The Basingstoke Alliance SCITT

The Basingstoke Alliance SCITT Dove House School Academy, Sutton Road, Basingstoke, Hampshire RG21 5SU

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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 provider?

The provider’s commitment to ensuring that relationships and care between teachers and pupils are paramount attracts many trainees to the programme. School-centred initial teacher training (SCITT) leaders refer to this as a ‘human first’ approach. Mentors and senior leaders in placement schools value this emphasis and the course’s focus on cognitive science, assessment and behaviour. Close relationships between placement schools and leaders contribute to trainees’ seamless induction into schools. Trainees feel valued by considerate staff and are well supported by a strong pastoral system. As one trainee said, ‘The pastoral care is phenomenal.’

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

Trainees acquire the knowledge and skills that they need to begin their teaching career. The interconnected centre-based and school-based training ensures that trainees learn about general pedagogical approaches to teaching and how to apply these as they develop their teaching expertise. Trainees value the short placements in a local sixth-form college and the lead special school. These enrich their experiences and contribute to ensuring that they are well prepared for their chosen profession.

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

Trainees experience a collaborative atmosphere at this provider. Leaders work hard to ensure that their values, vision and methods are understood by all. Consequently, mentors, tutors and school leaders understand exactly how to fulfil leaders’ high expectations.

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Information about this ITE provider

◼ This SCITT provider offers postgraduate routes to qualified teacher status. Trainees can also study for a Postgraduate Certificate in Education with the University of Cumbria. ◼ There were 13 trainees in the academic year 2022/23. Of these, one was on the School Direct (salaried) route and one was on the apprenticeship route. ◼ The SCITT has 17 partner schools, including Dove House School, a special school for pupils with an education, health and care plan, where the SCITT’s centre is located. All but two of the partner schools were judged good or better at their most recent inspection. These two schools are currently not used as placement schools.

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Information about this inspection

◼ The inspection was conducted by one of His Majesty’s Inspectors and an Ofsted Inspector. ◼ The inspectors met with the accounting officer, the chair of the board of trustees, a trustee, the programme director and the assistant programme director from the SCITT. They also met with five members of the executive board. ◼ Inspectors met with 11 trainees and seven former trainees who are now early career teachers. Meetings took place either in school or online. ◼ The inspection team conducted focused reviews in English, mathematics, design and technology, and physical education. They met with subject leaders, scrutinised course documents and visited five schools to talk with trainees, mentors and senior leaders. Inspectors looked at evidence of trainees’ learning and, where possible, observed them teaching the subject being reviewed. They then considered a wider range of evidence to explore the quality of education and training.

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Information about this inspection

◼ Inspectors took into account the views of eight trainees and 18 staff who responded to Ofsted’s inspection surveys.

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better?

The partnership provides a well-designed and ambitious curriculum that is integrated seamlessly across the SCITT and placement schools. The curriculum surpasses the requirements of the Department for Education (DfE) core content framework. Trainees experience a stringently sequenced, centre-based curriculum that is underpinned by pertinent pedagogical research. Planned content is delivered in weekly training sessions by leaders and subject experts from placement schools. These sessions are well received by trainees and followed up in subsequent discussions between mentors and trainees. In this way, the curriculum content taught in the centre is reinforced effectively in school placements. However, not all subject curriculums set out what trainees need to know about how pupils, particularly pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities, learn within subject disciplines precisely enough. This means that some trainees do not

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better?

always gain a highly refined understanding of subject-specific pedagogy and research.

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better?

Leaders work effectively with partnership schools. The programme director has led training for school leaders about the key tenets of the curriculum, such as theories of cognitive science and metacognition. Trainees apply the knowledge that they gain from the centre- based training confidently in their school-based placements. For example, trainees develop a deep understanding of retrieval techniques, cognitive overload and a wide range of assessment techniques. This empowers trainees to understand what works well and how to apply it to adaptive teaching.

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better?

Behaviour management is the cornerstone of training early in the programme. This supports trainees in establishing clear and rigorous classroom practices. Mentors, tutors and trainees share a strong understanding of the agreed principles of promoting positive behaviour. Trainees consider and reflect on this area in written assignments and immediately put their learning into effective classroom practice.

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better?

Leaders have designed a robust system for assessing trainees’ development. This ensures that trainees receive timely support through their training course that focuses them on what they have learned, how they have put it into practice and what they need to do next. Trainees who need extra help due to identified weaknesses receive it. Leaders acquire a nuanced and rounded picture of trainees’ progress towards the end of the programme. However, the targets that leaders and mentors set for trainees at the end of the programme are not rigorous enough in identifying the specific expertise that trainees need to develop as they start their career.

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better?

Quality assurance is a strong element of the partnership’s provision. Leaders check robustly how well mentor and trainee relationships develop and monitor the deployment of the SCITT’s curriculum in schools at which trainees are placed. This leads to a high degree of conformity in placements in the use of leaders’ systems, particularly the weekly meetings at which mentors and trainees discuss key focuses for the coming weeks. The SCITT executive board oversees the operations of the provider effectively. Members share a range of expertise and, in the main, they hold the programme director to account well. In some areas, however, they do not always hold leaders to account sharply. For example, external evaluation reports about the SCITT are not questioned with enough rigour.

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(Information for the provider and appropriate authority)

◼ In some subjects, the intended curriculum does not identify clearly enough how pupils learn within the subject. As a result, trainees do not consistently gain a deep understanding of subject-specific pedagogy. Leaders should ensure that all trainees have access to the highest quality of subject curriculums. ◼ Target-setting towards the end of the training programme is not specific enough. Consequently, not all trainees have an in-depth understanding of their strengths and areas for development as they enter the teaching profession. Leaders should sharpen their approach, so that trainees understand exactly what they need to focus on as early career teachers.

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compliance criteria?

◼ The provider meets the DfE statutory compliance criteria.

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principles and requirements of apprenticeship provision?

◼ Leaders ensure that the arrangements that they make for apprenticeships are suitably in line with the principles and requirements of the apprenticeship programme.

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ITE provider details

Unique reference number 70288 Inspection number 10258893 Type of ITE provider School-centred initial teacher training Phases provided Secondary Date of previous inspection 23 May and 17 October 2016

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Inspection team

Harry Ingham, Lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector Gary Holden Ofsted Inspector

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Annex: Placement schools

Inspectors visited the following schools as part of this inspection:

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Name URN ITE phase

Bishop Challoner Catholic Secondary School 116478 Secondary Brighton Hill Community School 149707 Secondary Cranbourne 116432 Secondary Dove House School 137605 Secondary Everest Community Academy 145125 Secondary 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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Name URN ITE phase

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. If you would like a copy of this document in a different format, such as large print or Braille, please telephone 0300 123 1231, or email enquiries@ofsted.gov.uk . You may reuse this information (not including logos) free of charge in any format or medium, under the terms of the Open Government Licence. To view this licence, visit www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-

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Name URN ITE phase

government-licence , write to the Information Policy Team, The National Archives, Kew, London TW9 4DU, or email: psi@nationalarchives.gsi.gov.uk .

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Name URN ITE phase

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Name URN ITE phase

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

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