Mont Rose College of Management & Sciences

Mont Rose College of Management & Sciences Montrose House 412-416, Eastern Avenue, Gants Hill, Ilford IG2 6NQ

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

The quality of education and training Inadequate

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Overall effectiveness Inadequate

Overall effectiveness at previous inspection Inadequate

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

Trainees study a curriculum intended for those who want to teach in the further education and skills (FES) sector. However, this curriculum is not ambitious. It does not prepare trainees for the practicalities of teaching in the FES sector. Trainees learn about the importance of their own and students’ workload and well-being and apply some of what they learn about behaviour management. Yet, trainees are not supported well enough to embed other key areas of the taught curriculum into their teaching, such as special educational needs and/or disabilities, mental health or safeguarding.

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

Some trainees do not have the appropriate industry experience or training to teach their subject. Subject-specific mentors offer some subject knowledge support, although these roles are in their infancy and not yet fully effective in supporting trainees to understand subject-specific pedagogy.

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

Trainees value the support they receive for their welfare and in seeking employment after the programme. For example, trainees attend regular sessions to support with writing applications and they can meet potential employers at job fairs. Trainees receive regular communication from teaching staff, which they feel helps them to build in confidence.

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

Trainees now have FES sector placements and benefit from workplace mentors. However, these placements do not support effectively the practice trainees need to be successful beyond their training programme. As a result, most trainees are not well prepared to teach in their phase or subject.

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Information about this ITE provider

◼ At the point of the inspection, there were 43 trainees enrolled on the initial teacher education (ITE) programme. These trainees were either part of the April 2023 or September 2023 cohorts. ◼ All trainees are following a programme designed to prepare them to teach in the FES sector. They all study the level 5 Diploma in Education and Training (DET). ◼ All trainees are pre-service and studying the one-year programme on a full-time basis. ◼ Trainees complete their placements in private colleges, recruitment agencies and private training companies. Some trainees undertake placements at Mont Rose College of Management & Sciences.

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Information about this inspection

◼ This was a reinspection following an ITE inspection in March 2023. ◼ The inspection was carried out by one of His Majesty’s Inspectors and one Ofsted Inspector. ◼ During the inspection, the inspectors spoke to the chief executive officer, the principal, the vice-principal, the DET programme manager, the DET deputy programme manager, members of the teaching team and the chair of the governance board. ◼ Inspectors spoke with current trainees in person and over the telephone. They also spoke with some former trainees over the telephone. ◼ Inspectors carried out focused reviews in business, English for speakers of other languages and health and social care. ◼ There was one visit to a teaching placement, although trainees were not present during the visit. Other mentors from some teaching placements were met in person or spoken with over the telephone. ◼ Inspectors considered responses to Ofsted’s staff and trainee surveys during the

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Information about this inspection

inspection, including any free-text comments.

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better?

Since the last inspection, leaders have made some fundamental changes to their ITE programme. For example, trainees now understand they have enrolled on FES phase- specific training. All trainees attend their placement from early in their programme. Leaders ensure that there are named mentors within these settings. However, leaders recognise there is more to do to build on these initial improvements.

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better?

Leaders support staff to teach a curriculum based on the minimum requirements of the programme specification. They adapt the sequencing of some of these units so that those who require more teaching practice are taught later in the programme. However, leaders do not engage effectively with the broader FES sector. This inhibits their understanding of the complexities of this phase. As a result, the centre-based curriculum for trainees is not rigorous in its content choices. For instance, trainees do not receive the knowledge and skills they need to suitably support learners’ literacy skills. Trainees continue to be taught about teaching theories that are not supported by recent, pertinent research.

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better?

Leaders check how well trainees learn through module-based written assessments. Staff provide some valuable help and support to trainees to improve the standard of their written work. Gradually, some trainees are beginning to reflect on their subject and phase in these assignments. However, leaders do not support staff to check what trainees know and remember over time. Too often, trainees’ gaps in learning and misconceptions go unaddressed.

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better?

Leaders are beginning to provide subject-specific guidance and support to trainees. Some subject mentors add a useful subject knowledge specific dimension to the ITE curriculum. However, for other subjects, mentoring remains narrow, generic and unhelpful. Too often, trainees do not receive the support they need to learn how to teach their subject well.

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better?

Leaders now communicate more regularly with mentors about expectations, such as the quantity of observations required. They produce outline guidance on the role of the mentor. This guidance does not extend far enough to facilitate purposeful integration of the curriculum for trainees. For example, while leaders share the programme specification with mentors, they do not check that placement-based learning aligns with teaching in the centre-based curriculum.

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better?

Many trainees do not have sufficient opportunities to practise and improve their teaching when on placement. They do not receive helpful or precise targets to support their development or preparedness for the realities of teaching in the FES sector. Some trainees understand how they might support learners with special educational needs and/or disabilities and safeguard them. However, many trainees do not complete placements that prepare them well enough to support learners in FES settings.

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better?

Leaders do not place sufficient emphasis on checking the quality of education and training that trainees receive. The quality assurance systems that leaders implement are too reliant on compliance checking and not the impact of the curriculum on trainees. Leaders have now begun to implement improvements to their arrangements for quality assuring mentoring, but it is too soon to assess the impact of this on the preparedness of trainees to teach their subject well.

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(Information for the provider and appropriate authority)

◼ Leaders and staff do not prepare trainees for the practicalities and realities of teaching in the FES sector. They do not understand well enough what trainees need to know in order to be successful teachers in the FES sector. Leaders need to develop effective engagement with the wider FES sector and use this information to develop an ambitious and rigorous curriculum for trainees. ◼ Leaders now pay more regard to the importance of providing subject-specific training to trainees and facilitate this through mentoring support. However, leaders do not ensure that all trainees have the necessary expertise to teach their chosen subject or provide them with enough guidance on the teaching of their subject. Leaders should ensure that trainees benefit from a curriculum that considers the richness of trainees’ subject and how to teach it well. ◼ Trainees now complete placements in a FES setting and with the support of a

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(Information for the provider and appropriate authority)

mentor. However, too many trainees do not receive the targeted support that they need on teaching placements to be reflective and improve their knowledge and skills. Leaders must enhance training and requirements for mentoring so that trainees develop effective teaching practices and benefit from helpful target setting. ◼ While leaders provide mentors with information about the programme specification, they do not check mentors are familiar enough with the content of what trainees learn and when. As a result, trainees do not practise their taught curriculum in a timely or well-sequenced way. Leaders must check that mentors understand better the ITE curriculum and use this to effectively support trainees’ teaching experiences. ◼ Leaders do not support staff to check the progress trainees make over time. As a result, many trainees have gaps in learning and misconceptions that are not identified quickly enough. Leaders should ensure that there are effective systems and

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(Information for the provider and appropriate authority)

processes to check what trainees know and can do over time, and to support trainees to make any necessary improvements. ◼ Leaders do not evaluate well enough the quality of the curriculum that trainees receive. They check compliance with administrative requirements but not the effectiveness of the curriculum in developing trainees’ teaching skills. Leaders should continue the development of systems to assure the quality of mentoring and extend this to all areas of the curriculum.

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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 ITE in FE Phases provided FES Dates of previous inspection 21 to 24 March 2023

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Inspection team

Donna Briggs His Majesty’s Inspector Alison Attfield Ofsted Inspector

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Annex: Placement settings

One inspector visited the following setting as part of this inspection:

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Name URN ITE phase

You Star Recruitment None FES 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 looked after children, 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

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 phase

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

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