Astra SCITT

Astra SCITT Initial teacher education inspection report Inspection dates Stage 1: 30 April 2018 Stage 2: 24 September 2018

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This inspection was carried out by Ofsted Inspectors in accordance with the ‘Initial teacher education inspection handbook’. This handbook sets out the statutory basis and framework for initial teacher education (ITE) inspections in England from September 2015.

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The inspection draws on evidence from each phase and separate route within the ITE partnership to make judgements against all parts of the evaluation schedule. Inspectors focused on the overall effectiveness of the ITE partnership in securing high-quality outcomes for trainees.

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Inspection judgements

Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding; grade 2 is good; grade 3 is requires improvement; grade 4 is inadequate

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Inspection judgements

Primary and secondary QTS Overall effectiveness How well does the partnership secure consistently high-quality outcomes for trainees? The outcomes for trainees 1 The quality of training across the partnership The quality of leadership and management across the partnership ITE inspection report: Astra SCITT September 2018

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Information about this ITE partnership

 Astra provides primary (five to 11 years) and secondary (11 to 16 years) school- centred initial teacher training (SCITT) for graduates. Trainees who successfully complete their training are recommended for qualified teacher status (QTS) and may also gain a postgraduate certificate of education from the Institute of Education or Goldsmiths University.  The partnership began its own training programme in 2016. It offers School Direct salaried and non-salaried training routes for both primary and secondary trainees. Secondary trainees in 2017/18 specialised in English, mathematics, biology, chemistry, physics, drama, geography, history, modern foreign languages or physical education.  The SCITT is based at Dr Challoner’s Grammar School in Amersham in an area where there is selective education. The partnership works in close collaboration with 35 local schools across Bedfordshire, Buckinghamshire and Hertfordshire. At

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Information about this ITE partnership

the time of stage 1 of the inspection, there were seven primary trainees and 54 secondary trainees. In September 2018, 13 primary trainees and 47 secondary trainees began their training. A small number of trainees follow the assessment- only (AO) route to QTS.

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Information about the primary and secondary ITE inspection

 During stage 1 of the inspection, inspectors observed the teaching of 12 trainees, in seven schools. At stage 2, inspectors observed the teaching of 11 newly qualified teachers (NQTs), in seven schools. They observed four trainees at both stages of the inspection and spoke with one trainee who followed the AO route. Mentors conducted observations jointly with inspectors at both stages of the inspection.

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Information about the primary and secondary ITE inspection

 At stage 1, inspectors met with two groups of trainees, and at stage 2, they met with one group of NQTs and one group of new trainees. Inspectors also met with the SCITT Steering Group, the course director, professional tutors, supervising tutors, subject mentors, mentors and headteachers on both stages of the inspection. Inspectors took account of 49 responses to Ofsted’s online trainee questionnaire, which trainees completed in July 2018, as well as the partnership’s own surveys.  At both stages of the inspection, inspectors evaluated a range of evidence, including trainees’ files, pupils’ work and assessment information about pupils’ learning. Inspectors considered an extensive range of documentation provided by the partnership, including information on the attainment and progress of trainees. They considered employment and completion rates since the partnership started. ITE inspection report: Astra SCITT

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Inspection team

Paul Metcalf, Ofsted Inspector (lead inspector) Wayne Stallard, Ofsted Inspector (assistant lead inspector)

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Key strengths of the primary and secondary partnership

 Determined and committed leaders maintain a comprehensive overview of the performance of SCITT trainees and the quality of the training and support they receive.

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Key strengths of the primary and secondary partnership

 Very accurate and extremely thorough self-evaluation, as well as methodical and effective quality assurance, ensures that trainees’ attainment across all of the teachers’ standards is consistently high.

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Key strengths of the primary and secondary partnership

 Leaders’ extensive use of assessment data to monitor the performance of trainees and intervene where necessary means that the proportion of trainees achieving an overall grade of outstanding is consistently high.

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Key strengths of the primary and secondary partnership

 Centre-based training is well planned to enhance trainees’ school experiences. The programme is personalised so that most trainees benefit from a wide range of experiences to become effective teachers by the end of the course.

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Key strengths of the primary and secondary partnership

 Schools and mentors ensure that trainees receive expert coaching throughout their training year. Mentors demonstrate an unyielding pursuit of excellence for their trainees.

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Key strengths of the primary and secondary partnership

 Trainees and NQTs are skilled at developing purposeful and productive working relationships in the classroom. Their professional conduct is exemplary. They are highly reflective, resilient, determined to be the best they can and committed to their profession.

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Key strengths of the primary and secondary partnership

 Trainees and NQTs are confident in implementing effective behaviour management strategies and ensuring that the pupils they teach have positive attitudes to their learning.

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Key strengths of the primary and secondary partnership

 The partnership acts with purpose and commitment to attract high-calibre trainees through well-targeted advertising. Selection processes are thorough and demanding.

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Key strengths of the primary and secondary partnership

 The care, concern and support which the SCITT provides for trainees’ welfare, health and well-being are exceptional. This enables trainees to complete their training successfully and thrive in the profession. ITE inspection report: Astra SCITT September 2018  Employment rates are consistently high. Local schools are very keen to employ trainees from the partnership. The partnership’s ongoing support for NQTs in their teaching careers is much appreciated.

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The partnership should:

 hone the expertise of mentors in assessing and supporting the development of trainees’ subject knowledge  strengthen trainees’ understanding of how best to use a range of assessment information in order to maximise learning for all groups of pupils.

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Inspection judgements

1. The quality of provision is outstanding. Over the short time that the SCITT has been operating, leaders, managers, tutors and mentors have worked purposefully and persistently to develop, establish and advance the partnership’s core principles of excellence, collaboration, innovation and support.

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Inspection judgements

2. Course leaders are highly committed and dedicated to maintaining high standards of training, support and outcomes for trainees. The course director capably manages a highly effective team that works very well together to ensure the success of the SCITT and its trainees.

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Inspection judgements

3. Primary and secondary trainees awarded QTS at the end of their training exceed the minimum level of practice expected of teachers at that point in their career. They demonstrate excellence in the majority of the teachers’ standards, and consistently high standards of personal and professional conduct.

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Inspection judgements

4. There is no significant variation in attainment across different subjects, routes, phases or groups of trainees. The small number of individuals following the AO route all successfully gain QTS. Their recruitment and assessment are of the same high quality as those of other trainees, as is their attainment against the teachers’ standards.

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Inspection judgements

5. The effectiveness of the partnership is demonstrated through consistently high completion rates in comparison with national figures. For the very small number of trainees who defer, there are entirely plausible reasons.

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Inspection judgements

6. Trainees and NQTs are highly valued by their placement and employing schools. Employment rates are extremely high, with most trainees being employed in partnership schools. Many mentors in schools are former trainees from the partnership. ITE inspection report: Astra SCITT September 2018 7. Trainees and NQTs have strong subject knowledge, as well as high expectations of pupils, positive relationships and consistently high standards of personal and professional conduct. The partnership is working to further strengthen trainees’ understanding of the use of available assessment information to support the learning of all groups. This includes pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, those who speak English as an additional language and those of high ability.

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Inspection judgements

8. The partnership offers a coherent programme of training that takes into account trainees’ starting points and develops their knowledge and skills purposefully and systematically. Centre- and school-based training align very well to ensure that trainees quickly develop an extensive range of teaching skills across the age and ability range.

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Inspection judgements

9. Trainees’ understanding of curriculum and assessment requirements is well developed using the expertise of staff from partnership schools. The development of trainees’ subject knowledge has been a particular focus for the partnership, with subject handbooks and central training individually designed to meet the requirements of each subject. In physical education, for example, additional training has been provided after school to meet the breadth of content required by the subject. In mathematics, there has been a much greater focus on reasoning mathematically and problem-solving.

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Inspection judgements

10. In the primary phase, training is suitably focused on phonics, early reading and mathematics, and physical education. The new specialist primary lead has revised training to ensure trainees have the experiences and opportunities they need to teach confidently and competently across the wider curriculum and full primary age range.

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Inspection judgements

11. In an area of selective education, leaders take great care to organise contrasting placements which ensure that trainees gain experience of working with pupils from a wide range of backgrounds. Partner schools include those with a high proportion of disadvantaged pupils and those judged to require improvement.

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Inspection judgements

12. Trainees rapidly develop into reflective practitioners and carry these skills through to their NQT year. Their willingness to seek and act upon advice enables them to continue to develop their practice. As a result, NQTs quickly establish effective classroom management, high expectations of pupils, positive relationships and mutual respect in their classes. NQTs typically demonstrate detailed subject knowledge and confident exposition.

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Inspection judgements

13. Trainees’ and NQTs’ appreciation of managing classrooms is a particular strength. Responses to the trainee online questionnaire confirm that trainees feel they know how to promote good behaviour and implement a range of behaviour management strategies. The overwhelming majority of NQTs seen ITE inspection report: Astra SCITT September 2018 and spoken to confirmed that they knew how to promote good behaviour and implement a range of behaviour management strategies.

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Inspection judgements

14. Trainees and NQTs make a valuable contribution to the life of their schools through organising visits, coaching, extra-curricular activities and, in the case of NQTs, supporting professional development for new trainees. One primary school leader said that trainees were ‘involved and influential’, especially in bringing new ideas and perspectives to the school. Overall, NQTs are well prepared to take on the breadth of their new roles as a result of their high- quality training.

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Inspection judgements

15. Trainees’ health, welfare and well-being are supported particularly well by the partnership. A welfare adviser offers ongoing support to trainees who are experiencing difficulties. Care, guidance and support are key reasons for the high completion rates. National priorities, including managing workloads and developing resilience, are successfully woven into the course.

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Inspection judgements

16. Leaders effectively and regularly track trainees’ attainment across all the teachers’ standards. They identify when there is any underachievement and offer remedial support accordingly. Communication across the SCITT is swift and efficient. Very robust and effective quality assurance procedures ensure the accuracy of trainees’ grading.

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Inspection judgements

17. Mentors are ambitious for their trainees. They evaluate trainees’ performance accurately and set precise and appropriate targets to support their progress. Mentors play an increasingly valuable role in supporting taught sessions focused on developing trainees’ subject knowledge. In a small number of instances, their written evaluations and targets to develop trainees’ subject knowledge further are not as helpful as they could be.

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Inspection judgements

18. In the main, mentors are clear what is expected of them because of the comprehensive SCITT documentation, regular communications and training events. The mentor training programme certificated by the Buckinghamshire New University is well established, highly regarded and contributes substantially to mentors’ own professional training and development.

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Inspection judgements

19. Well-focused training sessions have enabled all primary trainees to be confident and competent in the teaching of systematic synthetic phonics, early mathematics and physical education, as confirmed through observation, conversation and the trainee online questionnaire. NQTs think carefully about making effective links across the curriculum, as seen in a Year 2 history lesson on the ‘Great Fire of London’, where the teacher focused on words ending in ‘ed’ to show the past tense of regular verbs.

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Inspection judgements

20. The SCITT steering group and SCITT leaders have a well-honed and accurate view of the strengths and areas for improvement for the SCITT. Leaders are ITE inspection report: Astra SCITT September 2018 responsive to external advice as well as feedback from trainees. Visiting tutors and supervising tutors play an important role in quality assurance of the provision. They check the quality of mentoring and use this knowledge to drive improvements.

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Inspection judgements

21. The partnership’s improvement plan addresses the areas of improvement well to anticipate growth and development, especially in the primary phase. The partnership demonstrates outstanding capacity to make further improvement. Emerging areas for improvement from stage 1 have been quickly and robustly addressed, such as the introduction of detailed subject knowledge audits for all subjects to support and track trainees’ subject knowledge development. In the primary phase, the partnership has taken appropriate steps to strengthen the experience of teaching phonics for those trainees whose main placement is in key stage 2.

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Inspection judgements

22. Leaders’ rigorous recruitment and selection procedures ensure that trainees are well prepared for the demands of the course. Trainees confirm that the selection process was rigorous but supportive. Well-considered recruitment strategies have ensured that trainees are drawn from a wide range of backgrounds and experiences so that local employment needs are well met. Trainees are matched carefully to their base school. Where, on occasion, a trainee has not been considered a good fit with one partnership school, they have been invited to another.

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Inspection judgements

23. Where trainees have been unsuccessful at interview and clearly have potential, the partnership has offered additional support to help them reapply at a later stage. This support has included further experiences in school and subject knowledge development. The partnership’s flexibility has resulted in trainees successfully returning to the course and proceeding to employment.

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Inspection judgements

24. Headteachers, mentors and trainees rate the leadership of the SCITT highly and appreciate the approachability of the team. Many commented on the excellent communication and the additional support offered for trainees and NQTs, whether employed in a partnership school or beyond. School leaders were also keen to describe how working with Astra had benefited their schools in terms of professional development for staff.

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Inspection judgements

25. School leaders find the NQTs’ transition documentation to be informative and accurate, especially in highlighting areas in which NQTs need ongoing support. The document is especially appreciated by those schools where the NQT has not worked previously. In a small number of cases, transition documents lack clarity in terms of strengths and targets for the NQT year.

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Inspection judgements

26. The SCITT is fully compliant with the criteria for initial teacher training. The partnership meets all its statutory requirements in relation to safeguarding pupils, the promotion of equality and diversity, and the elimination of ITE inspection report: Astra SCITT September 2018 discrimination. Trainees have a secure awareness of cyber-bullying and prejudice-based bullying as well as fundamental British values and child sexual exploitation. ITE inspection report: Astra SCITT September 2018

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Annex: Partnership schools

The following schools were visited to observe trainees’ and NQTs’ teaching:

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Annex: Partnership schools

Aylesbury Grammar School, Aylesbury Chesham Bois Church of England School, Amersham Dr Challoner’s Grammar School, Amersham Dr Challoner’s High School, Amersham Elmtree Infant and Nursery School, Chesham Holmer Green Senior School, Holmer Green John Colet School, Wendover Seer Green Church of England School, Seer Green St Mary and All Saints CofE Primary School, Beaconsfield The Misbourne School, Great Missenden The Stoke Poges School, Stoke Poges The Wren School, Reading Thomas Harding Junior School, Chesham ITE inspection report: Astra SCITT September 2018

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ITE partnership details

Unique reference number Inspection number Inspection dates Stage 1 Stage 2 Lead inspector Type of ITE partnership Phases provided Date of previous inspection Previous inspection report

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ITE partnership details

Provider address 30 April 2018 24 September 2018 Paul Metcalf OI SCITT Primary and secondary N/A N/A

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ITE partnership details

Dr Challoner’s Grammar School Chesham Road Amersham Buckinghamshire HP6 5HA ITE inspection report: Astra SCITT September 2018 regulates and inspects to 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

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ITE partnership details

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

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ITE partnership details

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ITE partnership details

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