set ineffective targets as they fail to identify the skills and knowledge that apprentices need to acquire. Not all staff

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Inspection findings

keep the apprentices’ electronic progress records fully updated. This impedes the setting of accurate targets for apprentices.  Apprentices usually receive good-quality and relevant progress reviews that promote their achievement. However, managers do not ensure that review arrangements are consistently applied. For example, a small number of customer service apprentices are at the early stages of their programme but not all have participated in a suitable review of their progress.  Employers are actively engaged in planning and monitoring apprentices’ training. All employers meet regularly and frequently with assessors. This ensures that employers understand the purpose of the assessment and training visits well. Employers receive regular updates on apprentices’ progress. Because of this, employers are effectively involved in ensuring that apprentices participate in suitable development opportunities within the workplace. This increases the pace

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Inspection findings

of apprentices’ progress towards completing their qualification.  Apprentices receive good-quality information, advice and guidance. Employers are effectively engaged in planning and supporting apprentices’ career pathways and future career aims. As a result, apprentices clearly understand their next steps to fulfilling their career aspirations. Apprentices routinely improve their understanding of available career progression by engaging in discussions with employers and Remit’s staff. As a result, apprentices are enthusiastic about their future employment prospects.  Tutors and assessors usually provide apprentices with helpful verbal and written feedback that they use to improve quickly. However, a small minority of apprentices do not receive appropriately detailed written feedback so they can swiftly develop further.  Tutors and assessors usually make very good use of questioning techniques to promote learning. For example, an assessor used excellent questioning to probe

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Inspection findings

an apprentice’s understanding the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the European Union. The assessor related this well to the apprentices café work through reference to coffee price imports, staff recruitment and customers’ disposable income. However, in taught sessions, tutors do not consistently use effective questioning to check and reinforce apprentices’ learning.  Employers and assessors very effectively enhance apprentice’s reflective practice through participation in training. For example, a hospitality and team-leading apprentice was able to identify the development of industry-relevant behaviours over time. This contributed well to a personal skills audit and review. Subsequently, and in partnership with her employer and assessor, the apprentice was able to evaluate the progress she had made in improving industry-relevant behaviours, including problem solving, and team and independent working.

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Inspection findings

 Apprentices have a good understanding of equality and diversity. They are able to make appropriate links between cultural or religious differences and behaviour. For example, an apprentice could explain why customers with particular beliefs would choose meat-free food options. As a result, the apprentice understood consumers’ needs better and was able to provide a high standard of customer care.  Apprentices develop their English and mathematics skills well. Tutors and assessors make very good use of vocationally contextualised learning materials to develop apprentices’ competence. For example, apprentices planning a team- building day applied their mathematics skills to the compilation of timetables. In addition, they calculated costs for activities of varying durations. A good proportion of apprentices study for, and achieve, a level of English and mathematics above that required by their apprenticeship. Other apprentices

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Inspection findings

participate in tasks to stretch and extend their prior learning. Apprentices learn and use industry-specific technical language well.  Overall achievement rates were high in 2016/17. In-year data indicates that managers’ actions have maintained this trend. The rate at which apprentices achieve their full programme within the planned time declined in 2016/17. Managers can attribute much of this shortfall to the performance of a subcontractor. In the current year, the rate apprentices are completing their programme within the planned timescale is high.  Apprenticeship achievement for learners with learning difficulties and/or disabilities has steadily improved over the last two academic years. No achievement gap now exists between this cohort and other apprenticeship groups. Since the previous inspection, the number of learning support coaches has increased from six to 14. They provide apprentices with very good support

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Inspection findings

that effectively helps them to attain to a good standard.  Pass rates for English and mathematics functional skills qualifications at first examination sitting are generally high. However, achievement at level 2 mathematics requires improvement.  A good proportion of apprentices progress from programmes at level 2 to level 3 or higher. Overall, a high number of apprentices enter and sustain employment on completion of the programme.

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Next steps for the provider

Leaders, managers and those responsible for governance should ensure that:

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Next steps for the provider

 the quality of written feedback that apprentices receive from tutors and assessors is sufficiently detailed and helpful  tutors routinely use effective questioning techniques to both check and reinforce learning  apprentices receive challenging short-term targets that are consistently detailed and support swift acquisition of the required skills and knowledge  electronic tracking of apprentices’ progress is kept up to date to inform target setting for apprentices  apprentices participate in the planned progress reviews  all functional skills examination pass rates are high and improving.

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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

During the inspection, you assisted us as nominee. We met with managers and development coaches, and used individual interviews and online questionnaires to gather the views of apprentices. These views are reflected within this letter. We reviewed apprentices’ assessed work. Inspectors evaluated the effectiveness of key documents, including those relating to risk assessment, lesson planning, quality assurance, performance monitoring and safeguarding. In addition, they took account of your organisation’s position statement, development plans and the previous inspection report.

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