South Birmingham SCITT

South Birmingham SCITT c/o The Sixth Form College, Widney Manor Road, Solihull, West Midlands B91 3WR

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Inspection judgements

Primary and secondary age-phase combined

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education and training Good

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Overall effectiveness Good

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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What is it like to be a trainee at this ITE partnership?

Communication and personal contact from leaders is regular and of high quality. Trainees’ views are sought frequently. Leaders respond quickly to any issues trainees have. Trainees appreciate leaders’ support, especially during the pandemic. Training and development, in schools and centrally, continued with adaptions thanks to the dedication of the partnership.

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What is it like to be a trainee at this ITE partnership?

Trainees have a realistic view of the demands of teaching. Their teaching commitment increases gradually to 70% of a full timetable by the summer term. They are supported well to manage workload, for example assignment deadlines which coincide with school holidays and using ‘five-minute lesson plans’. Trainees reflect on their practice using ‘ABISCUIT’, the partnership’s eight core principles which incorporate all aspects of the core content framework.

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What is it like to be a trainee at this ITE partnership?

Centre-based and school training is led by practitioners and external experts who are up to date with research, for example in equalities. Trainees understand the pedagogy and practice required to teach their subject or phase. The programme is especially well integrated in the primary phase where, additionally, trainees are trained well to teach systematic synthetic phonics.

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What is it like to be a trainee at this ITE partnership?

Effective behaviour management strategies are introduced early and revisited throughout the course. Specific training on special educational needs and/or disabilities is complemented well by subject and phase training and experience in schools. Trainees understand their safeguarding responsibilities well.

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Information about this ITE partnership

◼ There are 22 trainees training this academic year. There are 16 trainees in the secondary phase and six in the primary phase. ◼ This school-centred initial teacher training provider (SCITT) has 73 partner schools. There are 41 in the primary/middle phase and 32 in the secondary phase. There are 26 schools which have placed at least one trainee during the course of this academic year. ◼ The Ofsted inspection judgements of the partner schools which have placed trainees this year range from outstanding to requires improvement. ◼ The partnership provides for trainees from both school direct and provider-led routes. It offers trainees the chance to achieve a post-graduate certificate in education (PGCE) in teaching and learning. Former trainees can achieve a master’s degree in teaching and learning in subsequent years. Secondary trainees can qualify in ages 11 to 16 or request the ages 11 to 18 route if they can show substantial

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Information about this ITE partnership

evidence of experience of working with key stage 5.

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Information about this inspection

◼ The inspection team consisted three of Her Majesty’s Inspectors. ◼ The inspection activities were a combination of face-to-face and remote meetings because COVID-19 (coronavirus) restrictions were in place. ◼ Inspectors met with the SCITT director, the course manager (who is also the professional tutor for the secondary phase), the professional tutor for the primary phase and the school partnership manager. ◼ They also met with eight members of the SCITT development and management team and, at leaders’ request, the former SCITT director. ◼ Inspectors visited six partner schools to observe trainees. They spoke to senior leaders, professional tutors, subject specialists and mentors from 12 partner schools in total. ◼ Inspectors spoke to representatives who are commissioned to provide the subject training of the secondary course, including the head of school (who is also the associate dean), the PGCE programme leader and six subject leaders.

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Information about this inspection

◼ An inspector ‘visited’ part of a central training session for newly qualified teachers, delivered remotely by the SCITT. ◼ Inspectors spoke to 16 trainees (4 in the primary phase and 12 in the secondary phase). ◼ Inspectors considered 18 responses to Ofsted’s online trainee survey and 35 responses to its online staff survey. ◼ Inspectors conducted focused reviews into early reading, art, and design and technology in the primary phase and English, science and modern foreign languages in the secondary phase.

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better?

The partnership’s ambitious programme is integrated well between the SCITT and schools. Trainees experience a good combination of centre-based training, research and reflection. Carefully planned placements provide trainees with the knowledge and experience they need to teach.

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better?

The primary phase draws well on subject and phase leader expertise from partner schools. Consequently, trainees can apply their knowledge and learning effectively in their placements.

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better?

Primary leaders have made amendments to strengthen the programme further following an extensive review. Subject training makes explicit links to pedagogy and combines well with trainees’ placements. However, there are not sufficient links between key stages 1 and 2 training and the transition from key stage 2 into secondary.

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better?

Training in the primary phase is of high quality, including in all national curriculum subjects, religious education and personal, social and health education. Leaders set out clear expectations for the content. Training in early reading and systematic synthetic phonics is a priority. Centre-led training is comprehensive, including language development and early comprehension.

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better?

Secondary trainees receive effective training from the school- and centre-based provision. An external provider delivers a programme of supplementary subject training based on the core content framework to complement school- and centre-based training. However, this is not integrated consistently well enough. SCITT leaders plan to appoint professional tutors from the partnership to align all aspects of subject training more fully.

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better?

Leaders check assiduously the quality of its centre- and school-based training, including the quality of mentoring and tutoring. The extent to which checks are made on the quality of the external secondary subject programme is less well developed than in primary. However, leaders respond rapidly to feedback they receive from stakeholders.

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better?

Mentoring is of a consistently high quality across partnership schools. The role of ‘daily trainer’ combines subject or phase specialism with mentoring and ongoing trainee development based on regular formative assessment. The ‘daily trainers’ consistently review and set targets so that trainees know how they are progressing and what they need to do to improve.

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better?

SCITT leaders check carefully that subject leaders and trainers have the appropriate level of expertise and commitment to deliver centre- and school-based training.

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better?

Termly summative assessment of trainees is linked to the teachers’ standards which are too broad to identify how trainees are progressing. The teachers’ standards are introduced early in the academic year, towards the end of the autumn term. However, the partnership has introduced its eight core principles, underpinned by the core content framework, which it plans to integrate with its formative assessment from September 2021.

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and secondary combined phase?

◼ External secondary subject training is not integrated consistently with the central training and subject training in schools. Leaders should ensure that ‘daily trainers’ are fully aware of the content of the subject training. This would enable them to make more explicit links between the training and trainees’ experiences on their placements. ◼ The SCITT does not make sufficient use of the secondary expertise to evaluate the external subject training or contribute to central subject training. This contrasts with the primary phase where subject specialists provide trainees with the knowledge and skills they need to teach and opportunities to apply them on their placements. Leaders should draw on secondary expertise, for example the school-based subject specialists, to support them checking the subject training and providing supplementary training. This would enable trainees to learn the intended subject

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and secondary combined phase?

curriculum more fully. ◼ Leaders currently use the teachers’ standards for trainees’ termly summative assessments. These are too broad alone to identify specifically what trainees need to do to improve. Leaders should embed the plans they have in place to assess trainees against the principles they have set out in their curriculum. Then trainees will have a clear termly view of their progress and next steps required.

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comply with the ITE compliance criteria?

◼ The partnership meets the DfE statutory compliance criteria.

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ITE Partnership details

Unique reference number 70233 Inspection number 10166623

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ITE Partnership details

This inspection was carried out by Her Majesty’s Inspectors (HMIs) in accordance with the ‘Initial teacher education inspection framework and handbook’. This framework and handbook sets out the statutory basis and framework for initial teacher education (ITE) inspections in England from September 2020.

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ITE Partnership details

Type of ITE Partnership SCITT Phases provided Primary and secondary combined phase Date of previous inspection 21 to 24 January 2013

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Inspection team

Mark Sims, Lead inspector Her Majesty’s Inspector Jo Evans Her Majesty’s Inspector Jane Spilsbury Her Majesty’s Inspector

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Annex: Partnership schools

Inspectors contacted trainees and staff at the following settings, schools and colleges, as part of this inspection:

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grade

Allens Croft Primary School 103243 Primary September Good

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grade

Arrow Vale RSA Academy 138505 Secondary September Outstanding

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Cockshut Hill Technology College 142388 Secondary September Requires Improvement Colmore Junior School 103188 Primary September Good

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Ninestiles, an Academy 136406 Secondary September Good

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Yardley Primary School 133996 Primary September Good guidance ‘Raising concerns and making a complaint about Ofsted’, which is available from Ofsted’s 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 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk .

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