Aurelia Training Limited

Further education and skills inspection report

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Overall effectiveness Requires improvement

The quality of education Requires improvement Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Requires improvement Adult learning programmes Good Apprenticeships Requires improvement Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Not previously inspected

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Information about this provider

Aurelia Training Limited is a national training provider, based in Coventry, specialising in providing training in the care sector. At the time of the inspection, 206 apprentices were in learning. The vast majority of apprentices were completing apprenticeships in health and social care. Sixty apprentices are enrolled on the level 3 lead adult care worker standard, with a further 47 apprentices undertaking the level 2 adult care worker standard. Thirteen apprentices are enrolled on the level 4 lead care practitioner standard and 13 on the level 5 leader in adult care standard. The provider also provides apprenticeships within sector areas such as business, early years and teaching. Thirteen adult learners were completing a level 3 teaching assistant qualification funded through advanced learner loans. The provider does not work with any subcontractors. 1 to 4 November 2022

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What is it like to be a learner with this provider?

Learners and apprentices demonstrate high levels of respect for staff, peers and colleagues at work. They are resilient and are motivated to complete their studies. Learners and apprentices improve their confidence over time. Apprentices on the level 3 team leader or supervisor are better able to deal with challenging situations with customers in the workplace as a result of their apprenticeship.

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What is it like to be a learner with this provider?

Although apprentices gain new knowledge from completing embedded qualifications as part of their apprenticeship, leaders and trainers do not ensure that apprentices develop their skills and behaviours sufficiently well. Apprentices do not receive a sufficiently broad curriculum.

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What is it like to be a learner with this provider?

Apprentices do not experience consistently high-quality teaching and training. On too many apprenticeships, staff do not recognise what skills and knowledge apprentices already have. Trainers do not challenge apprentices sufficiently well to make the progress of which they are capable.

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What is it like to be a learner with this provider?

Adult learners experience well taught programmes. This helps them to develop a wide range of knowledge and skills that prepare them well for their next steps. Most adult learners move into permanent employment on completion of their course.

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What is it like to be a learner with this provider?

Learners and apprentices feel safe and cared for. They know who to report any issues that they may experience. Trainers support learners and apprentices to develop their understanding of safeguarding, such as an increased awareness of the signs of sexual harassment within the workplace. Apprentices have a secure understanding of safe working practices, including the guidelines that they should follow when administering medication in the care sector.

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What is it like to be a learner with this provider?

Apprentices do not receive sufficiently comprehensive careers advice and guidance to ensure that they understand the full range of options available to them when they have completed their apprenticeship.

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better?

Senior leaders develop a curriculum that supports learners and apprentices to acquire the knowledge and skills they need to be effective practitioners in the care, education and business sectors. Senior leaders work closely with employers and stakeholders to ensure the content of the curriculum responds to the knowledge and skills requirements in these sectors. In care, leaders have added additional safeguarding content to the curriculum following employer requests, such as how apprentices can support the service users with whom they work to understand better sexual health.

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better?

Adult learners benefit from a well planned and ambitious curriculum. On teaching assistant courses, leaders and employers work productively to select additional units 1 to 4 November 2022

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that meet employers’ needs. Adult learners benefit from additional course content in teaching phonics and in supporting young people with additional needs. Adult learners are well prepared for their next steps.

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Senior leaders and trainers do not ensure that all apprentices benefit from a well-planned programme. Trainers focus too narrowly on the completion of an embedded qualification within each apprenticeship standard. Trainers do not focus sufficiently well on the wider skills and behaviours within the apprenticeship in order that all apprentices make the progress of which they are capable.

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Senior leaders and trainers do not identify clearly what apprentices already know and can do when they start the apprenticeship. Senior leaders do undertake a skills scan with apprentices, but this does not clearly identify the full extent of the knowledge and skills that apprentices need to develop. Senior leaders and trainers do not use the information they gain from these skills scans to plan apprentices’ learning. Where apprentices already have experience of working within the sectors in which they study, trainers do not support these apprentices to make more rapid progress to acquire new knowledge and enhance their existing skills.

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Trainers are very knowledgeable of the sector areas in which they teach. In most cases, trainers use this knowledge effectively to support learners and some apprentices to develop new knowledge. Trainers in the business sector use real-life examples of working within the sector to help apprentices on level 3 team leader or supervisor apprenticeships to improve their knowledge of key management styles and personality types. Learners and apprentices new to the sectors in which they study develop new knowledge incrementally over time.

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Trainers of apprenticeships do not routinely coordinate on- and off-the-job training effectively. Too frequently, apprentices’ knowledge is taught in isolation, with very little opportunity for them to apply their learning in the workplace. Where this is the case, this slows down the progress that apprentices make. Trainers on adult learning programmes consistently link theory to practice. When teaching aspects of equality and diversity, learners immediately apply this knowledge to the workplace by understanding the differences in the classroom. Learners quickly improve their awareness of equality and diversity as a result.

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Trainers do not provide precise feedback to apprentices on their work. Trainers focus on whether apprentices’ work has met assessment criteria and do not provide them with feedback that will help them to improve their work further. As a result, apprentices are not supported to produce high-quality work. In too many cases, the standard of apprentices’ work does not improve over time. Conversely, adult learners do benefit from clear and precise feedback on their work. Adult learners produce high-quality work that improves over time.

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When apprentices undertake English and mathematics qualifications as part of their apprenticeship, trainers support apprentices well to develop the skills that they need. As such, apprentices improve their English and mathematical skills and achieve well. However, when apprentices already have the required English and 1 to 4 November 2022

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mathematics qualifications, trainers do not support them well enough to continue to develop these skills. Too many apprentices do not improve their standard of writing, particularly those undertaking level 5 apprenticeships in care.

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Trainers, apprentices and learners have reacted with great tenacity in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Many learners and apprentices have shown great resilience when met with increased working pressures. They are motivated and are aware of the beneficial impact that their learning has on their work and wider lives. Leaders have considerably reduced the proportion of apprentices who have not achieved on time. However, a significant minority of apprentices remain in this position.

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Staff help learners to understand the importance of mental and physical health and well-being. Mental health is discussed frequently at reviews, including ways to be mentally healthy. As a result of these conversations, a few apprentices have chosen to undertake mental health first aid training in order to support their colleagues.

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Leaders have processes in place to help them gain a view as to the quality of education that learners and apprentices receive. There is a process of observations in place, which includes talking with learners and apprentices and reviewing their work. These processes focus too narrowly on the progress of learners and apprentices in a lesson, as opposed to their progress over time from their starting points. As a result, leaders do not have a fully accurate view as to the quality of teaching.

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Senior leaders ensure that trainers benefit from useful professional development and training on safeguarding in order to update their understanding of the sector areas in which they teach. Trainers regularly shadow managers within care settings to understand changes to key legislation in the care sector. However, senior leaders do not ensure that trainers receive targeted professional development that helps them to improve their quality of teaching.

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Senior leaders have taken recent steps to improve governance. External governance is now in place that provides additional scrutiny on the actions leaders take within the business. However, governance focuses too narrowly on the proportion of learners and apprentices that achieve their qualifications, rather than gaining a sufficient understanding of the quality of teaching and then holding leaders to account to swiftly improve provision.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders and managers give safeguarding a high priority. They have implemented appropriate policies and procedures that staff use effectively to report safeguarding concerns. They report routinely any well-being concerns about learners and apprentices. Learners and apprentices are provided with timely support, advice and guidance, including from recently trained mental health support workers. 1 to 4 November 2022

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Leaders complete appropriate safer recruitment checks to ensure that they recruit staff who can safely provide and maintain a safe learning environment for learners and apprentices.

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Leaders ensure that designated safeguarding leads (DSLs) and staff have the relevant skills and receive the appropriate training to carry out their roles effectively. DSLs receive regular updates from local and regional support agencies in the areas where learners and apprentices live and work to inform them of the risks associated with radicalisation and extremism.

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What does the provider need to do to improve?

 Senior leaders should improve the quality of education on apprenticeship programmes. They should ensure that apprentices develop the full range of knowledge, skills and behaviours within the apprenticeship in order that apprentices are well prepared for their final assessments.  Senior leaders should improve the processes that are in place to find out what apprentices already know and can do when they start their programme. Senior leaders should ensure that apprentices who already have some knowledge and skills in the areas they study are supported to make more rapid progress.  Senior leaders and trainers should revisit how well on- and off-the-job training is planned. They need to make sure that they are closely linked so that apprentices can practise and master the skills that they have learned in a workplace setting to make an effective contribution to their employers’ businesses.  Senior leaders must improve the quality of careers advice and guidance so that

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What does the provider need to do to improve?

apprentices know the full range of options available to them for their next steps.  Senior leaders should improve the quality of feedback that apprentices receive on their work so that apprentices know well what they need to do to improve the quality of their work over time.  Senior leaders should support apprentices to continue to develop their English and mathematics skills beyond the requirement of the apprenticeship standard, to help prepare apprentices for their next steps.  Leaders should improve internal quality assurance processes so that they have a more accurate understanding of the quality of education that learners and apprentices receive. Leaders should share this information with governors so that that they can hold senior leaders to account more effectively. 1 to 4 November 2022

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Provider details

Address The Butts Arena Butts Coventry CV1 3GE

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Provider details

Principal, CEO or equivalent Bob Harknett

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Provider details

Provider type Independent learning provider

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Provider details

Date of previous inspection 24 to 25 February 2016

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Provider details

Main subcontractors None 1 to 4 November 2022

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Information about this inspection

The inspection team was assisted by the quality manager, as nominee. Inspectors took account of the provider’s most recent self-assessment report and development plans, and the previous inspection report. The inspection was carried out using the further education and skills inspection handbook and took into account all relevant provision at the provider. Inspectors collected a wide range of evidence to inform judgements, including visiting learning sessions, scrutinising learners’ work, seeking the views of learners, staff and other stakeholders, and examining the provider’s documentation and records.

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Inspection team

Ian Higgins, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector Mark Parton His Majesty’s Inspector Jack Bullock Ofsted Inspector Mary Younan Ofsted Inspector Julia Stevens Ofsted Inspector Susan Gay Ofsted Inspector 1 to 4 November 2022

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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 children looked after, safeguarding and child protection.

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