Colchester Teacher Training Consortium

Colchester Teacher Training Consortium Colchester County High School for Girls, Norman Way, Colchester CO3 3US Inspection dates 4 to 7 March 2024

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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?

Trainees attending Colchester Teacher Training Consortium are prepared superbly well to be teachers of tomorrow. Inspirational guidance and support ensure that they are ready to educate the next generation of pupils. Trainees value immensely the first-class experience they receive, preparing them exceptionally well to take on their first teaching role.

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

Centre-based training provides trainees with rich and deep information on key aspects of teaching, such as behaviour management, safeguarding and how best to help pupils learn to read using systematic synthetic phonics. This readies trainees to apply their new learning in school-based tasks, which they do with diligence and enthusiasm. The ‘trainee assessment profile’ provides a precise connection between centre-based and school-based training. This means trainees are skilfully supported by their mentors to apply their newfound learning to their specific subject or phase. Trainees are prepared extremely well to teach pupils with a range of special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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

Communication between course leaders, mentors and trainees is crystal clear. All involved know what is required of them. High-quality, regular training for mentors means they have the tools required to ensure trainees develop the confidence and competencies they need to be effective teachers. Supportive instructional coaching means trainees accurately identify their strengths and any identified areas for development.

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Information about this ITE provider

◼ This school-centred initial teacher training (SCITT) is based at Colchester County High School for Girls, where most of the centre-based training takes place in the bespoke training centre. ◼ At the time of the inspection, there were 71 full-time trainees. Thirty on the primary course and 41 on the secondary course. ◼ The provider works with 107 schools across both primary and secondary phases. Trainees complete their school-based training in these schools. ◼ There are 12 schools in the partnership which are rated as requires improvement or inadequate. All other schools in the partnership are graded as either good or outstanding. ◼ For trainees to achieve qualified teacher status, the provider offers both the School Direct non-salaried and salaried route into teaching. The majority of trainees complete a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE) via the University of Suffolk. The PGCE is integrated into the course and complements trainees’

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Information about this ITE provider

classroom practice. A small number of trainees undertake the assessment-only route.

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Information about this inspection

◼ The inspection team included two of His Majesty’s Inspectors and one Ofsted Inspector. ◼ Inspectors held meetings with leaders, including the director, assistant directors and nine members of the steering group. ◼ Inspectors held discussions with 43 trainees, either at their placement school or at the centre-based training. Inspectors also took account of the responses to Ofsted’s trainee survey. ◼ In the primary phase, inspectors carried out focused reviews in early reading, mathematics and history. Focused reviews in English and science were carried out in the secondary phase. ◼ As part of the focused reviews, inspectors met with leaders, facilitators and lead mentors; reviewed curriculum and trainee documentation; and visited six placement schools. During these visits, inspectors met with school leaders and mentors, observed 10 trainees teaching, observed feedback meetings between mentors and trainees and held discussions with trainees. Inspectors also visited subject studies

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Information about this inspection

sessions held in the training centre. ◼ In addition to visiting six placement schools, inspectors communicated remotely with mentors from 12 other placement schools. The lead inspector met with seven lead mentors and five PGCE tutors. Inspectors held discussions with seven early career teachers who trained with the provider. ◼ Over the course of the inspection, inspectors reviewed a range of the provider’s documentation, such as handbooks, improvement planning and minutes from meetings. Inspectors also took account of the responses to Ofsted’s staff survey.

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better?

The provider works with steely determination to develop highly skilled teachers of tomorrow. Leaders, working collaboratively with members of the steering group, provide a strong, clear vision for excellence which is borne out in practice. Leaders identify, and recruit, high-calibre lead mentors and trainers to ensure trainees benefit from the highest quality training and support.

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better?

Trainees learn a well-crafted curriculum. Leaders pay full regard to the core content framework and often go well beyond these requirements. They have set about designing a curriculum that builds expertly over time, focusing on fundamental themes such as ‘professional identity’, ‘adaptive teaching and assessment’ and ‘how pupils learn’.

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better?

Trainees develop high levels of confidence and competence in teaching phonics, as part of early reading. This is because centre-based training is purposefully integrated into trainees’ school-based learning. Trainees are very well versed in teaching early reading more widely because their centre-based training focuses on widening phonics into language comprehension, the love of reading and reading more widely across the curriculum. Trainees in the secondary phase receive regular opportunities to deepen their subject- specialism knowledge with their peers. They are provided with high-quality opportunities to reflect on their growing pedagogical knowledge. Trainees then consider how this can be applied skilfully within their own individual subject specialisms.

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better?

Trainees benefit from leaders’ laser-sharp focus on mentoring. School-based mentors receive comprehensive and precisely focused training and support. While the initial training is extremely thorough, the ongoing programme of moderation, support from lead mentors and continuous online support mean that school-based mentors are fully equipped to support trainees exceptionally well. Lead mentors meet frequently with school-based mentors to provide support, along with using these meetings to further quality assure the mentoring arrangements.

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better?

Course leaders build highly effective relationships with partner schools. Headteachers have chosen to work with the partnership, through recommendations and reputation. Care is taken to ensure workload is manageable, not just for trainees, but for mentors and tutors too. Leaders also ensure that partner schools are fully engaged with the provider and contribute to the success of its ongoing work.

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better?

High-quality systems underpin the assessment of trainees. Lesson observation templates, for example, change across the course of the year as trainees develop their competencies. Mentors are guided to focus on elements for which trainees recently received centre-based training, alongside any short-term targets specific to individual training needs. The target setting and reflection process shows clearly that trainees can apply what they have learned. Trainees develop a rich and detailed knowledge of the ITE curriculum they undertake.

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comply with the ITE compliance criteria?

The provider meets the DfE statutory compliance criteria.

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ITE provider details

Unique reference number 70156 Inspection number 10313369

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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 School-centred initial teacher training Phases provided Primary and secondary combined Date of previous inspection 26 June and 15 November 2017

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Inspection team

Nathan Lowe, Lead inspector His Majesty’s 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 phases

Lakelands Primary School, Colchester 147844 Primary Springfield Infant and Nursery School, Ipswich 144213 Primary St Luke’s Church of England Primary School, Tiptree 115082 Primary St Thomas More’s Catholic Primary School, Colchester 138164 Primary St Helena School, Colchester 137944 Secondary The Gilberd School, Colchester 137926 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 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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