Profile Development And Training Limited

Further education and skills inspection report

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Inspection of Profile Development and Training Limited

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Overall effectiveness Good

The quality of education Good Behaviour and attitudes Good Personal development Requires improvement Leadership and management Good Apprenticeships Good Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good

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Information about this provider

Profile Development and Training Limited is an independent training provider offering training to apprentices and adult learners in the education sector. Training prepares apprentices and learners for employment in schools and early years settings. There are currently 115 apprentices, of which 38 are 16 to 18 years old. Sixty-nine apprentices are working towards the level 3 teaching assistant standard, 24 are working towards the level 3 early years educator, 11 are working towards the level 3 business administration standard and ten are working towards the level 2 early years practitioner standard.

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Information about this provider

At the time of this inspection, there were fewer than five adult learners enrolled on the level 3 early years educator. Learners are supported by the same tutors as the apprentices and are taught using the same resources. 10 to 12 January 2023

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

Apprentices value their apprenticeship and their jobs and are committed to their work. They benefit from the opportunities to learn new knowledge and skills that they apply in their work. Apprentices develop professional behaviours that help them to become more confident and resilient at work. For example, they provide detailed feedback to parents on their child’s progress and developmental targets.

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

Apprentices benefit from appropriate careers information, advice and guidance throughout their apprenticeship. They understand the progression opportunities available to them. For example, teaching assistants aspire to undertake teacher training. As a result, the majority of apprentices successfully complete their apprenticeship and make progress in their careers.

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

Apprentices understand about ensuring their work environment provides a fair opportunity for the children they work with. Apprentices discuss how they support children in nursery settings to take turns, share toys and help make decisions about whether they will have a story or sing a song. Teaching assistant apprentices work with their teachers to make sure all children receive the opportunities they need to develop.

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

Apprentices achieve well, including those with specific learning needs. Tutors adapt their teaching to meet the needs of individual apprentices. For example, apprentices with dyslexia benefit from single-task sessions that ensure they have the time to assimilate knowledge and increase their memory of their learning overtime.

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better?

Leaders and managers have a clear curriculum strategy that they implement successfully. They deliver apprenticeships and adult learning programmes in response to local, regional and national priorities and in response to the significant skills gaps in the early years sector and for teaching assistants. Almost all apprentices move on to full-time, sustained employment or higher education.

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better?

Leaders and managers recruit apprentices with integrity. They make good use of their well-developed links with employers to ensure that job roles and responsibilities match apprentices’ needs and the requirements of the apprenticeship programme. Leaders’ effective analysis of data enabled them to identify concerns with recruitment and retention. Leaders adapted their recruitment strategy effectively, putting in place detailed careers information, advice and guidance, ensuring apprentices have a good understanding of the requirements and expectations of an apprenticeship. Leaders support employers well in recruiting their apprentices. As a result, they have successfully improved apprentices’ retention and achievements.

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better?

Apprentices gain substantial new knowledge and skills through their apprenticeship. In early years, they gain in confidence to communicate with parents and other 10 to 12 January 2023

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professionals. Apprentices value their increased understanding of children’s behaviour and become more confident in dealing with challenging behaviour. They learn about theorists such as Chris Athey and schemas in child development, Steiner and Montessori and the Regio Amelia approach. As a result, apprentices understand the differences and benefits of collaborative and independent learning, which informs how they plan sessions for the children in their care.

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Tutors are well qualified and experienced. They use their skills effectively in order to ensure that apprentices understand new knowledge and skills that they can apply in the workplace. Tutors work effectively with most employers, and as a result, they have a good understanding of how the setting works. This enables them to support apprentices to quickly assimilate their learning to meet employers’ expectations. Consequently, apprentices develop knowledge that is useful and relevant to their workplace.

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Apprentices benefit from good support from their tutors. They meet monthly with their tutors and often weekly with their workplace mentors. Teaching assistant apprentices benefit from tripartite reviews. As a result all parties are aware of the progress apprentices are making and what they need to do to complete their apprenticeship. In early years apprenticeships, information from tutors and workplace mentors is documented. However, there is no tripartite conversation to discuss apprentices’ progress. Consequently, there is not a shared or detailed understanding of what the apprentice needs to do to improve their work.

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The small number of apprentices working towards the level 3 early years educator do not benefit from well-planned learning activities. Tutors and employers do not work effectively together to ensure that off-the-job learning complements the work that apprentices are learning in the workplace. As a result, a few apprentices find it challenging to complete activities as they do not match workplace practices.

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Tutors have high expectations of apprentices to produce work of a high standard. They mark apprentices’ work thoroughly and identify clearly where tasks are not completed in full and what apprentices need to do to improve their work. Apprentices value the detailed verbal and written feedback.

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Managers assess apprentices’ English and mathematics skills at the start of their course. Apprentices know whether they must complete English and mathematics as part of their apprenticeship. Apprentices do not have targets to improve their skills or a clear understanding of when they will complete their functional skills qualifications. Almost all apprentices pass, and most are successful at their first attempt.

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Tutors support apprentices to use relevant technical and vocational language in the context of their work and apprentices use this well in their settings. For example, in early years, apprentices use appropriate terms such as systematic synthetic phonics. Apprentices develop their written English skills within the workplace. For example, they write accurate observations of children’s strengths and development needs, which are shared with parents after workplace managers have checked them. 10 to 12 January 2023

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However, workplace managers do not provide feedback to support apprentices to further develop their English skills.

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Apprentices receive purposeful training and support on ‘Prevent’ duty, radicalisation and safeguarding delivered by the schools and early years settings they work in at the start of their apprenticeship. While apprentices understand the wider aspects of radicalisation and extremism, they are not made aware of concerns in the areas they live and work in. Consequently, they are not sufficiently aware of local risks that might affect them or the children in their care.

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Leaders have not ensured apprentices benefit from a well-planned personal development curriculum that extends learning beyond the requirements of their apprenticeship. Leaders have recognised that the personal development curriculum is not good enough and have planned a series of topics to address this shortfall. However, it is too early to judge the impact of these actions.

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Leaders and managers have appropriate arrangements to assess the quality of the apprenticeships effectively. They had already identified the key strengths and most weaknesses flagged by inspectors. They swiftly plan actions that have a positive impact on apprentices’ experiences. However, leaders’ assessment of the quality of teaching is not sufficiently rigorous. Managers have recently simplified their quality assurance arrangements, which has had a detrimental impact on managers evaluation of the quality of teaching. Consequently, leaders are not sufficiently able to address areas for improvement.

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Governance is effective. Non-executive directors (NEDs) hold leaders to account well for the quality and oversight of the provision. The managing director provides NEDs with useful quarterly performance reports that are carefully scrutinised. NEDs have a good understanding of apprenticeships and have made recommendations to leaders about improvement actions that they need to take to ensure that all apprentices benefit from appropriate support. This contributes to the high proportion of apprentices that achieve with distinction.

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Safeguarding

The arrangements for safeguarding are effective.

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Safeguarding

Leaders and managers promote a supportive and inclusive safeguarding culture where apprentices feel safe and confident to discuss any concerns with their tutors. Apprentices have a good understanding of the risks to their safety and the children they care for. They feel safe at work and know how to report any concerns.

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Safeguarding

Leaders and managers have in place appropriate safeguarding policies and procedures and a clear reporting process. The designated and deputy safeguarding leads are suitably qualified and complete additional training that enables them to be effective in their role. They understand their safeguarding responsibilities well. They implement safe recruitment practices to ensure that staff are appropriate to work with young people and vulnerable adults. 10 to 12 January 2023

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Leaders and managers undertake rigorous checks to ensure that apprentices are safe. They check that employers have the appropriate insurance and safety procedures in place prior to enrolling apprentices. Leaders and managers assure themselves that apprentices will be working with employers who have high regard for apprentices’ personal and professional safety.

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What does the provider need to do to improve?

 Leaders should ensure that all tutors coherently plan the apprenticeship, including functional skills, so that all parties have a joint understanding of the individual apprentice’s progress.  Leaders and managers need to improve how they monitor the quality of teaching so that they can identify and remedy the few inconsistencies.  Leaders must rapidly develop the personal development curriculum to ensure that all apprentices have opportunities to develop their knowledge, skills and behaviours beyond the content of the apprenticeship standard. 10 to 12 January 2023

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Provider details

Address Kent Innovation Centre Millennium Way Broadstairs CT10 2QQ

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Provider details

Principal, CEO or equivalent Andrea Webb

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Provider details

Provider type Independent learning provider

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Provider details

Dates of previous inspection 6 to 8 November 2018

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Provider details

Main subcontractors None 10 to 12 January 2023

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Information about this inspection

The inspection team was assisted by the managing director, 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

Carolyn Brownsea, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector Martin Hughes Ofsted Inspector Lynda Brown His Majesty’s Inspector 10 to 12 January 2023

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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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