Mercury Training Services Ltd

Mercury Training Services Ltd

Address: Office 112, Dudley Court South, The Waterfront, Level Street, Brierley Hill, DY5 1XN Unique reference number (URN): 1270899

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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 identify apprentices’ learning, support and wellbeing needs through clear and established processes. Staff gather, review and share information effectively, and ensure that support is timely, targeted and responsive. When needs change or new barriers emerge, staff adapt the support they offer appropriately so that apprentices can continue to participate and make sustained progress.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders support apprentices with additional support needs well through personalised support plans, reasonable adjustments and regular reviews. Staff use support information effectively to adapt learning while maintaining high expectations for apprentices.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders take appropriate action to reduce wider barriers to learning and wellbeing. Staff work closely with apprentices and employers to secure suitable adjustments, additional support and access arrangements where required. As a result, apprentices remain engaged in learning and progress towards their goals.

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Inclusion Expected standard

Leaders provide staff with suitable training in supporting apprentices with special educational needs and/or disabilities, neurodiversity and inclusive practice. Staff demonstrate a secure understanding of how to identify needs and implement support. They value the training they receive, but recognise that further development would strengthen their confidence in supporting apprentices facing more complex barriers to learning.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders identify the strengths and areas for development of their apprenticeships accurately. They have restructured the organisation and recruited new staff to drive improvements and to respond to funding changes to security apprenticeships. Leaders have improved apprenticeship achievement rates, particularly for apprentices with learning support needs and have improved the enrolment and onboarding process to ensure that apprentices are recruited to apprenticeships that match their jobs.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders have recruited governors who are industry experts and understand apprenticeships well. They support leaders effectively with industry insight and challenge them to develop a strategy and vision that aligns with industry and employer needs.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders ensure that staff wellbeing is prioritised. They manage staff welfare and wellbeing carefully, including workload. Leaders celebrate staff success and ensure that there are opportunities to bring together the remote working team in person to prevent remote workers from feeling isolated.

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Leadership and governance Expected standard

Leaders work extensively with external stakeholders to understand their industry and the part they play in developing the professionalism of security and facilities management staff. They work with professional bodies to encourage under-represented groups into the industry and to develop careers pathways for new apprentices. Leaders ensure that staff have opportunities for professional learning, including in developing their vocational skills. They have planned a development programme that includes behaviour management and domestic violence awareness as well as peer support to develop teaching. However, the programme does not focus enough on developing teaching skills and techniques further, particularly in relation to online teaching and learning.

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Achievement Expected standard

Apprentices make the expected progress from their starting points, and around two thirds achieve. Achievement has increased over the last 3 years, particularly for apprentices with additional support needs, who now achieve at the same rate as their peers.

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Achievement Expected standard

Apprentices develop substantial new knowledge, skills and behaviours. Level 4 protective security adviser apprentices skilfully complete risk assessments and contribute to organisational security planning. Level 4 facilities manager apprentices have a better understanding of finance and budgets and engage more confidently with stakeholders. Apprentices develop their digital skills using spreadsheets to present data and when using artificial intelligence to record meeting notes. They develop important workplace report- writing skills, and their written work reflects their workplace skills development.

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Achievement Expected standard

Apprentices are prepared well for their next steps and know how to develop their careers further. Many progress to higher level training and gain promotion in the workplace.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders have an accurate understanding of the quality of the apprenticeship curriculums that they offer. They take suitable and swift actions where improvements are needed. For example, they have strengthened the onboarding of apprentices to ensure that the apprenticeship is aligned more closely with their job roles. Consequently, retention and achievement have improved, and apprentices are better prepared for their next steps.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Leaders ensure that curriculums are coherently planned and sequenced. Level 3 business administrator apprentices begin with developing professional communication skills and learn about organisational structures before they put this learning into practice with stakeholder engagement and relationship management. Apprentices first learn the skills needed to have the greatest impact in their workplace. Leaders collaborate highly effectively with the security industry and the civil service to design apprenticeship curriculums that are relevant to industry. Security curriculums align with operational practice and include topics such as Martyn’s Law, general data protection regulations and protective security planning. Because of this, apprentices’ learning is highly relevant to their workplace.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Skills coaches are experts in their industries. They mostly use a range of appropriate strategies to teach apprentices. Security coaches share experiences from policing, military and commercial security to demonstrate how theory applies in real operational situations. As a result, apprentices develop a secure understanding of key concepts and apply them confidently within their workplace.

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Curriculum and teaching Expected standard

Skills coaches ensure that teaching is accessible for apprentices who work night shifts, variable shifts or part time. They are responsive to apprentices returning to work after absences to catch up quickly, planning additional support sessions and targeted learning plans. Apprentices know what they must do to achieve their apprenticeship.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Leaders focus on developing apprentices' personal and professional skills alongside their apprenticeships. They create an inclusive and respectful culture where apprentices feel safe, valued and supported. Skills coaches build strong relationships with apprentices and employers. Apprentices attend well and develop the professional behaviours needed in the workplace.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Leaders provide a broad range of opportunities that extend learning beyond the apprenticeship. Leaders register apprentices with professional bodies, such as the Security Institute and Institute of Workplace and Facilities Management, which gives access to industry webinars, conferences, podcasts and specialist workshops. These experiences deepen apprentices' understanding of current industry practice and enable them to apply new knowledge confidently in the workplace.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Apprentices develop their understanding of safeguarding, equality, diversity, fundamental British values, healthy relationships and online safety through learning that is well contextualised to their occupational roles. They understand how to report concerns.

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Participation and development Expected standard

Leaders ensure that careers education is embedded throughout the curriculum. Many apprentices are well prepared for progression into more senior and specialist roles in their organisations. However, careers education is not yet broad enough for apprentices to understand the wider progression opportunities and further study that their qualifications might lead to.

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

Apprentices benefit from highly specialised training, linked closely to their specific job roles. They develop their skills and confidence quickly as a result of teaching and support from industry-expert skills coaches, who bring their own experience into learning. Skills coaches encourage apprentices to apply their new knowledge to their workplaces, to consider how to anticipate risks, review security procedures and improve organisational planning.

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

Apprentices with barriers to their learning are well supported from the start of their learning, with additional learning sessions and individualised learning plans. They recognise the commitment of staff to ensure they have the opportunities for success in their studies. The proportion of apprentices who achieve their apprenticeship has increased over the past 3 years. This includes those with additional support needs, who achieve at broadly the same rate as their peers.

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

Apprentices learn in an inclusive environment where staff ensure that they understand the importance of respect and tolerance in dealing with members of the public and their peers. Apprentices are keenly aware of the responsibilities of their roles in security in identifying behaviours linked to extremism and radicalisation. They understand the importance of collaborative working with the police and armed services as part of their roles.

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

Apprentices enjoy their learning and appreciate the professional development and networking opportunities they are provided with. They understand the progression opportunities in their sector because of clear career pathways outlined at the start of learning. Apprentices are highly motivated to achieve their apprenticeship and develop their careers in security and facilities management.

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Next steps

Leaders should refine and improve their strategy for inclusion and strengthen staff training to support apprentices with diverse learning needs and barriers more effectively. Leaders should provide staff with high-quality professional development opportunities that further improve their teaching skills. Leaders should ensure that apprentices develop a thorough knowledge of their potential future pathways and are confident in knowing how to take their next steps. Leaders should encourage apprentices to engage more with additional learning opportunities beyond the curriculum.

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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, governors, skills coaches, apprentices and employers during the inspection.

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About this inspection

The inspectors confirmed the following information about the provider: Mercury Training Services Limited is an independent learning provider based in Dudley in the West Midlands. It provides specialist apprenticeship training in security and facilities management. At the time of the inspection, there were 639 apprentices in training, almost all

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Team inspectors:

Mark Parton, His Majesty's Inspector Maggie Fobister, Ofsted Inspector Karen Bill, Ofsted Inspector Karen Tucker, Ofsted Inspector

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Facts and figures used on inspection

This was the data available at the time of the full inspection, taken from different sources . More recent data may have been published since the full inspection took place.

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Facts and figures used on inspection

The inspector(s) used this data during the full inspection on 4 August 2026

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Adult learning programmes

aged over 19. Apprentices study apprenticeships from level 2 to level 5. The largest number of apprentices were studying level 3 security first line manager, level 4 protective security adviser, level 5 operations manager and level 2 professional security operative.

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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

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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