TRS Training Limited

TRS Training Limited

Address: 4 Micklehead Business Village, St. Michaels Road, St. Helens, Merseyside, WA9 4YU Unique reference number (URN): 1278616

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Safeguarding standards met

The safeguarding standards are met. This means that leaders and/or those responsible for governance and oversight fulfil their specific responsibilities and have established an open culture in which safeguarding is everyone's responsibility and concerns are actively identified, acted upon and managed. As a result, learners are made safer and feel safe.

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How we evaluate safeguarding

When we inspect providers for safeguarding, they can have the following outcomes:

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How we evaluate safeguarding

Met: The provider has an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not met: The provider has not created an open and positive culture of safeguarding. Not all legal requirements are met.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders and managers are passionate about reducing barriers to learning for apprentices and adults and supporting all learners and apprentices to develop their careers within the transport and logistics sector.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders have put in place robust policies and procedures for the early identification of learners' and apprentices' needs. Well-trained, specialist staff put in place effective learning support, when barriers to learning are identified.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders closely monitor the progress of all learners and apprentices. Tutors and specialist staff regularly review the support apprentices and learners receive, and know how and when to increase or withdraw support as necessary.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders have ensured that staff have the training they need. Tutors have all been trained in supporting learners and apprentices with special educational needs and/or disabilities, and they have received further training on mental health, dyslexia and neurodivergence.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders work closely with employers, to ensure that the adjustments they put in place in the classroom extend to the workplace. Additionally, leaders recognise the challenges young apprentices face when entering the workplace and routinely work alongside parents too, so that younger apprentices receive the support they need.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders work with external stakeholders in the logistics industry, such as industry professional bodies, to understand the skills need of the industry accurately. They plan apprenticeships and Skills Bootcamps to ensure that learners have the up-to-date skills needed to maintain and grow the industry workforce.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Governors validate the strategy of leaders to support the skills gap, recruitment concerns and professionalism of the logistics industry. They support and challenge leaders effectively, including in the development of quality assurance processes. Leaders and governors have a clear picture of the provider’s strengths and areas for development that they establish through comprehensive analysis of data collected throughout apprenticeship and Skills Bootcamp courses. This information enables governors to put improvement measures in place rapidly and to evaluate their impact. For example, governors helped leaders to identify the need to increase the support provided to younger apprentices in order to ensure that they are successful.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders are committed to developing positive staff wellbeing. They provide monthly wellbeing days, manage trainer caseloads sensitively and run team building days to help staff feel valued and part of a team.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders support staff to develop personally and professionally. Leaders plan programmes of professional learning, based on individual need, personal development targets and emerging themes from quality assurance activities. Staff are encouraged to study higher teaching qualifications, achieve their heavy goods vehicle driving license and spend days in industry to refresh their knowledge. However, this professional development is not yet focused enough on teaching skills to have a consistently high standard of teaching and learning across the provision.

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Achievement Strong standard

The proportion of learners who complete their Skills Bootcamp and achieve their professional qualifications is very high. Learners with barriers to learning, including those without level 2 English and mathematics qualifications, achieve at a rate equivalent to their peers.

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Achievement Strong standard

Learners develop significant new knowledge and practical skills from their starting points that prepare them well for the industry. Transport management learners gain knowledge about the importance of vehicle checks, the use of technical tools to aid route planning and how to set targets for expected delivery schedules. Learners produce written work of a high standard.

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Achievement Strong standard

Learners are very well prepared for their next steps, and most go on to gain employment, achieve promotions or begin higher study. For example, freight forwarding learners take on additional paid responsibilities in customer relations, learners on driving Skills Bootcamps achieve light goods vehicle driving jobs and transport management learners take on new roles within the workplace.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders understand their provision well and have designed Skills Bootcamp courses that closely align with the skills priorities identified by industry professional bodies, employers and local funding agencies. Leaders tailor curriculums to meet the logistics career development needs of learners. They do this by including professional qualifications in freight forwarding and heavy and light goods vehicle driving licenses.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders provide well-sequenced Skills Bootcamp courses. Trainers ensure that transport management learners know subject-specific terminology and the importance of vehicle checks before moving on to more complex subjects, like load positioning and weight distribution. Learners gradually develop confidence in applying their new knowledge in challenging situations.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Trainers are logistics industry specialists. They use their expertise to enable learners to develop up-to-date knowledge and skills. For example, freight experts teach learners the principles of import and export legalities. Light goods vehicle trainers provide useful explanations of key terminology and expert demonstrations of driving skills to learners. Trainers offer additional support sessions to learners, including support with calculations of load and driving hours, to ensure those with barriers to their learning achieve as well as their peers. They ensure learners are given clear feedback that helps them understand how to develop their skills and also to develop their use of workplace written language.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Trainers assess the prior knowledge of learners effectively at the start of their studies. The majority of learners quickly develop extensive new skills and confidence as they work towards achieving their professional qualifications and developing their careers.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Leaders ensure that learners receive well-structured careers information, advice and guidance. Learners benefit from individualised advice from their industry-experienced tutors about future learning and job opportunities available to them. Those who are seeking a career in freight forwarding are helped with their job applications and interview preparation by industry expert recruitment specialists.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Learners develop knowledge about the risk factors relevant to the sector, such as lone and isolated working, the importance of rest breaks and keeping healthy in the role. Trainers teach sessions about mental and physical health, supporting learners to make healthy choices, when they are on the road.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Learners demonstrate high levels of respect and courtesy towards their tutors and their peers. They are punctual to their lessons and attend well. Tutors provide useful catch-up sessions on the rare occasions when learners miss a lesson, ensuring the continuity of their learning.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Learners feel confident that their tutors would respond promptly if they had a welfare concern. Learners value the information they receive about radicalisation and extremism and can apply the learning to their workplaces. They develop a good awareness of potential risks, such as safe parking areas and stowaways.

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Achievement Expected standard

Leaders and trainers use information about starting points effectively in most cases, to ensure that apprentices develop the new knowledge and skills needed for their roles. Apprentices apply these skills rapidly in their workplace, for example level 2 removals operatives learn about sustainability and use this knowledge to reduce their use of packing materials. The work apprentices produce is tailored to their workplace and is at an appropriate standard for the level of their study.

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Achievement Expected standard

The proportion of apprentices who complete their apprenticeship and achieve their qualification is high. While achievement for younger apprentices is lower than their peers, leaders have put in substantial additional support to ensure that younger apprentices are able to complete their studies. Apprentices with barriers to their learning achieve at broadly the same rate as their peers. The large majority of apprentices remain in their roles or achieve promotions with their employer following their studies.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders and managers offer well-designed and sequenced apprenticeships that specifically target regional and national skills needs in the transport and logistics sector. They work closely with employers to design programmes that meet their needs, and to ensure that apprentices have the opportunities they need to practise their new skills in the workplace.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Tutors are well qualified and experienced in the subject they teach. In class, they use a range of effective teaching approaches to develop and deepen apprentices' knowledge and skills, which they skilfully contextualise to their industry experiences and those of apprentices. Apprentices value the knowledge their tutors bring and the opportunities they have to share their experiences of working in the sector with their peers in a safe space.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Tutors use assessment well to understand apprentices' progress, and adjust their teaching accordingly. In most cases, the feedback that apprentices receive is developmental and tells them what they need to do to improve their knowledge and the quality of their work. However, in a few cases, feedback is less helpful. Similarly, in reviews, the targets that tutors set sometimes have a limited focus on assignment completion, and do not always guide apprentices towards the wider knowledge, skills and behaviours that need to develop.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders have ensured that their curriculums are accessible to all apprentices. Those apprentices with barriers to their learning, either temporary or long term, are well supported and provided with regular opportunities to review the support they need and increase or decrease it as necessary.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Apprentices have access to an extensive wider curriculum offer, which allows them to choose additional courses to enhance their learning. Trainers and employers support apprentices to choose courses to further develop their careers, to widen their workplace skills and to support personal development. Apprentices study courses in logistics, sustainability, safeguarding, health and safety, artificial intelligence and Six Sigma methodology. Apprentices and employers value the additional skills apprentices bring to the workplace.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Leaders work with employers to develop career pathways through the logistics industry that help apprentices understand their next steps. For example, moving from warehouse operatives to heavy goods vehicle drivers or into team leader roles. Apprentices access online career resources to broaden their understanding and attend workshops to support their application to promoted roles.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Leaders have high aspirations for apprentices. Trainers work with apprentices to ensure behaviour standards and attendance in online lessons are high. They ensure apprentices can recognise signs of bullying and harassment and are confident to challenge poor behaviour in their workplace. Apprentices have a sound understanding of life in modern Britain and the importance of respect and tolerance within their industry.

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

Adult learners and apprentices experience highly targeted, carefully designed courses and apprenticeships that support their development in the logistics industry. In many cases, they rapidly develop high-level skills, such as heavy goods vehicle driving and import licensing, that allow them to move into more highly paid roles within the industry. Almost all adult learners and a high and increasing proportion of apprentices achieve their qualifications and use their new skills confidently.

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

Apprentices and adult learners benefit from a wide range of individualised support from trainers that accurately meets their needs. Trainers and leaders are committed to reducing barriers to learning, through the well-considered support they offer and the effective professional relationships they cultivate. Apprentices value the support they are given to help them succeed.

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

Trainers create an inclusive working environment for learners and apprentices, in which professional behaviours are prioritised. Trainers and level 3 team leader apprentices discuss topics, such as how to support customers with hearing impairments and language barriers sensitively, to ensure effective working practices. As a result, apprentices and learners are keenly aware of the importance of fundamental British values on their life and work. Leaders provide apprentices with extensive wider opportunities for learning, many of which allow them to gain additional qualifications to expand their careers. Apprentices study short courses, such as mentoring and coaching, specialist packing and estimating, driver certificate of professional competence and sustainability training, as well as a range of safeguarding and health and safety courses. Younger apprentices learn how to keep themselves healthy and safe, both inside and outside work. Apprentices and employers

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

value this additional opportunity highly and many apprentices complete a wide range of training.

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What it's like to be a learner and/or an apprentice at this provider

Apprentices and adult learners are highly motivated to achieve their qualifications and progress their careers. They value the industry knowledge and experience that trainers bring to their teaching. Adult learners benefit from additional support in applying for new roles within the industry, including CV writing and interview preparation. As a result, the large majority of learners move into new roles and gain new responsibilities as a result of their learning.

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Next steps

Leaders should ensure they improve the quality and consistency of the feedback provided to learners. Leaders should sharpen the focus on staff training to further develop the quality of teaching. Leaders should continue to develop the pastoral support for younger apprentices, to ensure they achieve their apprenticeships. Leaders should improve the setting of targets for apprentices to focus on the development of knowledge, skills and behaviours.

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About this inspection

Following our renewed inspection framework, all inspections are now led by His Majesty’s Inspectors (HMIs) or by Ofsted Inspectors (OIs) who have previously served as HMIs.

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About this inspection

Inspectors spoke with leaders, managers and trainers during the inspection.

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About this inspection

The inspectors confirmed the following information about the provider:

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About this inspection

TRS Training Limited is an independent learning provider based in St. Helens, Merseyside. The company specialises in training for the logistics and warehousing sector. The company has been funded to offer apprenticeships since 2017 and Skills Bootcamps since 2021 to learners and apprentices nationally. Skills Bootcamps are funded by Cheshire and Warrington, West Yorkshire, South Yorkshire, Norfolk and Suffolk, East Midlands and Liverpool City Region Combined Authorities.

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Team inspectors:

Stuart Collett, His Majesty's Inspector Robert Busby, Ofsted Inspector Elaine Price, Ofsted Inspector Graham Heath, Ofsted Inspector Alex Lang, Ofsted Inspector Simon Farrar, Ofsted Inspector

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Facts and figures used on inspection

The data was used by the inspector(s) during the inspection. More recent data may have been published since the inspection took place.

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Percentage of learning aims successfully achieved

At the time of the inspection, there were 36 adult learners studying Skill Bootcamps in international freight forwarding, transport management, transport manager, HGV driving and team leader. There were 585 apprentices, 59 of whom are aged under 19. The majority of apprentices study level 3 team leader or level 3 transport and warehouse operations supervisor apprenticeships. The provider works with two subcontractors, Road Haulage Association limited and British International Freight Association.

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Exceptional

Practice is exceptional: of the highest standard nationally. Other providers can learn from it.

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Strong standard

The provider reaches a strong standard. Leaders are working above the standard expected of them.

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Expected standard

The provider is fulfilling the expected standard of education and/or care. This means they are following the standard set out in statutory and non ‑ statutory legislation and the professional standards expected of them.

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Needs attention

The expected standards are not met but leaders are likely able to make the necessary improvements.

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Urgent improvement

The provider needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care. services providing education and skills for children and learners of all ages, and inspects and regulates services that care for children and young people.

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Urgent improvement

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 .

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Urgent improvement

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-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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Urgent improvement

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Urgent improvement

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

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