Dave Shurmer

Name of lead inspector: Kathryn Rudd, Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Type of provider: Independent learning provider

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Address:

65 Melville Terrace Lane Plymouth PL2 3DB Monitoring visit: Dave Shurmer, 2 June 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 the Education and Skills Funding Agency 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

Dave Shurmer is a small independent learning provider working with employers in Plymouth and Gloucestershire. At the time of the monitoring visit, the provider had fewer than five apprenticeships studying on the level 2 community activator coach apprenticeship standard.

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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 have established apprenticeships in the sport and fitness sector, where they have considerable experience. They work with a small number of employers, many of whom they have worked with for a number of years. Leaders and employers liaise closely to recruit suitable apprentices and to meet the requirements and principles of the apprenticeship.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders have developed an ambitious apprenticeship curriculum which aims to promote how physical activities can improve cognitive skills, academic behaviours and achievements. Leaders embed new learning and research into the way they teach, and what they teach. This includes incorporating short sessions of physical activity into apprentices’ theory sessions and using a reflection model to help apprentices understand the value of reviewing their own practice.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders use their contacts with other community-based physical education organisations well, for example to improve the quality of their training and to seek guidance and support. Along with these organisations, they jointly monitor the Monitoring visit: Dave Shurmer, 2 June 2021 quality of apprentices’ work and develop new resources, such as checklists to guide observations of employers’ training.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders have recently introduced governance arrangements. Governors have worked closely with leaders to develop their policies and quality assurance processes. However, because many of the current quality assurance, policy and procedures and oversight arrangements are new or informal, governors are not yet able to hold leaders fully to account. Leaders and governors rightly recognise that these processes need to be formalised and be integrated fully to build a firm foundation for future expansion plans.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders ensure that apprentices benefit from high-quality training. Apprentices make rapid progress from their starting points. They add value to their employer’s business quickly, such as through leading full-length physical education lessons.

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Reasonable progress

Apprentices develop their expertise to work effectively with young pupils and clients with special educational needs and/or disabilities. Employers value the way in which apprentices act as positive role models for these children.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders and employers work closely together to ensure that the programme meets apprentices’ needs. They plan training together effectively to ensure that apprentices can practise their skills across a range of settings, from leading small groups through to planning large-scale events. Leaders and employers also jointly check the effectiveness of apprentices’ on- and off-the-job training, including carrying out joint provider and employer observations of apprentices’ practice.

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Reasonable progress

Apprentices rightly value the personalised support they receive from tutors. This includes helping them catch up on any missed work or supporting them to regain their confidence after challenging training sessions. Tutors provide timely support to help apprentices prepare for their end-point assessments, including how to best present their project work to achieve higher grades.

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Reasonable progress

Tutors use quizzes well to recap learning and check whether apprentices have understood the skills and knowledge taught. Apprentices appreciate how, when they struggle with recalling key topics, tutors explain these again in more depth.

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Reasonable progress

Apprentices do not receive sufficient support to develop their mathematical and English skills while studying their course. As a result, a few apprentices do not develop their spelling and punctuation skills, and assignments contain sentences that include basic subject-related spelling errors. Monitoring visit: Dave Shurmer, 2 June 2021 The initial assessment of apprentices’ starting points lacks rigour. It relies too much on apprentices’ self-assessment of their previous skills and knowledge and does not identify thoroughly where they may have gaps in learning, or conversely where they have additional expertise.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders have established effective safeguarding and health and safety training, which is focused firmly around the demands of apprentices’ job roles. This includes how to identify clients who may be being abused or radicalised and how to use social media safely. As a result, apprentices feel confident dealing with safeguarding and safety incidents at work.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders have established an additional first-aid qualification in order to mitigate the risks apprentices face when working with pupils and members of the public in potentially risky physical activities. Apprentices rightly value this training and understand how it relates to their roles. For example, in the case of a mountain- biking accident, apprentices now understand how to both manage the injured person and support the rest of the group.

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Reasonable progress

Apprentices feel safe on their course. They understand who they should contact if they have a safeguarding concern. Monitoring visit: Dave Shurmer, 2 June 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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