London East Teacher Training Alliance

DRAFT – not for publication London East Teacher Training Alliance Second Floor, St Paul’s Way Community Centre, 83 St Paul’s Way, London E3 4AJ

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Inspection judgements

Primary and secondary age-phase combined

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

The quality of education and training Outstanding

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Overall effectiveness Outstanding

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Outstanding

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

The London East Teacher Training Alliance (LETTA) is centred on a mission to combat social inequality in the community that it serves. This is realised through everything that trainees are taught and apply on the programme. Guided skilfully by LETTA staff, trainees are both enthused by, and knowledgeable about, how to have a positive impact on pupils’ learning.

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

The curriculum is highly ambitious and delivered by expert staff. This ensures that all trainees receive an exceptional offer, which blends up-to-date and relevant theory with well-planned opportunities to practise what has been learned. This enables trainees to carefully build their knowledge. Important content, such as adaptive teaching, behaviour management and safeguarding, is expertly woven through centre-based learning and school placements.

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

Trainees learn how to create safe and welcoming classrooms, where securing pupils’ readiness for learning is placed front and centre. Trainees also develop a comprehensive repertoire of approaches for understanding and meeting the needs of pupils with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and pupils who speak English as an additional language.

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

Trainees develop rapidly as highly reflective practitioners, irrespective of the routes that they take. They are exceptionally well prepared to start their careers, including how to balance the different day-to-day demands of teaching.

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Information about this ITE provider

◼ LETTA currently has 54 primary-phase trainees and a small number of trainees in the secondary phase. All secondary-phase trainees are training to teach mathematics. The secondary route is a pilot this academic year. ◼ LETTA works with 26 schools. Of these schools, 14 are part of the strategic board and a further 12 are part of the partnership as associate members. ◼ The school-centred initial teacher training (SCITT) provides programmes for the school-centred (non-salaried) route and the postgraduate teaching apprentice route. Both routes lead to the award of a postgraduate certificate in education (PGCE). ◼ The provider has a small number of salaried apprentices undertaking a level 6 teaching qualification and PGCE. ◼ The LETTA partnership consists of one nursery, one infant school and 17 primary schools, three secondary schools and four all-through schools, all of which were judged as good or better at their most recent inspection. The partnership includes one

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Information about this ITE provider

alternative provision and four special schools.

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Information about this inspection

◼ The inspection was carried out by two of His Majesty’s Inspectors and one Ofsted Inspector. ◼ The inspectors met with the provider’s leaders, including the accounting officer, the director of school improvement and members of the strategic partnership board. ◼ Inspectors met with headteachers from schools used by the provider. Inspectors held meetings, some remotely, with trainees, school mentors, professional tutors and early career teachers. ◼ Inspectors scrutinised the provider’s documents related to improvement planning and curriculum content. ◼ Inspectors reviewed responses to the trainee survey and to the staff survey. ◼ Inspectors spoke to or observed 35 primary-phase trainees, one secondary-phase trainee and 19 early career teachers. ◼ Focused reviews were conducted in early reading, mathematics (across the primary and secondary phases), history, physical education and science. Ten schools were

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Information about this inspection

visited. ◼ Other aspects of the initial teacher education (ITE) curriculum were considered as part of this inspection.

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better?

The curriculum for both phases has been meticulously thought through by leaders. It is continuously tweaked to ensure that it is as well sequenced, relevant and aspirational as it could be. Leaders have ensured that the core content framework is complied with fully. Key to LETTA’s success is its incredibly close relationship with partner schools. They work in complete harmony to strengthen each other’s practice further, which in turn has a highly positive impact on local recruitment.

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better?

Fundamental subject content is front-loaded into the curriculum, thus enabling trainees to learn, practise and revisit the pedagogical ideas needed to be successful as a teacher. This includes, for example, essential principles related to supporting pupils with SEND, how pupils learn and approaches to assessment. Trainees build their knowledge cumulatively and embed it before the curriculum adds subject-specific content on top. This promotes a deep level of understanding of how best to secure effective learning in each subject.

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better?

Across both phases, assessment is used effectively by leaders, mentors and professional tutors to check that trainees are learning the intended curriculum. Working as a close-knit team, leaders and staff know exactly how and when the programme needs refining to meet trainees’ needs fully. Staff make swift adaptations to plug any gaps in trainees’ knowledge as these arise. This includes bespoke adjustments for individual trainees if needed.

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better?

Securing trainees’ understanding of how to teach early reading is a strength of the programme. The curriculum is delivered by experts from schools in the partnership. Leaders have ensured that trainees have all the prior learning that they need to get the most from the centre-based learning. For example, those who have no prior experience of systematic synthetic phonics have additional teaching to ensure that they are well placed to understand and apply what they will learn in subsequent sessions.

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better?

The in-depth knowledge that trainees gain, especially of SEND, ensures that they can implement what they learn successfully in the classroom. This is underpinned by ensuring that trainees read and reflect in depth on the latest research. Trainees unpick what it means to make teaching responsive to pupils’ individual needs. What is learned and discussed is consistently linked back to making a positive difference to pupils’ learning.

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better?

Participation in the high-quality training programme is a non-negotiable factor for all mentors. This ensures consistency, rigour and a seamless partnership between centre- based learning and school placements. Communication is clear and regular. Placement schools are well informed about the specifics of the centrally delivered curriculum and how this should be practised by trainees in their classes. Thanks to this, mentoring is fully focused on ensuring that trainees are applying what is intended, and do so with confidence and growing expertise. This strong communication, together with the link between the centre and school, are key to the consistently high-quality programme that trainees receive.

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better?

Leaders’ rigorous oversight of the quality of the training means that each part of the curriculum connects together to promote trainees’ readiness to teach. Visiting professional tutors are pivotal in this, making sure that mentoring meets leaders’ expectations. This brings together centre- and school-based learning. Leaders also draw astutely on external professionals and moderation to help them to maintain excellence in all that is offered.

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comply with the ITE compliance criteria?

The provider meets the Department for Education (DfE) statutory compliance criteria.

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principles and requirements of apprenticeship provision?

The provider meets the principles and requirements of apprenticeship provision in the primary phase.

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principles and requirements of apprenticeship provision?

Apprentices experience the same high-quality training as others at the provider. The focus on phase- and subject-specific knowledge is extremely strong. Apprentices attend the same centre-based training as their peers and gain the same in-depth pedagogical and subject knowledge and skills. This includes those related to behaviour management and supporting pupils with SEND.

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principles and requirements of apprenticeship provision?

The apprenticeship route is managed highly effectively; all the procedures are followed, ensuring compliance. Arrangements for recruitment, assessment and mentoring are detailed and thorough.

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principles and requirements of apprenticeship provision?

Apprentices are supported exceptionally well. They develop the knowledge, skills and behaviours needed to complete the route successfully and to be ready for their future careers as reflective practitioners.

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ITE provider details

Unique reference number 70324 Inspection number 10307558

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ITE provider details

This inspection was carried out in accordance with the initial teacher education inspection framework and handbook , which set out the statutory basis and framework for initial teacher education (ITE) inspections in England from September 2020.

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ITE provider details

Type of ITE provider SCITT Phases provided Primary and secondary combined Date of previous inspection 12 June and 20 November 2017

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Inspection team

Samantha Ingram, lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector Aliki Constantopoulou His Majesty’s Inspector Julie Pearson Ofsted Inspector

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Annex: Placement and employment settings and schools

Inspectors visited the following schools as part of this inspection:

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Name URN ITE phase(s)

Children’s House Nursery 100882 Primary Columbia Primary School 100897 Primary Halley Primary School 100938 Primary Mayflower Primary School 100913 Primary Phoenix Primary and Secondary School 100987 Primary Sandringham Primary School 130381 Primary St Paul’s Way Trust (secondary) 143379 Secondary St Saviour’s Primary School 100961 Primary Stebon Primary School 144235 Primary Wellington Primary School 100927 Primary 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(s)

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(s)

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Name URN ITE phase(s)

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Name URN ITE phase(s)

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

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