Edge Hill University

Edge Hill University St. Helens Road, Ormskirk L39 4QP Inspection dates 22 to 25 January 2024

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Inspection judgements

Primary age- phase Secondary age-phase Further education age-phase

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Inspection judgements

Overall effectiveness Outstanding Outstanding Outstanding

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Inspection judgements

The quality of education and training Outstanding Outstanding Outstanding

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Inspection judgements

Leadership and management Outstanding Outstanding Outstanding

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Inspection judgements

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Good Good Outstanding

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

Trainees at Edge Hill University flourish. Many trainees spoke proudly about how the ITE programmes have transformed their thinking as new teachers. They learn their phase and subject-specific ITE curriculums with fervour. Trainees exude the high levels of knowledge, skills and confidence necessary to embark successfully on their teaching careers.

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

Across all phases, trainees benefit from meticulously designed and seamlessly integrated ITE curriculums. These curriculums are steeped in pertinent research which keeps trainees’ practice innovative. Trainees demonstrate growing expertise in their chosen subject and age-phase, alongside a secure understanding of generic teaching principles. This is particularly strong for trainees in further education and skills (FES).

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

Strong communication binds the partnership and helps trainees to experience synergy between centre- and placement-based training. Trainees are immensely well supported by knowledgeable and inspirational tutors and by highly skilled, committed mentors. In the primary and secondary phases, trainees acquire a rigorous grounding in the importance of systematic synthetic phonics in developing pupils’ reading fluency.

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

Trainees were effusive about the quality of the guidance that they receive across the partnership. They value the myriad of support that they receive for their mental health and well-being. In addition to learning their craft, trainees learn deeply about the importance of equality and social justice. Trainees work with local employers as part of a wider initiative to teach them about the importance of raising aspirations. Equally, trainees develop an impressive array of strategies to manage pupils’ and learners’ behaviour. Trainees’ understanding of safeguarding permeates all that they do.

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Information about this ITE provider

◼ In the 2023/24 academic year, the partnership trained a total of 1,841 trainees across the primary, secondary and FES age-phases. There were 1,443 trainees in the primary age-phase, 343 trainees in the secondary age-phase and 55 trainees in the FES age-phase. ◼ In the primary phase, the majority of trainees study towards a three-year Bachelor of Arts (BA) undergraduate degree with qualified teacher status (QTS). In 2023/24, there were 260 trainees on the BA (Honours) in early years primary education with QTS route. These trainees were trained in the three to seven age-phase. There were 796 trainees on the BA (Honours) in primary education with QTS. There were 124 trainees on the four-year, part-time BA (Honours) in primary education with QTS. These trainees were trained in the five to 11 age-phase. There were 37 full-time trainees on the one-year Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) in early years

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Information about this ITE provider

primary education. A further 181 trainees were on the full-time, one-year PGCE in primary education. In addition, there were six trainees following the primary mathematics specialist PGCE route and 37 trainees following the primary physical education specialist route. Twenty-five trainees on PGCE courses were following the School Direct fee-paying route. ◼ In the secondary phase, there were 61 trainees on the undergraduate Bachelor of Science (BSc) with QTS route. The BSc (Honours) with QTS route on offer was in secondary mathematics education. There were 42 trainees on the undergraduate Bachelor of Arts (BA) with QTS in secondary English education route, and a further 27 trainees on the BA (Honours) with QTS in secondary religious education route. There were 204 trainees on PGCE courses in secondary subjects and nine trainees on School Direct fee-paying routes. The PGCE subjects that trainees were training to teach in

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Information about this ITE provider

during 2023/24 were: biology; chemistry; computer science and IT; English; geography; history; mathematics; physical education; physics and religious education. ◼ In the FES phase, there were 55 trainees in total. In 2023/24, there were 31 trainees on the full-time, campus-based, pre-service Postgraduate Diploma in Education route delivered at Edge Hill University. There were eight full-time and two part-time trainees on the Postgraduate Certificate in Further Education and Training route at Wirral Metropolitan College. A further two full-time and 12 part-time trainees were on the University Higher Diploma in Further Education and Training route at Wirral Metropolitan College. There were six FES trainees on in-service training programmes at Wirral Metropolitan College. ◼ In total, the partnership works with approximately 977 placement settings across 48 local authorities. The current Ofsted inspection grades for those settings, where

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Information about this ITE provider

Ofsted is the inspectorate, range from outstanding to inadequate. ◼ In the primary age-phase, the partnership works with 762 schools in 42 local authorities. ◼ In the secondary age-phase, the partnership works with 250 schools in 40 local authorities. ◼ In the FES phase, the partnership works with 32 colleges and other settings in 14 local authorities.

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Information about this inspection

◼ This inspection was carried out by 10 of His Majesty’s Inspectors and four Ofsted Inspectors. ◼ During this inspection, inspectors held meetings with the Pro Vice-Chancellor and Dean of Education, the strategic lead of ITE and other leaders with oversight of ITE programmes. These leaders included: heads of department for primary, secondary and FES programmes; associate heads of department for primary, secondary and FES programmes; associate deans for student experience, and research and impact; the head of academic services; the head of partnership development; the strategic lead for mentoring and the head of student recruitment. ◼ Inspectors held meetings with a wide range of other university staff, including course leaders, lecturers, senior lecturers, academic tutors and admissions tutors. ◼ Inspectors also held conversations with members of the strategic partnership board, including the chair, and members of the strategic development and quality

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Information about this inspection

committee, including the chair. Inspectors met with representatives of the School Direct partnership, Wirral Metropolitan College, and lead mentors from within partnership schools. ◼ Inspectors met with staff in partner schools and colleges. These included headteachers, senior leaders, professional mentors and subject mentors. ◼ Inspectors reviewed a wide range of documentation relating to the ITE programmes. This information included: subject and phase curriculum documentation; trainees’ files, assignments and their records of target setting; assessment documentation and mentoring records, and information relating to the Department for Education’s (DfE’s) ITT criteria and supporting advice. ◼ Inspectors scrutinised a range of documentation in relation to the leadership and management of the partnership. This included leaders’ self-evaluation documents, improvement plans, quality assurance documents, and minutes from meetings of the

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Information about this inspection

strategic partnership board and from the strategic development and quality committee. ◼ The inspection was carried out through in-person meetings, virtual meetings and on- site visits to partner schools and colleges. ◼ Inspectors visited five centre-based training sessions in the primary phase, three training sessions in the secondary phase and two teaching sessions in FES. ◼ In the primary phase, inspectors carried out focused reviews in early reading, mathematics, science, geography, art and design, music, and physical education. ◼ In the secondary phase, inspectors carried out focused reviews in mathematics, English, geography, history, physical education and religious education. ◼ Inspectors carried out eight focused reviews in the FES phase. The subjects were: hair and beauty; English and English for speakers of other languages; sport; childhood studies; early years; health and social care; history, and sociology and

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Information about this inspection

psychology. ◼ Across all three phases, inspectors spoke with 160 trainees and 19 early career teachers. ◼ During the inspection, inspectors visited 18 schools and four colleges. ◼ Inspectors considered the responses to Ofsted’s surveys for staff and trainees. Primary phase report

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better?

Leaders have established an inspirational and exceptionally well-thought-out ITE curriculum for the primary phase. They make certain that their ambitious vision, together with the DfE’s core content framework, is widely understood and woven throughout curriculums. Leaders have precisely identified the essential knowledge that trainees should learn across the centre-based and school-based training programmes, including learning about equality and social justice. Trainees learn to think deeply about important curriculum issues and to deliver school curriculums skilfully. They adapt their teaching to the needs of different pupils, including those with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND), especially well.

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better?

Tutors and mentors are clear about what information to teach trainees and when. They build trainees’ subject-specific knowledge and their understanding of generic pedagogy in depth. Tutors and mentors evaluate trainees’ progress in learning the ITE curriculum carefully. They connect the key information that trainees have already learned with the new knowledge that they are expected to learn. Trainees build their expertise in primary national curriculum subjects, and generic teaching principles, impressively well.

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better?

Trainees learn about the importance of teaching new vocabulary to pupils, so that pupils develop the language to explain complex concepts and ideas. Knowledgeable tutors guide trainees skilfully to understand how to teach early reading. Schools ensure that trainees learn how to support pupils who need extra help to catch up in their learning to read. Trainees are exceptionally well prepared with the skills, knowledge and understanding that they need to meet the requirements of QTS.

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better?

By drawing on up-to-date educational research, leaders ensure that trainees gain a well- informed knowledge of primary education, including the early years. Those trainees who specialise in the education of three- to seven-year-olds develop a deep knowledge of what a high-quality school curriculum for young children, including for two-year-old children, should look like. Leaders make sure that tutors are experts in their field. Tutors encourage trainees to carry out research in what constitutes high-quality education. Trainees apply and test out the efficacy of this research in their day-to-day teaching practice. This is achieved because tutors have forged strong relationships with national associations, schools and other educational settings.

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better?

Leaders’ arrangements to check and review the quality of primary ITE programmes are ambitious and extremely well considered. Their evaluation is rigorous and insightful, drawing on feedback from multiple sources, including trainees and partner schools. Leaders have devised an innovative and highly successful system of linking tutors with mentors. This results in precise support and checks on the quality of mentoring that trainees receive. Leaders skilfully use a wide range of information to improve the primary phase ITE programmes, including for trainees on the School Direct routes. School Direct trainees, undergraduate trainees and postgraduate trainees experience equity across the ITE programmes. They are well supported to understand their wider responsibilities, such as safeguarding pupils. Trainees achieve exceptionally well. Deeply committed and knowledgeable leadership underpins trainees’ success.

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compliance criteria?

The provider meets the DfE statutory compliance criteria. Secondary phase report

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better?

Leaders have created a clear, consistent and ambitious vision for what they want trainees to achieve throughout their teacher training experience. This vision is fully understood and realised by all, including trainees, mentors and subject tutors in the university.

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better?

Leaders have crafted an ambitious and highly rigorous curriculum for trainees to learn. Key themes which are important to the local area, such as social justice and a clear understanding of the adaptations required for pupils with SEND, are woven throughout all components of the ITE programmes. Regular opportunities for trainees to revisit and enhance their knowledge are fundamental to how well prepared trainees are when they arrive to start their placements in schools.

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better?

There is seamless integration between the centre-based elements of the curriculum and the school-based placements. A wide range of relevant and up-to-date research is the bedrock of trainees’ learning. Leaders share this research with mentors to ensure that they weave it seamlessly into the professional discussions that take place in school. The curriculum coverage goes well beyond the expectations of the DfE’s core content framework. For example, the rich curriculum that supports trainees to understand their responsibilities around safeguarding, personal, social, health and economic education, and relationships and sex education is exceptional.

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better?

Communication between leaders and partner schools is highly effective. Regular updates, and clear expectations across the partnership, mean that mentors fully understand their responsibilities. These also contribute strongly to trainees developing their professional skills. Subject tutors work closely with mentors to ensure that they are highly skilled in helping trainees to identify accurately the next steps in their subject-specific and general pedagogical development.

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better?

Leaders are tenacious in ensuring that there is a consistent high-quality experience for all trainees. Leaders place a sharp focus on checking the quality of training and mentoring that trainees experience. These checks are pivotal in ensuring that trainees make exceptional progress on their journey to becoming qualified teachers.

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better?

Leaders have carefully considered how to reduce trainees’ workload while delivering all aspects of the programme, without compromising leaders’ high standards. For example, they have streamlined the approach that they use to assess trainees throughout the course. This has ensured that there is no repetition of recording and reporting of information. This has had a positive effect on the well-being of trainees, mentors and staff.

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better?

University leaders and tutors prioritise inclusion and equality for all trainees across the ITE programmes. They have developed a range of subject enhancement courses to encourage trainees from a diverse range of qualifications and experiences to be able to access their courses. There are well designed, suitably rigorous recruitment and selection processes in place to ensure that the candidates most suited to the profession are recruited.

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better?

Engagement across the partnership is highly effective. Leaders regularly seek out, and act on, feedback from the partner schools that they work with. Well-structured, robust systems enable those responsible for governance to hold leaders to account fully for the quality of education and training that trainees receive. These systems ensure that the provider remains innovative and reflective, which helps to secure continual improvement to the ITE programmes.

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compliance criteria?

The provider meets the DfE statutory compliance criteria. Further education and skills phase report

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needs to be done better?

Trainees benefit from a well-designed, highly ambitious curriculum that is underpinned by pertinent and up-to-date research. Expert tutors deliver the curriculum in a logical order. They develop trainees’ foundational knowledge successfully, which prepares trainees well to commence their teaching placements.

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needs to be done better?

Leaders communicate regularly with mentors to reinforce the concepts and knowledge in the centre-based ITE curriculum. This helps mentors to support trainees exceptionally well to use research and to deepen their knowledge of subject and generic pedagogy. This means that trainees have a secure understanding of relevant research, and they are able to apply this successfully to teach their subjects.

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needs to be done better?

Leaders are relentless in their drive to ensure that the quality of education and training that trainees receive remains exceptional. They have put in place highly effective quality assurance processes, which they use impressively to carry out systematic and rigorous evaluations of the ITE programmes. Leaders work successfully with placement settings and trainees to continually improve the curriculum that trainees experience. For example, leaders have carefully redesigned recruitment processes so that trainees are recruited only where they have mentors with appropriate subject expertise.

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needs to be done better?

Trainees benefit from an ITE curriculum that carefully links centre-based training to their professional practice through highly effective mentoring. All mentors are subject specialists, and they receive comprehensive core and phase-specific training from the university. Mentors are fully aware of their roles and responsibilities, and they highly value the ongoing support and regular feedback that they receive from their liaison tutors and the university.

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needs to be done better?

Tutors and mentors use ongoing assessment to check trainees’ progress through the ITE curriculum. For example, they use weekly or bi-weekly discussions to model effective practice and to deconstruct the curriculum to develop trainees’ subject-specific knowledge. Trainees who do not make the expected progress are supported exceptionally well by their tutors and their mentors. As a result, trainees catch up quickly and they remain on their programme. Tutors provide exceptionally clear and purposeful feedback to trainees. Trainees successfully use this feedback to develop their knowledge and skills of how to teach their chosen subjects.

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needs to be done better?

Trainees develop secure knowledge of adaptive teaching and strategies to support learners with SEND. Trainees complete a range of tasks in their settings to help them to understand the varying needs of learners in their classes, and in the wider FES-phase ages and levels. Trainees use this knowledge to apply a range of adaptive teaching strategies effectively at every phase of their development. As a result, trainees plan teaching, learning and assessment that is inclusive for all learners. Trainees gain experience of teaching across the range of provision types and courses within their subject areas. This supports trainees’ understanding of the range of learners, such as young learners aged between 16 and 18, adults, and learners with high needs who they may teach in their future careers. Trainees attend talks from guest speakers who discuss in detail careers in the FES sector. Newly qualified trainees spoke passionately

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needs to be done better?

about their exceptional training experience which they tell us has prepared them systematically for their first teaching roles.

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ITE provider details

Unique reference number 70129 Inspection number 10258052

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ITE provider details

This inspection was carried out in accordance with the initial teacher education inspection framework and handbook , which sets 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 Higher education institution Phases provided Primary Secondary FES Date of previous inspection 12 to 15 May 2014

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Inspection team

Rachel Goodwin, Overall lead inspector His Majesty’s Inspector Tim Vaughan, Phase lead inspector (primary) His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Elaine Mawson, Phase lead inspector (secondary) His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Alison Humphreys, Phase lead inspector (FES) His Majesty’s Inspector

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Inspection team

Felicity Ackroyd Ofsted Inspector Jackie Stillings His Majesty’s Inspector Sarah Barraclough His Majesty’s Inspector Louise McArdle His Majesty’s Inspector Emma Gregory His Majesty’s Inspector Michael Pennington His Majesty’s Inspector Jenny Jones His Majesty’s Inspector Aly Spencer Ofsted Inspector Sue Keenan Ofsted Inspector Tanya Evans Ofsted Inspector

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Annex: Placement/employment settings, schools, and colleges

Inspectors visited the following schools and colleges as part of this inspection:

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Name URN ITE phases

Downholland-Haskayne Voluntary Aided Church of England Primary School 119479 Primary

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Name URN ITE phases

Little Digmoor Primary School 119297 Primary Marton Primary Academy and Nursery 141867 Primary Our Lady’s Church of England Primary School 104894 Primary St Bartholomew’s Catholic Primary School 104815 Primary St John’s Church of England Primary School 104894 Primary St John Vianney Catholic Primary School 104812 Primary St Lukes CE Primary School 104897 Primary Tarleton Community Primary School 119158 Primary St Brigid’s Catholic Primary School 104474 Primary Lathom High School 119774 Secondary Range High School 137612 Secondary St Julies Catholic High School 104712 Secondary Ormskirk School 148254 Secondary Meols Cop High School 149828 Secondary Burnley High School (remotely visited) 141028 Secondary Bank View High School 133441 Secondary (SEND) Chesterfield High School 137514 Secondary Hugh Baird College 130490 FES Runshaw College 130741 FES Wirral Metropolitan College 130493 FES Riverside College 130622 FES

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Name URN ITE phases

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 phases

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 phases

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 phases

Interested in our work? You can subscribe to our monthly newsletter for more information and updates: http://eepurl.com/iTrDn .

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Name URN ITE phases

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

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