East of England Teacher Training ITE Partnership

East of England Teacher Training ITE Partnership Initial teacher education inspection report Inspection dates Stage 1: 18 June 2018 Stage 2: 10 December 2018

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This inspection was carried out by Her Majesty’s Inspectors (HMI) and one Ofsted Inspector (OI) 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 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

Overall effectiveness How well does the partnership secure consistently high-quality outcomes for trainees? The outcomes for trainees 2 The quality of training across the partnership The quality of leadership and management across the partnership ITE inspection report: East of England Teacher Training December 2018

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Information about the primary partnership

 East of England Teacher Training is a school-centred initial teacher training (SCITT) partnership for the primary phase. The partnership provides training through School Direct, salaried and unsalaried. All trainees follow a programme to gain qualified teacher status (QTS). Those trainees wishing to can gain the postgraduate certificate in education qualification (PGCE). This is awarded by the University of Hull.  At stage 1 of the inspection, the provision was part of Link Education Trust. In 2018, the trust was re-brokered. At stage 2 of the inspection the provision was part of the Healing Multi-Academy Trust.  At stage 1 of the inspection, 48 trainees received their training across 32 partnership schools. At stage 2 of the inspection 31 trainees received their training across 29 partnership schools.  The provision is an accredited three to 11 provider.

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Information about the primary ITE inspection

 Over the two stages of the inspection, inspectors met with a wide sample of the trainees from the 2017/18 cohort. During stage 1, inspectors jointly observed 12 trainees teach with the trainees’ mentors. They also observed mentors providing feedback to the trainees following the lessons observed. At stage 2, inspectors observed five newly qualified teachers (NQTs) and one trainee from the 2017/18 cohort. This took place in schools within and beyond the partnership. Inspectors spoke with two NQTs and their mentors by telephone. Trainees who had paused their training were also spoken with.  The lead inspector met with the chief executive officer (CEO) of the Healing Multi- Academy Trust at stages 1 and 2. The CEO is the accounting officer for the provision.  At both stages of the inspection, the lead inspector met with members of the strategic board. She spoke by telephone to a representative of Learners First

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Information about the primary ITE inspection

Schools Partnership teaching school.  Inspectors reviewed documentation, including the partnership self-evaluation and improvement plans, the partnership agreement and external reports. Inspectors checked the partnership’s compliance with the statutory criteria that providers of initial teacher training must meet. They also looked at the provider’s assessment information, records relating to safeguarding children and the 28 responses to Ofsted’s online trainee survey for the year 2017/18.  Inspectors held meetings with headteachers, other senior leaders and mentors in seven partnership schools that they visited at stage 1 and six schools visited at stage 2. ITE inspection report: East of England Teacher Training December 2018

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Inspection team

Jayne Ashman HMI, lead inspector Emma Hollis-Brown OI, assistant lead inspector (stage 1) Simon Hollingsworth HMI, assistant lead inspector (stage 2)

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Key strengths of the primary partnership

 Outstanding leadership has secured good and improving outcomes for trainees.  The strategic board provides outstanding governance. Board members have excellent skills and are extremely capable of challenging leaders, supporting their vision and contributing to self-evaluation and strategic planning.  The proportion of mature trainees who attend this provision is above the national average. They achieve well because of leaders’ assiduous and effective support.  Leaders pay close and extensive attention to the welfare of trainees. They respond rapidly and effectually to those needing support.  The SCITT leader devised the programme and has been involved in the partnership since it started to operate. She has maintained a clear and unremitting focus on providing school-based teacher training that is led and delivered by schools. She is highly ambitious and is driven to ensure ‘high-quality local teachers that teach successfully within local schools’.

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Key strengths of the primary partnership

 The strong engagement of schools within the partnership is evident. Headteachers make a key contribution to the recruitment of trainees and the employment of NQTs across the partnership.  The good-quality training, including with trainers of national repute, ensures that trainees are often secure in their subject knowledge and able to manage pupils’ behaviour successfully.  The quality of mentoring across the partnership is a particularly strong feature. Training to ensure mentors’ effectiveness is good and is rated highly.  The practical school-based nature of the training is valued highly by trainees. They appreciate the opportunity to learn from teachers who are experts in their field and then apply this learning in classroom situations. ITE inspection report: East of England Teacher Training December 2018

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The partnership should:

 continue to strengthen trainees’ skills in meeting the needs of groups of pupils, including pupils who speak English as an additional language, disadvantaged pupils and those who are the most able  ensure that all trainees can demonstrate the excellent practice expected as defined in the teachers’ standards by continuing to strengthen trainees’ skills in promoting pupils’ progress and adapting teaching to respond to the strengths and needs of all pupils.

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Inspection judgements

1. Leaders are utterly unwavering in their pursuit of excellence and uncompromising in their drive to continually improve the quality of provision and consequently the outcomes for trainees. They are determined to ensure the supply of high-quality local teachers who teach within local schools. This leadership is underpinned by highly effective systems of quality assurance, accurate self-evaluation and meaningful improvement-planning.

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Inspection judgements

2. Despite extensive turbulence and difficulty, leaders have, with fortitude and skill, continued to ensure good outcomes for trainees.

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Inspection judgements

3. The care and support for trainees’ welfare are bespoke and of high quality. Creative solutions are found to address individual needs. Leaders are to be congratulated for the extensive efforts taken to keep trainees on the course and training to teach, particularly mature trainees. Support includes counselling, additional literacy and numeracy coaching, and considerate and flexible training approaches for those with children. Completion rates are good and are improving.

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Inspection judgements

4. First-class governance is in place and SCITT leaders are rigorously held to account to ensure the best outcomes for trainees. The strategic board is effective, and lines of accountability are clear. The partnership agreement is extremely thorough and is well understood by all stakeholders.

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Inspection judgements

5. The SCITT leader has developed partnerships outside of the area in order to develop further the provision for trainees. The link with a teaching school based in Rotherham is particularly beneficial and allows trainees the opportunity to visit schools in areas different to those they may encounter locally.

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Inspection judgements

6. At stage 1 and stage 2 of the inspection, inspectors agreed with the provider’s assessment of trainees, including those trainees judged to be teaching at a high level. Assessment is accurate and a reliable indicator of the likely quality of an NQT’s teaching. ITE inspection report: East of England Teacher Training December 2018 7. Completion rates are in line with the national average and are improving. Almost all primary trainees exceed the minimum level of practice.

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Inspection judgements

8. The provision serves rural and coastal areas with significant shortfalls in teacher supply. Employment rates are above the national average for those trainees who complete the training. The vast majority gain employment within partnership schools.

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Inspection judgements

9. Thorough recruitment procedures, with the full involvement of lead partner school headteachers, ensure the recruitment of trainees with the determination and capacity to teach. One headteacher was keen to inform inspectors of the privilege she felt being part of this process and ‘spotting the talented teachers of the future’.

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Inspection judgements

10. Leaders show resolute commitment to training those with the qualities and suitability to teach. The provider has proven success in training those who may otherwise not be accepted to train elsewhere, for example those with third- class degrees. Many trainees succeed directly as a result of the individualised, bespoke and highly effective support they receive.

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Inspection judgements

11. Trainees benefit from opportunities to teach in a range of contrasting schools, including outstanding schools, good schools, schools requiring improvement and those in a category of concern. They gain experience across key stages and in the early years. The support they receive from their mentor and from lead mentors is highly effective. Trainees are prepared well for their NQT year.

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Inspection judgements

12. Leaders ensure that trainees’ transition to their NQT year is managed professionally. Documentation is of high quality and communication between the partnership and employing schools is excellent. Trainees enter their NQT year with meaningful and helpful targets.

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Inspection judgements

13. During stage 1, the preparation for trainees to teach particular groups of pupils, including those who speak English as an additional language, was identified as an area that required further development. Leaders have responded to this issue promptly. They have successfully amended the training programme. Improved planning ensures that all current trainees thoroughly research and focus on pupil groups, including those who speak English as an additional language. The preparation for trainees to teach particular groups of pupils continues to be a priority for leaders.

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Inspection judgements

14. Behaviour management training is highly effective and a strength of the provision. The NQTs observed by inspectors exercised a good range of strategies to manage pupils’ behaviour. In one instance, this was particularly impressive given that the lesson was held in the afternoon following a morning when the pupils had been to see the pantomime in Lincoln. Pupils were ITE inspection report: East of England Teacher Training December 2018 perfectly behaved while the teacher carefully constructed a lesson in which pupils learned about possessive apostrophes.

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Inspection judgements

15. Trainees gain a high-quality experience in teaching to meet the needs of pupils who have particular learning needs. They gain experience within a pupil referral unit or a special educational needs provision. As a result of this training, they develop a greater understanding of the need to plan learning to meet individual needs in order to ensure that progress is made. The majority of NQTs observed at stage 2 were able to plan in order to meet the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, for example.

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Inspection judgements

16. Trainees receive effective opportunities to develop their subject knowledge, including in synthetic phonics, physical education (PE), literacy and mathematics. They receive high-quality training from current practitioners, some of whom are specialist leaders in education (SLEs). Furthermore, they are supported by expert mentors to trial and test their learning back in school. Trainees at stage 1 of the inspection and NQTs at stage 2 were able to exhibit strong subject knowledge and plan sequential learning that built on pupils’ prior learning and supported them to progress. For example, one NQT teaching in the early years was able to support children to move from sounding ‘sh’ to writing the sentence ‘I like sheep’ independently.

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Inspection judgements

17. Many of the NQTs seen at stage 2 of the inspection used questioning skilfully to stimulate pupils’ interest and to challenge their thinking. The most skilled were able to regularly ask questions to assess pupils’ understanding, including follow- on questions through which to explore pupils’ reasoning behind their responses.

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Inspection judgements

18. Leaders have identified that those trainees who demonstrate excellent practice often excel against standards 2, 5 and 6. They carefully plan to meet the needs of pupils, adapt learning appropriately and show sufficient understanding of the curriculum in order to ensure pupils’ progress. Ensuring that the majority of trainees can exhibit this proficiency is an identified priority.

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Inspection judgements

19. Trainees receive comprehensive training about safeguarding and their responsibilities. They receive good-quality training about signs of possible abuse, the ‘Prevent’ duty, particularly White British radicalism, and the risks associated with social media and child sexual exploitation. They receive strong emotional support in the schools in which they train if they are required to deal with any safeguarding matters that arise.

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Inspection judgements

20. Trainees receive valuable support from their mentors. Senior mentors and class-based mentors are clear about their roles and responsibilities and they take these extremely seriously. Many mentors told inspectors that the role had been a positive professional development opportunity and one that had enhanced their own practice. ITE inspection report: East of England Teacher Training December 2018 21. SCITT leaders are responsive to trainees’ need. They regularly seek trainees’ views as to the quality of training received and adapt the training programme accordingly. Almost all of the trainees who responded to Ofsted’s online trainee survey for the year 2017/18 said that their training route will make them a good or better teacher. All said that they had undergone a rigorous selection process. All were confident that their training route was well led and managed.

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Inspection judgements

22. Programme administration is highly efficient and is positively commented upon by trainees, mentors, senior leaders and lead headteachers.

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Inspection judgements

23. The provider fully complies with the statutory criteria that all providers of initial teacher training must meet.

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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

Somercotes Infant and Nursery School, Alfreton

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Annex: Partnership schools

St Faith and St Martin CofE Junior School, Lincoln

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Annex: Partnership schools

St Patrick’s RC Primary School, a voluntary academy, Mansfield

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Annex: Partnership schools

St Peter at Gowts CofE Primary School, Lincoln

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Annex: Partnership schools

St Peter and St Paul CofE Academy, Syston

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Annex: Partnership schools

Woodlands Academy, Grimsby ITE inspection report: East of England Teacher Training December 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

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ITE partnership details

Provider address 18 June 2018 10 December 2018 Jayne Ashman HMI SCITT Primary Not previously inspected

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ITE partnership details

Hartsholme Academy Carrington Drive Lincoln Lincolnshire LN6 0DE ITE inspection report: East of England Teacher Training December 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

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ITE partnership details

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ITE partnership details

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