JFC Training College Ltd

JFC Training College Limited Report following a monitoring visit to a ‘requires improvement’ provider

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Name of lead inspector: Peter Nelson, HMI

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Type of provider: Independent learning provider

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Address:

12  14 Wellington Street Woolwich London SE18 6PE Monitoring visit: JFC Training College Limited, 14 November 2018

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Context and focus of visit

JFC Training College Ltd was inspected in December 2017. At that time, inspectors judged the overall effectiveness of the provision to require improvement.

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Context and focus of visit

The focus of this monitoring visit was to evaluate the progress that leaders and managers have made in addressing the main areas for improvement identified at the previous inspection.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders and managers have implemented suitable activities to support teachers to improve their teaching, learning and assessment practice. These include developmental workshops, meetings to share best practice and programmes of continuous professional development. Staff have explored a range of relevant topics, including techniques to improve the effective use of questioning, how to set meaningful targets, how to provide constructive and developmental feedback to learners and how to ensure effective classroom management. Managers also encourage teachers to keep up to date with their own subject knowledge and carry out personal research on a regular basis. Managers’ records to support the observation of teaching and learning are clear and identify well any strengths and weaknesses in teaching. Records confirm that managers have assessed and noted improvements in the quality of teaching and learning specifically associated with those topics that leaders have prioritised in the

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staff development activities. Managers ensure that they follow up on any further areas for development identified through observations. Managers and staff have implemented a more rigorous approach to assess learners’ starting points, including for their English and mathematics. Teachers use this information well to ensure that activities specifically target learners’ needs. Teachers also gain a good understanding about learners’ prior experience and knowledge during the initial interview and assessment process. They use this information well to identify if learners need extra help with their written work or with their speaking skills. The majority of tutors set clear and helpful targets for learners at progress reviews. These help learners understand what they need to do to improve and develop. Assessors also give learners helpful feedback after they have carried out Monitoring visit: JFC Training College Limited, 14 November 2018

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Reasonable progress

observations and the assessment of practical work. It is usually clear from records what learners need to do to improve and how they will meet the assessment criteria. The quality of target-setting and feedback to learners is not yet consistently good. Occasionally, teachers provide only limited feedback on written assignments on how learners can improve. At times, targets only relate to the qualification work and not to any skills development outside of the qualification or how to address any other barriers learners may have.

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Reasonable progress

Managers and teachers have successfully identified strategies to help support those learners who need to develop their English skills. For example, teachers create frequent opportunities for learners to engage in discussions and presentations in lessons, and they often help them to correct any errors in their spoken English. Inspectors saw this in action in lessons. As a result, while a few learners were not fluent English speakers, they all clearly understood the work they were doing at level 3, and could put across technical and vocational explanations to the rest of the group with sufficient clarity so that the rest of the group understood them. In addition, teachers also encourage learners to write frequent reviews of their lessons in order to enable managers to evaluate if they are developing their written English sufficiently. These clearly indicate that learners have a suitable level of literacy to

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study at level 3. While the college does not teach any English for speakers of other languages courses, a small group of learners are taking functional skills level 2 in English and/or mathematics. These lessons were not taking place during the inspection, so it was not possible to judge the quality of this provision.

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Reasonable progress

The executive summary of the self-assessment plan reflects a thorough and self- critical approach to internal quality review. Leaders and managers have a suitable quality improvement plan in place, which clearly outlines strategies for improvement, and sets targets by which leaders and managers can review its progress. While the themes of these targets are generally fit for purpose, managers set too many targets over a 12-month timescale without sufficient interim measures. As a result, they cannot objectively monitor incremental progress in detail. Leaders and managers meet on a quarterly basis to review quality assurance and progress against the quality improvement plan. Minutes from meetings clearly indicate a broad and critical level of discussion. However, managers do not capture the actions arising from these meetings clearly as part of the minute-taking process. Therefore, there is a risk that managers may not pick up all actions arising at the

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next meeting. Monitoring visit: JFC Training College Limited, 14 November 2018

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Reasonable progress

Teachers and managers effectively track the progress of learners towards achieving their qualifications. This helps ensure that managers identify promptly if learners start to fall behind. Each teacher tracks learners’ progress towards their qualification completion and assessment. Assessment plans are clear, and learners have their own tracker, so they know if they are on target to complete. Managers meet monthly to discuss each teacher’s caseload and review learners’ progress. As a result, most learners are on track to complete their qualifications, and are more aware of the progress they are making. Teachers and managers still need to do more work to ensure that they accurately identify in learners’ individual learning plans and through progress review meetings the skills learners need to develop further. Monitoring visit: JFC Training College Limited, 14 November 2018 the guidance ‘Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s

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website: www.gov.uk/government/publications/complaints-about-ofsted . If you would like Ofsted to send you a copy of the guidance, please telephone 0300 123 4234, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . Learner View 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. To find out more go to www.learnerview.ofsted.gov.uk .

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Employer View Employer View is a 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. To find out more go to www.employerview.ofsted.gov.uk .

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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 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

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

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T: 0300 123 1231 Textphone: 0161 618 8524 E: enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk W: www.gov.uk/ofsted

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