Orthodontic Team Training Limited

Orthodontic Team Training Limited Monitoring visit report

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Name of lead inspector: Mark Parton, His Majesty’s Inspector

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Type of provider: Independent learning provider

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Address: 21 Waterloo Place Leamington Spa Warwickshire CV32 5LA Monitoring visit: Orthodontic Team Training Limited, 8 and 9 November 2023

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Context and focus of visit

Ofsted undertakes to carry out monitoring visits to all newly directly funded providers of apprenticeship training provision funded 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

Orthodontic Team Training Limited (OTT) is an independent learning provider based in Leamington Spa, Warwickshire. The company specialises in the training and development of dental nurses and dental leaders. OTT began training apprentices in May 2022. At the time of the visit, there were 11 apprentices following the level 4 orthodontic therapist (integrated) apprenticeship, all over the age of 19. The provider does not work with any subcontractors.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders and managers have a clear rationale for the apprenticeships that they offer. They focus strongly on a single apprenticeship to meet the increasing national demand for high-quality orthodontic therapists.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders ensure that apprentices are recruited with integrity and take clear and sensible actions to ensure candidate suitability. For example, apprentices undertake thorough initial assessments, and OTT staff liaise with employers promptly to determine apprenticeship suitability before enrolment.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders and managers have clear oversight of apprentices’ performance. They ensure that apprentices’ progress is reviewed frequently and thoroughly. As a result, for those apprentices who fall behind in their training, appropriate measures to support them to catch up are implemented rapidly.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders put into place processes to prepare apprentices for their end-point assessments successfully. As a result, apprentices achieve well, completing their studies in swift timeframes.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders and managers do not take sufficient actions to evaluate the strengths and weaknesses of the curriculum that they offer. As a result, leaders do not have a Monitoring visit: Orthodontic Team Training Limited, 8 and 9 November 2023 suitably strong understanding of their areas of strength and those that require further improvement. Leaders recognise this and have begun to carry out self- assessment activities. However, it is too early to assess the impact of these actions.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders ensure that those who govern have high levels of expertise in orthodontic education. Leaders utilise this expertise effectively to support curriculum design and implementation. However, those who govern do not understand the apprenticeship learning landscape sufficiently. As a result, leaders do not currently benefit from sufficient challenge from those who govern relating to the quality of education that apprentices receive.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders ensure that teachers are appropriately qualified to provide apprenticeships to a high standard. Teachers undertake regular and worthwhile professional development of their subject knowledge. As a result, staff have up-to-date vocational expertise, which improves over time. However, leaders do not ensure that teachers’ professional development activities focus sufficiently well on improving their craft of teaching.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders have acted to ensure that apprentices are ably supported at work through the deployment of well-qualified, work-based trainers. As a result, apprentices undertake on- and off-the-job training that is well coordinated. Leaders ensure that apprentices have frequent opportunities to practise their newly acquired skills within their places of work.

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Reasonable progress

Apprentices develop substantial new knowledge, skills and behaviours rapidly through the teaching they receive. Apprentices move from carrying out routine tasks within the workplace to complex ones in swift timeframes. For example, apprentices initially process and administer patient information but quickly progress to fitting and removing complex orthodontic appliances.

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Reasonable progress

Teachers assess apprentices in taught sessions frequently and check their learning effectively. Teachers use the information gained from these assessments to provide feedback to apprentices and employers promptly. As a result, apprentices are fully aware of the actions they need to take to improve.

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Reasonable progress

Teachers take action to determine what apprentices already know and can do at the start of their studies. However, teachers do not systematically capture information about apprentices’ wider skills at the start of their learning. For example, initial starting points in English and mathematics are not collected successfully. Teachers do not use the information they collect about apprentices’ skills gaps to routinely Monitoring visit: Orthodontic Team Training Limited, 8 and 9 November 2023 inform and plan a sufficiently individualised curriculum. As a result, in a few cases, those more able apprentices are not fully challenged to achieve their very best.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders and managers have implemented appropriate safeguarding policies to work with adult apprentices. Leaders complete a range of appropriate checks when appointing new staff to ensure they are suitable to work with apprentices.

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Reasonable progress

The designated safeguarding lead has a clear understanding of the requirements of the role. They are suitably trained, along with their deputy.

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Reasonable progress

Leaders do not take clear action to share relevant information about the dangers of extremist and radical behaviours. As a result, apprentices do not have a sound enough understanding of the risks they may face in their local areas or daily lives. Monitoring visit: Orthodontic Team Training Limited, 8 and 9 November 2023 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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