Wiltshire Council

Wiltshire Council

Address: County Hall, Bythesea Road, Trowbridge, Wiltshire, BA14 8JN Unique reference number (URN): 50245

p.1

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.

p.1

How we evaluate safeguarding

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

p.1

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.

p.1

Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders focus intently in meeting the needs of the most disadvantaged in their community. They teach learners at local community venues to reduce travel burdens. They plan timings for face to face and online courses thoughtfully, considering learners’ work, family and religious commitments.

p.2

Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders design courses specifically to meet the needs of a diverse range of learners. These include learners newly resettled into the country, learners with special educational needs and/or disabilities (SEND) and parent/carers of children with additional needs. Leaders provide bespoke courses for care-experienced learners to bridge the gap to further learning.

p.2

Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders have very clear and effective processes for identifying learners’ support needs during application, enrolment and induction. They reduce learners' barriers to learning and ensure that learners are on appropriate courses. Leaders provide adaptations such as classroom support, accessible digital resources and tailored timetables to support learners' needs. They train staff suitably to recognise and respond to learners’ needs, including learners with SEND. However, they do not have a systematic approach to reviewing and adapting the support offered to learners to identify consistently when to reduce it.

p.2

Leadership and governance Expected standard

Governors have a very clear vision for the curriculum offer and recognise rightly its benefits to learners and the wider community. They value highly the positive contribution that leaders make to supporting wider council priorities. Governors maintain a clear strategic oversight and use their experience, knowledge and skills to influence positive change and maintain high standards and expectations. Leaders understand their strengths and areas for improvement and communicate these well to governors. Governors challenge leaders well, and leaders respond with decisive, timely and impactful actions.

p.2

Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders and governors work very well with stakeholders to ensure that they are responsive to the changing needs of their communities. Leaders adapt courses in English for speakers of other languages (ESOL) for new cohorts from specific countries and carefully consider these learners' needs and prior experiences.

p.2

Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders co-plan courses with partners creatively to enrich learning experiences and positively influence their communities more widely. For example, tutors teach family learning courses jointly with an educational psychologist to support parents with strategies to increase attendance of their children in school.

p.2

Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders provide a range of relevant training opportunities for tutors to develop their professional skills and expertise. For example, ESOL tutors complete useful training to improve their skills in supporting learners who are not literate in their first language. However, a few tutors do not benefit from high-quality training to support them to develop further their teaching skills.

p.2

Achievement Expected standard

Most learners achieve their personal targets and goals, making appropriate progress from their individual starting points. Many learners begin their courses facing significant barriers, including low confidence, social isolation and limited English language skills. Most learners develop the knowledge, skills and behaviours that they need to participate more fully in their communities, engage confidently with professionals and increase their independence. Learners on family learning courses become more able to support their children’s education. Learners achieve well. Learners with special educational needs and/or disabilities achieve at least as well as their peers.

p.3

Achievement Expected standard

Leaders and tutors support learners to develop relevant communication, English language and wider life skills, and provide appropriate guidance for learners' next steps. Learners progress to further learning, volunteering or employment, or gain greater independence.

p.3

Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders design courses to meet the needs of learners who often face significant barriers to participation. They consider the curriculum content carefully. They align their curriculum offer to support the strategic aims of the wider council and emerging needs of the region.

p.3

Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders provide a flexible mix of training in community settings and online to support learners with different commitments and barriers to learning. Tutors skilfully develop learners’ confidence to contribute and share their thoughts and experiences during online and face-to-face teaching.

p.3

Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Tutors plan their courses carefully by considering what learners already know and can do. They plan teaching activities that build logically and incrementally to support learners to achieve their planned outcomes. Tutors revisit key concepts to reinforce learning. They monitor the progress that learners make appropriately. Tutors adapt the support they offer to individuals to make learning accessible and to maintain high levels of participation. They provide learners with feedback that helps them to identify their own progress and what to do next.

p.3

Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Tutors are experienced and well qualified. They explain concepts clearly and check learning effectively. They provide opportunities for learners to apply new knowledge and skills and reflect on their own learning and development. Tutors mainly use assessment well to reinforce learning. However, at times, learners find activities set for independent learning too difficult. This limits their development outside of taught sessions.

p.3

Participation and development Expected standard

Leaders design courses specifically to include support for learners to develop their confidence, resilience and wellbeing. Tutors use effective strategies to actively promote these outcomes.

p.4

Participation and development Expected standard

Tutors create supportive, inclusive and welcoming environments where learners feel safe to share their thoughts and ideas. Learners feel valued, and this helps them to overcome personal barriers to learning, such as anxiety.

p.4

Participation and development Expected standard

Most learners attend well. Leaders track attendance thoroughly and follow up swiftly on non- attendance. Leaders understand the barriers that prevent attendance and make adaptations to encourage greater participation. This includes adjustments to timetables and locations of courses, and additional personalised support to prevent learners from falling behind.

p.4

Participation and development Expected standard

Tutors include a range of useful topics within the curriculum and teach these in a way that is meaningful to learners in their daily lives. These include teaching the benefits of healthy eating and physical exercise and how these support mental and physical wellbeing.

p.4

Participation and development Expected standard

Tutors get to know their learners well and understand their aspirations. They provide them with suitable personalised advice and guidance and relevant signposting that supports their next steps. However, this information is often reliant on tutors’ knowledge, and leaders do not track the quality or breadth of this information.

p.4

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

Learners feel welcome and safe in their learning environments. Whether they are taught face to face, online or a mix of these, learners feel valued as individuals because their tutors get to know them well. Tutors encourage learners to identify useful personal goals. They provide opportunities for learners to reflect on what they learn and the progress they make towards these individual goals. This contributes to learners developing confidence in their knowledge and abilities and achieving their intended outcomes.

p.4

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

Learners receive useful personalised support to reduce barriers to their learning. For example, they can be accompanied to lessons or join peer network groups. Tutors use technology to support teaching appropriately and design activities thoughtfully. Learners enjoy their courses and are motivated to succeed.

p.4

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

Learners on family learning courses develop new skills in communicating with their children. They learn strategies to support their children to develop positive behaviours and motivation for learning at home and in school. Learners studying courses to improve their English language skills develop the confidence that they need to participate more actively in their community. They learn the specific vocabulary that they need to communicate with professionals such as doctors and teachers.

p.4

Lead inspector:

Lowenna Bradley, His Majesty's Inspector

p.5

Team inspectors:

Paul James, His Majesty's Inspector Sarah Alexander, His Majesty's Inspector Learners develop their understanding and respect for fundamental British values. Tutors model and teach these values in context, so that learners can relate them easily to their everyday lives.

p.5

Next steps

Leaders should systematically review the support that they offer learners to ensure that it remains relevant and prepares learners for greater independence. Leaders should strengthen the development of tutors' teaching skills, so that teachers provide consistently expert teaching and assessment across all programmes. Leaders should improve their oversight of careers advice and guidance to ensure that it is of a consistently high quality, providing all learners with clear insight into potential future pathways.

p.5

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.

p.5

About this inspection

Inspectors spoke with governors, leaders, stakeholders, tutors and learners during the inspection.

p.5

About this inspection

The inspectors confirmed the following information about the provider:

p.5

About this inspection

The Wiltshire Council provides tailored learning programmes to adult learners. At the time of the inspection, there were 89 adult learners in learning. Learners study tailored learning programmes with a range of purposes, including essential skills, building confidence, health and wellbeing, preparing for employment or future study and equipping parents/carers to support children’s learning. Most courses offered are short courses, which are taught face to face or online, or a mix of these. Face-to-face courses are taught at a wide range of community venues across the county.

p.5

About this inspection

Family and community learning manager: Rowena Prentice

p.5

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.

p.6

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'.

p.6

Exceptional

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

p.6

Strong standard

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

p.6

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.

p.7

Needs attention

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

p.7

Urgent improvement

The provider needs to make urgent improvements to provide the expected standard of education and/or care.

p.7

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.

p.7

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 .

p.7

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 .

p.7

Urgent improvement

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

p.7

Urgent improvement

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

p.7