Dave Shurmer

Dave Shurmer

Address: Foulston Park, Madden Road, Plymouth, Devon, PL1 4NE Unique reference number (URN): 2626836

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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 Strong standard

Staff accurately and thoroughly identify and assess apprentices' barriers to learning at the start of and throughout the apprenticeships. Leaders have a comprehensive strategy to identify apprentices needing support and provide access to experts such as educational psychologists and emotional and mental health specialists. Staff formulate highly effective individual support plans for apprentices that help them to make excellent progress and achieve their goals.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Leaders and staff undertake extensive training to support apprentices effectively with a broad range of individual needs. They attend training on topics such as autism awareness, best practice for supporting apprentices who are known to social care and mental health first aid. Staff carefully consider the socio-economic barriers that apprentices face and make helpful adaptations to support them effectively.

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Inclusion Strong standard

Staff systematically review the support they offer to apprentices at each progress review and adjust this support appropriately. They use information such as the progress that apprentices make in their academic work as well as in their jobs to assess the effectiveness of support plans and adjust the frequency of progress reviews. Leaders and governors frequently review the effectiveness of their inclusion strategy and set high expectations for apprentices' progress.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders and governors have an accurate understanding of most of the strengths of their provision and the areas for development. They use the results of surveys, conversations with employers, reviews and lesson observations to inform them of their strengths and areas to work on. Leaders carefully and appropriately rectified the areas for improvement identified at the previous inspection and their actions are now having the intended impact.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders and those responsible for governance focus firmly on providing the knowledge and skills required to support staff in a range of primary and secondary school settings. They relentlessly pursue strategies that support apprentices to develop the skills they need for their jobs and develop their careers. Leaders use their well-developed stakeholder networks to provide opportunities for apprentices beyond their apprenticeship. This includes a new offer for apprentices to join the final year of an education degree and gain qualified teacher status as a result of the apprenticeship they study.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders carefully manage staff workloads and are committed to maintaining staff wellbeing. They monitor the caseloads of their staff across this and other providers that they work for and ensure that it is manageable so that staff can provide a high-quality service to apprentices. Leaders provide staff with comprehensive professional learning on a range of topics, including teaching strategies, safeguarding, supporting apprentices with special educational needs and/or disabilities and useful updates on the 'Prevent' duty. Staff use their training effectively to provide high-quality training and offer targeted support for apprentices as needs arise.

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Participation and development Strong standard

Apprentices are highly enthusiastic, respectful and very professional in their interactions with others. Leaders focus strongly on apprentices' attendance and participation. They set high expectations for apprentices to attend all lessons and carry out intensive individual coaching sessions to ensure that apprentices maintain their pace of learning.

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Participation and development Strong standard

Staff teach apprentices a comprehensive curriculum of wider topics so that apprentices know how to keep themselves safe in the context of their workplaces. They have a secure understanding of safeguarding matters and the risks associated with extremism and radicalisation. Apprentices learn the importance of online safety and the risks of using artificial intelligence, alongside the potential benefits when used correctly. Apprentices know how to keep themselves physically and mentally healthy, and tutors provide useful guidance to help apprentices manage their wellbeing.

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Participation and development Strong standard

Apprentices take part in voluntary community events associated with the schools they work in such as sports and charity activities. They enjoy their involvement in community projects as it builds their social awareness and confidence in working with people from a range of diverse backgrounds.

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Participation and development Strong standard

Apprentices are prepared well for their next steps. They know the training options available to them after they have completed their apprenticeship, including the routes into teaching.

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Achievement Expected standard

Apprentices make positive progress from their starting points and achieve well. Most apprentices remain with their employers, taking on extra responsibilities such as lead roles in school-based activities. A few apprentices move on to higher education courses and many aim to become qualified teachers. They are well prepared for their next steps and career aspirations. Apprentices move from leading small group coaching to leading large groups. They develop confidence to make adaptations to their lessons to meet children’s physical, speech and language needs, such as making lessons more visual and slowing the pace of their lessons.

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Achievement Expected standard

Specialist teaching assistant apprentices apply the active learning techniques learned on their course to support their learners effectively. They develop a broad understanding of the mathematical, digital and literacy skills that they need to carry out their roles and support their learners effectively.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders ensure that the curriculums that staff teach are well planned and effectively sequenced to ensure that apprentices master the topics covered. They include professional qualifications in the curriculum, such as the higher level teaching assistant qualification, to help apprentices with their next steps. Staff promote and teach 'active learning' methods to help apprentices retain their learning over time. They use and promote physical movement in lessons as well as games, use of toys and puzzles to bring learning to life and provide apprentices with a suite of techniques that they use to support pupils in their schools.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Tutors possess the specialist knowledge they need to support apprentices effectively. They meticulously learn about the schools that apprentices work in so that they teach apprentices valuable knowledge and skills that align closely with their jobs. Staff enlist a range of guest lecturers to talk to apprentices about a range of specialist topics such as behaviour management in contrasting school settings and supporting children with special educational needs and/or disabilities in mainstream and specialist schools. Business administrator apprentices learn about the general importance of policies before discussing how workplace specific policies, such as those relating to general data protection regulations, are applied in their schools.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Tutors meet frequently with apprentices to review the progress they make towards their curricular goals. Apprentices reflect well on their learning experiences and receive useful general feedback from their employers. However, employers' feedback is not typically used well enough to fully inform apprentices' progress and identify their next steps for on-the-job learning.

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

Apprentices enjoy their training. They value highly the focus on 'active learning' strategies and learn how to use these to support the children they work with. Apprentices appreciate sharing their ideas and experiences with apprentices from other schools. They collaborate well to present ideas and techniques to each other that have had a positive impact in the classroom. Apprentices develop their resilience by reflecting with each other how they can make improvements to the strategies they have tried. This builds apprentices' confidence in their work and in their presentation skills as they present their ideas to their peers. Apprentices acquire substantial new knowledge and develop practical skills that prepare them well for their jobs. They value the opportunity to see the impact of their work in the progress that the children they work with make, most of whom have special educational needs and/or disabilities.

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

Apprentices who experience barriers to their learning are very well supported by expert staff who take time to understand their individual support needs. Staff frequently review the support offered to ensure it remains relevant for each individual. This approach ensures that apprentices gradually build independence in their learning and achieve their intended goals.

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

Apprentices gain a thorough understanding of topics such as the dangers of extremism and radicalisation and fundamental British values, and the importance of these in their workplaces. As all apprentices work in education settings, staff begin the training with a simulation of a school intruder, raising apprentices' awareness of the actions they must take if this situation occurred. Staff explicitly refer to British values during lessons and teach apprentices how to model them in their schools. For example, apprentices who work in faith schools learn how to encourage young children to demonstrate mutual respect and tolerance of those with different faiths and beliefs.

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Next steps

Leaders should strengthen their employer engagement in progress reviews so that apprentices and their line managers are fully aware of current targets and areas that apprentices need to work on. Leaders should continue their focus on teaching the knowledge, skills and behaviours that apprentices must demonstrate to achieve distinction grades in their final assessments. Leaders should ensure that quality improvement plans accurately reflect all improvement work that needs to be undertaken or is in development.

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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 apprentices, employers, teachers and leaders during the inspection.

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Lead inspector:

Sarah Alexander, His Majesty's Inspector

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Team inspectors:

Roger Pilgrim, Ofsted Inspector Matt Hann, His Majesty's 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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Apprenticeships overall achievement rate

Dave Shurmer is a small independent training provider offering apprenticeships in the education and sport sectors. Apprentices work in education settings in Plymouth and Cornwall. At the time of the inspection, almost all apprentices were studying the level 5 specialist teaching assistant apprenticeship. Other apprentices studied the level 3 business administrator apprenticeship or the level 4 sports coaching apprenticeship.

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national average

'This provider' and 'national average' figures are taken from the publicly available DfE achievement rates. Where the DfE have supressed the figures, usually due to small cohorts, this has been mirrored in the Report Card and will be shown by an 'S'.

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Year This provider National average

'This provider' and 'national average' figures are taken from the publicly available DfE achievement rates. Where the DfE have supressed the figures, usually due to small cohorts, this has been mirrored in the Report Card and will be shown by an 'S'.

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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.

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Urgent improvement

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

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Urgent improvement

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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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