Independent Training and Education Consultants Limited

Independent Training and Education Consultants Limited Monitoring visit report

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Name of lead inspector: Steve Hunsley, Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Type of provider: Independent learning provider

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Address: The Business Village@BarnsleyBIC Wilthorpe Barnsley S75 1JL Monitoring visit: Independent Training and Education Consultants Limited, 30–31 March 2021

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Context and focus of visit

From October 2018, Ofsted undertook to carry out monitoring visits to all newly directly funded providers of apprenticeship training provision which began to be funded from April 2017 or after by ESFA and/or the apprenticeship levy. This monitoring visit was undertaken as part of those arrangements and as outlined in the Further education and skills inspection handbook, especially the sections entitled ‘Monitoring visits’ and ‘Monitoring visits to providers that are newly directly publicly funded’. The focus of these visits is on the themes set out below.

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Context and focus of visit

Independent Training and Education Consultants Limited (ITEC) provide standards- based apprenticeships in business administration, customer service, team leading, early years practitioner and assessor coaching for a small number of employers in the South Yorkshire area. It began to deliver its own apprenticeships in 2019. At the time of the visit, ITEC had 14 apprentices on programmes at level 3, seven at level 4 and the remainder at level 2. Almost all apprentices are over 18 years of age.

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Context and focus of visit

The impact of COVID-19 (coronavirus) has been taken into account in the findings and progress judgements below.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders work effectively with employers to provide programmes that meet the principles and requirements of an apprenticeship. Their apprenticeship programmes help employers to develop an effective workforce and enable apprentices to gain the skills, knowledge and behaviours that they need in their job roles.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders and trainers ensure that employers and apprentices have a good understanding of the on- and off-the-job training requirements of an apprenticeship. The training that apprentices carry out enables them to become effective assessor coaches, business administrators, team leaders or early years practitioners in their organisations.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders work proficiently with employers to ensure that apprentices have appropriate job roles and gain substantial new knowledge and skills. Leaders and employers recruit apprentices with integrity through a carefully managed recruitment process. This includes effective careers advice and guidance, discussions with the Monitoring visit: Independent Training and Education Consultants Limited, 30–31 March 2021 apprentice and their employer and a thorough review of apprentices’ prior experience, knowledge and qualifications.

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Reasonable progress

Managers have an effective oversight of the progress that apprentices make. They ensure that trainers review apprentices’ progress on a regular basis. Leaders and trainers work well with the few apprentices who are currently on furlough from their job roles and behind on their programme to ensure that these apprentices gain the knowledge that they need for their return to work. The large majority of apprentices are on target to complete by their planned end date.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders ensure that the trainers who support apprentices are appropriately qualified and have the necessary subject knowledge, qualifications and experience to help apprentices make progress. Employers value the expertise and support that trainers provide for their apprentices, including the assessor coaching expertise that trainers model and demonstrate.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders know their provision well and have a good understanding of its quality. They are aware of the few areas that they need to improve. They have implemented a number of effective improvement actions since they started to deliver apprenticeships. For example, leaders have very recently introduced a governing board to provide external scrutiny of the provision.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders and trainers ensure that employers provide meaningful opportunities for apprentices to gain the knowledge, skills and behaviours that they require in their job roles. Apprentices swiftly become valued members of the workforce and contribute well to employers’ businesses. For example, employers of early years practitioner apprentices provide opportunities for apprentices to create water play activities for children to help develop motor and social skills.

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Reasonable progress

Trainers determine apprentices’ starting points and prior knowledge and skills effectively. They make good use of this information and sequence programmes that enable apprentices to gain the skills, knowledge and behaviours that they need in their job roles. Trainers help apprentices to recall previous learning and build their subject knowledge.

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Reasonable progress

Trainers use assessment and information from review discussions well to inform future learning and to support apprentices in preparation for their end-point assessment. In most instances, apprentices receive supportive feedback from trainers that helps them to improve the standard of their work. For example, business administration apprentices use the feedback that they receive to improve Monitoring visit: Independent Training and Education Consultants Limited, 30–31 March 2021 the quality of information booklets that they produce for work colleagues about health and safety and data protection.

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Reasonable progress

The large majority of apprentices make good progress. Trainers help apprentices to improve their knowledge through useful one-to-one discussions, assessment and online learning sessions. Trainers focus effectively on the knowledge, skills and behaviours that apprentices need and prepare apprentices well for future job roles or promotion. For example, apprentices complete additional higher-level qualifications in safeguarding, which enable them to have an enhanced appreciation of the need to keep people safe.

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Reasonable progress

Apprentices benefit from effective and helpful support in developing their English, mathematics and digital skills. Trainers work with apprentices to guide them when they are tasked with producing policy documents in the workplace or when using mathematics calculations such as mean, mode and median to determine workloads and delegating tasks to colleagues.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders have put in place appropriate safeguarding arrangements, and they provide training for staff in implementing the arrangements effectively to keep apprentices safe. The designated safeguarding officer and all staff benefit from regular safeguarding and ‘Prevent’ duty training. They update and review their qualifications often.

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Reasonable progress

Apprentices feel safe in their workplace. They are aware of their responsibility to keep themselves and other people safe and of the possible risks associated with extremist groups. A high proportion of apprentices study safeguarding as an additional subject as part of their apprenticeship.

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Reasonable progress

Apprentices know how to access relevant information about reporting any concerns that they may have and to whom they should report them. Trainers continually reinforce the importance of safeguarding and the need to keep people safe. Monitoring visit: Independent Training and Education Consultants Limited, 30–31 March 2021 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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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Reasonable progress

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Reasonable progress

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Reasonable progress

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Reasonable progress

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

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