Mid-Essex Initial Teacher Training Consortium

Consortium

Initial Teacher Education inspection report

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Consortium

Provider address Shenfield High School Alexander Lane Shenfield Essex CM15 8RY

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Consortium

Unique Reference number Inspection number Inspection dates Lead inspector 28 June–2 July 2010 Anne Looney HMI 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 Support Service (Cafcass), schools, colleges, initial teacher training, work- based learning and skills training, adult and community learning, and education and training in prisons and other secure establishments. It rates council children’s services, and inspects services for looked after children, safeguarding and child protection. Further copies of this report are obtainable from the school. Under the Education Act 2005, the school must provide a copy of this report free of charge to certain categories of people. A charge not exceeding the full cost of reproduction may be made for any other copies supplied.

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Consortium

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 copy all or parts of this document for non-commercial educational purposes, as long as you give details of the source and date of publication and do not alter the information in any way. www.ofsted.gov.uk Reference no. 080190

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Introduction

1. This inspection was carried out by Her Majesty’s Inspectors supported by a team of specialist inspectors in accordance with the Framework for the Inspection of Initial Teacher Education (2008-11) .

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Introduction

2. The inspection draws upon evidence from all aspects of the provision to make judgements against all parts of the inspection evaluation schedule in the framework. Inspectors focused on the overall effectiveness of the training in supporting high-quality outcomes for trainees and the capacity of the partnership to bring about further improvements. A summary of the grades awarded is included at the end of this report.

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Key to inspection grades

Grade 1 Outstanding Grade 2 Good Grade 3 Satisfactory Grade 4 Inadequate

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Explanation of terms used in this report

Attainment is defined as the standard reached by a trainee at the end of their training. Progress is judged in terms of how well a trainee has developed professionally from their starting point to the standard reached at the time of the inspection or at a suitable review point. Achievement is judged in terms of the progress made and the standard reached by a trainee at the time of the inspection or at a recent assessment review point.

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The provider

3. The Mid-Essex School-Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) Consortium was formed in 1994. Shenfield High School became the lead school in 2003 and in the following year the SCITT joined with the Mid-Essex Graduate Teacher Programme (GTP) to become Mid-Essex ITT. The partnership comprises twelve secondary schools across the Mid-Essex area and, at the time of the inspection, there were also trainees on the employment-based route at an associate school. The SCITT offers a postgraduate qualification and both the employment-based route and the PGCE lead to trainees receiving qualified teacher status (QTS) at the end of their programmes. The consortium offers a range of secondary subjects on both routes.

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The provider

4. The partnership serves the consortium schools well and most of the applicants are from the local area. Many of the trainers have been with the consortium for several years and have remained in the consortium schools becoming subject mentors and even professional mentors.

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The provider

5. There are weekly training sessions held at the lead school and at other consortium schools in both general professional studies and subject studies. These are attended by trainees on both routes.

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A commentary on the provision

6. The following are particularly strong features of the provider and its initial teacher training programmes:  the efficient and effective communication between the provider and the consortium schools  the quality of the central training in general professional studies and subject studies and the coherence with the school-based training  the trainees’ high levels of commitment, enthusiasm and professionalism  the effectiveness with which the consortium meets the needs of local schools.

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A commentary on the provision

7. The following areas require action on both routes to improve the quality of the outcomes for trainees:  the level of consistency with which feedback is given to trainees to help them evaluate their teaching and focus on its impact on learning  the trainers’ shared understanding of the assessment criteria and the consistency with which trainees are assessed  the use of trainees’ outcomes in the improvement planning process.

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A commentary on the provision

8. The following recommendation should be considered in order to raise trainees’ attainment on both routes:  improving trainees’ knowledge and understanding of and preparedness for teaching in a culturally diverse society.

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Context

9. The Mid-Essex SCITT consortium works in partnership with 12 schools to provide initial teacher education. It offers a one-year postgraduate course with QTS for the 11-18 age range. The specialist subjects are English, mathematics, science, modern foreign languages, geography, art and information and communication technology. At the time of the inspection there were 17 trainees on the course.

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Key strengths

10. The key strengths are:  the quality of the central training in general professional studies and subject studies and the coherence with the school-based training  the very good communication across the consortium  the quality and commitment of the trainees  the manner in which the consortium meets local needs  the high level of pastoral support and guidance given to trainees  the shared commitment to the consortium and the desire for continuous improvement in provision.

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Required actions

11. In order to improve the quality of provision, the provider must:  improve the level of consistency with which feedback is given to trainees to help them evaluate their teaching and its impact on learning  improve the trainers’ shared understanding of the assessment criteria and the consistency with which trainees are assessed.

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Required actions

12. In order to improve the quality of improvement planning, the provider must:  make better use of data on trainees’ outcomes both to define areas for improvement and as a measure of success.

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Recommendations

13. In order to raise trainees’ attainment, the provider should:  improve trainees’ understanding of how to teach in a culturally diverse society .

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

14. The attainment of trainees who complete the course is good. Over the past three years there has been an increase in the proportion of trainees judged to be outstanding by the end of the programme. Most trainees, including those within identifiable groups, make good progress towards challenging targets. Employment rates are high. Completion rates, on the other hand, are not consistently high.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

15. Trainees show a high level of commitment both to their training and to their placement schools. They show talent in their subjects and their contribution to the departments is valued by the schools. They have good relationships with their fellow teachers and with their students and they show a confident presence in the classroom. They organise their classrooms well and monitor their students carefully as they work. Trainees employ a range of activities and resources in their lessons. Lesson planning is variable. The best lesson plans have explicit learning objectives, show a good knowledge of the students and indicate how learning will be matched to students’ needs. In some plans trainees’ learning objectives are more to do with the tasks students are to complete rather than with what students are to learn by the end of the lesson. Trainees can talk well about what assessment strategies they might employ but

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

are less adept at using them all effectively. Trainees reflect regularly and well on their own progress but less rigorously on the learning of their students.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

16. Selection systems are effective in ensuring that trainees coming on the course are suited to school-centred initial teacher education. Trainees’ feedback indicates that systems are rigorous and equitable. Processes are kept regularly under review and good use is made of data on withdrawals in order to try to identify possible trends. Although the number of trainees from minority ethnic groups is not high the provider recruits to target. Recruitment to individual subjects overall is variable. The consortium has experienced difficulty in recruiting to target in shortage subjects but finds it easier to recruit in geography, art and English. Employment rates are high, with significant proportions of trainees gaining employment in Essex schools. A large number of these are employed in consortium schools. Completion rates have been variable. Exit interviews and the consortium’s analysis indicate that there is no

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

pattern in the reasons for withdrawal and that the consortium supported trainees well prior to their withdrawal.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

17. The consortium ensures that subject knowledge is audited by trainees and subsequently reviewed throughout the programme. This self-assessment process is not sufficiently interrogated by school-based trainers and can result in a slower start than appropriate for trainees.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

18. The central training in general professional studies and subject studies is comprehensive and of high quality. Experts are used well in the central training to enhance trainees’ experiences and trainees value the variety of active techniques employed by the presenters. They also value the flexible nature of the subject programme which can be adapted to meet their needs as they develop throughout the course. Trainees make good use of these central sessions as a theoretical underpinning to their practice in schools. There are good links between the central and school-based training and mentor sessions are informed well by what trainees have learned centrally. Mentor sessions are regular and there is a shared feeling of entitlement in trainers and trainees. Assignments are used well to enhance the training and are assessed effectively using criteria understood by all.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

19. Trainees receive regular feedback on their lessons from a range of subject- specialist teachers. This feedback is detailed and related well to the QTS Standards. This range of feedback does not always feed explicitly into the weekly trainee progress file and so trainees are not reflecting regularly on all their teaching and on the impact on their students’ learning. Target setting by mentors and other teachers is regular and useful in helping trainees identify the next activities they should undertake to support their progress towards the Standards. However, target setting does not consistently promote dialogue about learning. Although there are some good examples of challenge in both verbal and written feedback, subsequent targets are not consistently challenging, neither are they focused sufficiently on trainees’ skill development.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

20. There is a clearly documented continuous monitoring system. A range of assessment criteria and detailed proformae support the process. Mentors use the trainee progress file regularly to track progress towards the three internal monitoring points and the summative assessment point. The assessment points are planned to be comprehensive, and are informed by assessments of all those who have an interest in the trainees’ work. The complexity of the system, and the fact that it is paper-heavy, mean that not all who are involved in the assessment process find it easy to use. There is some confusion on the use of the criteria and, as a result, there is a lack of consistency at the monitoring points. Moderation takes place at each assessment point but it is not always clear to trainees and mentors how overall grades are arrived at. This has led to some over-grading of trainees at the outstanding/good borderline. The pass/fail

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

21. The consortium schools have made very good use of capital funds to support trainees’ work in schools by providing dedicated work spaces and equipment. This has not yet been evaluated in terms of the impact on trainees’ outcomes. There is a transparency of funding allocation and budget decisions are carefully monitored to ensure equitability and to be in line with the partnership agreement. Human resources are well deployed. Lead subject mentors use their funding creatively and ensure that their work is enhanced by the use of visits and external specialists. Their time is well used but they devote time over and above that allocated to their role.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

22. Trainees receive very good pastoral support from their schools, the lead subject mentors, the course tutors and the programme manager. Trainees themselves show a good understanding of how to teach students with special educational needs and/or disabilities and of the need to use a range of teaching styles to meet different learning needs. Their training prepares them less effectively on how ethnic, cultural and linguistic differences might have an impact on how students achieve. Trainees confirm that the documented policies promote equality of opportunity.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

23. Communication across the consortium is a strength and there is a high level of commitment from all partners to the course. There is a shared understanding in all schools of the considerable benefits to their institutions in terms of recruitment and retention and in terms of continuing professional development for school-based trainers. Senior leaders in schools feel, rightly, that the consortium meets their needs well. The headteachers’ support for mentors is good and this leads to high expectations of, for example, attendance at mentor development sessions and meetings. Involvement with the course has also led to improved succession planning in schools as past trainees become mentors and professional mentors. The professional development for mentors is well differentiated and valued by participants. Good use is made of shadowing and ‘working alongside’ as induction tools. Roles and responsibilities are very clear

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

and this clarity leads to good working relationships across the consortium. Combinations of placements are effective in the way they ensure trainees’ experience in schools is broad and balanced.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

24. There has been training on standardisation and how to challenge trainees to strive to be outstanding. Written guidance is detailed and explicit. It has not been sufficient to ensure that all school-based trainers have developed the skills they need to challenge their trainees through feedback and target setting to help them make the most progress they can. Professional mentors monitor the school-based training well in terms of entitlement. Not all are monitoring the quality of the interaction between trainee and mentor.

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Grade: 2

25. The provider has a good capacity to improve further as shown, in particular, by the upward trend in attainment and the way the training has continued to develop trainees with good employability. The schools’ perception that there have been significant improvements in terms of systems and processes are justified. The consortium leaders have been somewhat over-generous in their grading of their capacity of improve in their self-evaluation document as there is not yet a strong enough link between provision and trainee outcomes in their improvement planning cycle.

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Grade: 2

26. The consortium has a clear picture of the strengths and areas for development of the provision. This is based on a very wide range of analysed evaluative data. Changes to the training provision have come about as a result of that analysis. Trainees’ voice is well used and all sessions and the work of all trainers are evaluated. The consortium also makes use of external consultancy to review the course and has introduced additional mentor development on giving verbal feedback to trainees as a result of such external advice. The quality of the subject professional sessions is now also monitored by link specialist headteachers from the consortium. Their feedback informs the development of future sessions. The work of the middle leaders is evaluated as part of their performance management and feedback, informed by evaluations is given to headteachers on a regular basis by the programme manager. The clarity of this feedback is valued by the headteachers. Although the consortium

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Grade: 2

has made very good use of a range of qualitative data based on a evaluations, data on trainees’ attainment and progress is not yet sufficiently well used to highlight exactly what trainees know, understand and can do and then to analyse how provision might be improved. There is a process of external moderation but it is not extensive or rigorous enough.

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Grade: 2

27. The consortium has carefully managed the growth of the partnership and is meeting the needs of local schools well. The senior management of the consortium has developed in such a way that roles interrelate well. There is flexibility at course management level that provides effective and prompt intervention for trainees causing concern or when trainees experience difficulties in their placements. This intervention has been well supported by placement schools and this good level of collaboration has led to problems being solved and trainees, who might otherwise have failed to complete, continuing on the course. In responding to national initiatives trainers have placed an insufficiently strong emphasis on, for example, curriculum changes which do not have an immediate relevance to the consortium. The consortium is aware of the need to raise the profile of the 14-19 curriculum in the training programme and is planning accordingly.

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Grade: 2

28. All partners have a good understanding of their roles in securing improvements in trainees’ outcomes. Mentors, for example, focus sharply and effectively on supporting trainees to make progress towards achieving the Standards. Professional mentors are kept well informed of priorities for improvement through their regular meetings. Trainees’ progress is reviewed regularly at management level and all trainers and senior managers are kept well informed of progress at individual level through the well-integrated management meeting structure. The improvement plan is detailed and makes use of a good range of evaluative data and it is focused well on improving provision. The links to the process of self-evaluation are explicit so that the managers can streamline the improvement planning process. Each issue is based on evidence, predominantly arising from evaluation, has a clear target and specific criteria by

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Grade: 2

which success will be measured. The plans are regularly reviewed and provide evidence that the consortium is making improvements to provision. There is however, an insufficiently detailed analysis of how well trainees are attaining and making progress against the Standards. There is as a result a lack of hard data on trainees’ outcomes underpinning the objectives in the improvement plan, neither are the success criteria sufficiently linked to the impact of actions on trainees’ outcomes.

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Context

29. Mid-Essex ITT offers a one year employment-based graduate teacher training programme leading to the award of QTS for between 22 and 26 graduate trainee teachers per year. At the time of the inspection there were 20 trainees enrolled on the programme studying one of six subject strands offered this year: science, business studies, English, drama, modern foreign languages and information and communication technology (ICT). The consortium is made up of twelve local partner schools, and one associate school, located in mid-Essex.

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Key strengths

30. The key strengths are:  the efficient and effective communication between the provider and consortium schools  a training programme and an effective schools’ partnership that successfully meet local recruitment needs and encourage growth in succession planning of new trainers  the highly successful general studies and subject studies sessions which are coherently linked to school-based training, fully supporting trainees’ good progress  the very good welfare, guidance and professional support for trainees  the trainees’ high levels of commitment, enthusiasm and professionalism, and success in establishing good working relationships with their colleagues  the trainees’ ability to establish high expectations of pupils and themselves.

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Required actions

31. In order to improve the quality of provision, the provider must:  embed greater consistency with which feedback is given to trainees, helping them to focus on how to evaluate their teaching and its impact on pupil learning and progress in lessons  develop trainers’ shared understanding of assessment criteria and the consistency with which trainees are assessed.

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Required actions

32. In order to improve the quality of improvement planning, the provider must:  make better use of data on trainees’ outcomes both to define areas for improvement and as a measure of success.

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Recommendations

33. In order to raise trainees’ attainment, the provider should:  improve trainees’ knowledge, understanding and competency in preparing to teach in a culturally diverse society.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

34. Trainee’s attainment by the end of the programme is good, with all trainees achieving the QTS Standards at a good or outstanding level. The large majority of trainees make good progress from their starting points as a result of cohesive training with clear links between centrally based and school-based training. Groups of trainees make comparable progress and there is no significant difference in achievement by gender or ethnicity.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

35. Trainees possess good working relationships with colleagues and consistently set high expectations for pupils’ learning and behaviour. Trainees approach their work in schools with high levels of professionalism and are very conscientious. Most trainees are receptive to feedback and can reflect on guidance to further develop their teaching skills and their wider professional role. Trainees have a strong presence in the classroom, use questioning effectively and have good command of the teaching space, in managing pupils and resources well. Trainees effectively use ICT in their teaching and for independent assignment research.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

36. Trainees will often try out new strategies for teaching because they are open- minded and willing to take risks in learning to teach. For some trainees this sharpens their reflective ability and they can evaluate the effectiveness of different teaching methods on pupil progress in lessons. For other trainees taking risks in their practice is less effective because their confidence and ability to reflect critically on the impact of their work on pupil achievement is much less secure. Lesson evaluations focus too much on teaching and activities rather than on pupils’ learning in a lesson and over time. While some trainees plan lessons which are securely based on assessment data, other trainees struggle to use statistical information to plan for learning for different pupil needs such as those who speak English as an additional language and those who are gifted and talented. Teaching by specialist lead subject mentors

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

enables trainees to continually deepen their subject knowledge for teaching. Some trainees are, however, less well equipped in knowing about wider national issues which affect their subject teaching.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

37. Arrangements for the recruitment and selection of trainees are effective and contribute well to trainees’ progress and attainment. Selection processes give appropriate consideration to trainees’ potential as teachers, their personal qualities as well as intellectual capability. Most trainees feel they receive good guidance in the July and September induction briefings where expectations are made clear and the programme structure is explained effectively. Pre- programme tasks support trainees’ initial induction work and give trainees and mentors starting points for subsequent subject audits. There are, however missed opportunities to use trainees’ previous professional experiences, for example as learning assistants, to personalise their training and give trainees more challenge at the start of the programme. 38. The provider regularly meets recruitment targets but in spite of its selection processes retention has been less secure over the last three years. Reasons for

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

withdrawals are carefully examined by programme leaders. A new requirement for pre-programme school experience has been rightly introduced this year to ensure all trainees gain experience of a school environment before the start of the programme. The provider is targeting under-represented groups but despite some success, local demographics of a largely white British population adversely affect the provider’s drive to recruit more trainees from these groups.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

39. Even so, good recruitment coupled with good attainment leads to high employment rates. The high proportion of newly qualified teachers (NQTs) in partner schools successfully meets local recruitment needs and provides an opportunity to nurture graduate teachers from their NQT year into mentoring and professional mentoring roles. High employment rates reflect the confidence of employing schools in the calibre of trainees graduating from the programme.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

40. Good cohesion of school-based training, general professional studies, subject sessions and informative visits to special schools, provides a well-balanced programme helping most trainees make good progress against the QTS Standards. Trainees’ high levels of commitment are rewarded with good training opportunities and the large majority of trainees make the most of varied learning opportunities. Some trainees make only satisfactory progress because they do not receive enough challenge from mentors in reviewing training experiences and are clearly guided in evaluating their progress to set targets and reach their potential.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

41. Trainees are overwhelmingly positive about general professional studies and subject-based sessions and rightly so. The coherence between the sessions is a key strength of the training programme. Sessions taught by experts from partner schools and guest speakers effectively use interactive tasks encouraging trainees to solve problems and discuss how theory can be put into practice. Trainees enthusiastically describe many sessions where case study material gives useful examples for different issues in contrasting schools. The small minority of trainees who make outstanding progress have judiciously chosen to take a lead in developing new initiatives in subject departments. They find ways to develop their own continuous critical dialogue to explore links between theory and practice and their reflections are penetrating in how this improves their own and others’ classroom practice. Such outstanding work

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

is not yet embedded across the programme.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

42. Assessment processes are clearly laid out in programme handbooks. Most trainees create well-organised files recording achievement of the QTS Standards, schemes of work and teaching records. Trainees are largely positive about regular weekly mentor meetings and find these helpful in recording progress in their trainee progress files. These files help trainees reflect on activities undertaken and what they feel about their achievement over time. However, the relationship between targets in the trainee progress files, targets from lesson observations and targets arising from each of the three assessment points do not align well enough to give an incisive picture of how trainees are challenged throughout the programme. Some targets from lesson observations are exemplary, tightly linked to the QTS Standards and indicate what the trainee needs to improve before their next lesson. However, target setting can

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

be generic and short-term, with limited connection to the weekly review meetings. This does not help the trainee to refine and consolidate their practice over time. Interim assessment reports summarise trainees’ attainment in teaching and achievement against the QTS Standards at three key points in the programme but some reports are variable in depth and in precise targets for the next phase of training. Occasionally there is dissonance between different assessors’ reports, restricting trainees’ understanding of exactly how well they are doing.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

43. Decisions about resources are responsive to the needs of trainees and consortium schools. Flexible deployment of programme leaders into schools helps mentors and professional mentors feel supported in their work with trainees. The “virtual community” is well used by trainers and is a very successful feature of the provider’s efficient and effective communication with schools. Particularly effective are electronic Friday updates which trainers find useful as a way of informing them of programme developments as well as reminders about procedural matters.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

44. The partnership agreement contract is transparent in setting out financial resources for schools. The resource base at the lead school is well stocked with up-to-date text books and access to ICT resources. The provider has not yet generated an in-depth analysis of the relationship between resourcing and the impact on outcomes for all trainees.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

45. The good quality of the partnership is driven by energy and enthusiasm from all personnel. Programme leaders galvanise a team spirit so that trainers understand the vision for the programme. Programme documents and training days make explicit the expectations and responsibilities of mentors, professional mentors and lead subject mentors, and trainees are fully aware of how this tripartite relationship supports their training. There is much good training across the consortium but there is some variability in the way the assessment processes and criteria are used. Assessment criteria for lesson observations and summative assessments are not fully understood by everyone and this results in some trainees not receiving as much challenge as they should.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

46. Very good welfare, academic guidance and professional support help trainees speak openly about challenges they face and programme leaders are quick to respond. Trainees receive good pastoral support helping them to make progress and they feel reassured that selection of placements for second school experiences accommodates both family and personal circumstances. Trainees verify that policies in programme documentation promote equality of opportunity and are confident that leaders would deal with any issues of discrimination or harassment in a firm and just manner.

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Overall effectiveness Grade: 2

47. Most trainees develop a good understanding of working with pupils who have special educational needs and/or disabilities and those with particular medical needs. Discussions with trainees reveal they have the ability to develop a deeper pedagogical understanding of teaching in diverse cultural and linguistic contexts. Opportunity for all trainees to secure a deeper understanding of achievement and diversity is limited by placements which are mainly in white British schools. Visits to more culturally diverse schools are highly valued by trainees but learning from these visits is not exploited with trainees.

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Grade: 2

48. Overall the leadership of the programme demonstrates a good capacity to sustain a cycle of evaluation and action planning to secure further improvement. Leaders have sustained good outcomes for trainees over three years. Nevertheless there is no significant change in the proportion of trainees graded as outstanding by the end of the programme. One reason for this is that despite a detailed programme improvement plan, highly responsive to feedback from current and former trainees, employers and trainers whose voice is clearly heard, there is insufficient analysis of quantitative data to set targets linked to raising achievement of all trainees.

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Grade: 2

49. The leadership team regularly reviews how it collects information to evaluate the quality of training. There are many good examples of qualitative data including regular trainee questionnaires and end-of-year programme evaluations. Leaders make effective use of reports from the consultants of the Training and Development Agency for Schools, the trainers who work in schools and the external assessor, to identify where refinements are needed. These reports support the provider’s own self-evaluation well and give leaders a sound overview of the strengths and most areas for improvement. However, reports from external assessors do not always give critical feedback to the provider about the quality of training across the partnership. This means the provider’s view of the training in some schools is more positive than inspectors found. The provider holds mentors, professional mentors and subject lead mentors to account for meeting their role in training but the rigour with which

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Grade: 2

the provider validates the assessment of trainees’ progress and attainment is not tight enough to avoid misunderstandings in applying assessment criteria.

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Grade: 2

50. The provider offers appropriate professional development for all trainers and high levels of attendance reflect the interest of all trainers in developing their work and their commitment to the programme and partnership working. Mentor training is personalised to meet the needs of new and experienced mentors and this is well received. Recent mentor training to examine how to move trainees from good to outstanding achievement is beginning to permeate the dialogue with some trainees but this has yet to take a firm hold in all mentors’ work. Some professional mentors do not have a firm enough grasp of trainees’ progress. The provider rightly acknowledges that there are still some issues to be addressed in ensuring greater consistency across the consortium.

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Grade: 2

51. Leaders are highly responsive to local need because consortium schools know each other well and have secured good working relationships. Expertise is maximised for subject and general professional studies delivery and the provider’s good recruitment processes help schools to train and retain teachers they need for shortage subjects. Leaders have good capacity to anticipate and respond to change at national level both in response to curriculum development and changes to initial teacher education. Most trainees have a good understanding of national safeguarding legislation, the Every Child Matters agenda and often a sound knowledge of national issues in Year 6 to Year 7 transition. They have a more rudimentary knowledge and understanding of the changing landscape of 14 to 19 education and issues such as the impact of Building Schools for the Future and how this is re-shaping the learning environment for many pupils.

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Grade: 2

52. The provider’s self-evaluation document is detailed and provides links between evaluations and improvement planning. The provider successfully modifies programme provision as part of improvement planning to give trainees a well- rounded experience, but the actual impact on outcomes for trainees warrants closer scrutiny. Leaders have been slightly generous in judging overall effectiveness because there is not a tight enough focus on the relationship between provision and outcomes. Nevertheless this does not detract from the senior leaders’ good capacity for further improvement.

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Summary of inspection grades 1

Key to judgements: grade 1 is outstanding; grade 2 is good; grade 3 is satisfactory; grade 4 is inadequate.

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Overall effectiveness

Secondary Employment- based routes How effective is the provision in securing high quality outcomes for trainees? 2 2

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Overall effectiveness

Trainees’ attainment How well do trainees attain? 2 2 To what extent do recruitment / selection arrangements support high quality outcomes? 2 2 To what extent does the training and assessment ensure that all trainees progress to fulfil their potential given their ability and starting points? 2 2 Factors contributing to trainees’ attainment

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Overall effectiveness

To what extent are available resources used effectively and efficiently? 2 2 The quality of the provision To what extent is the provision across the partnership of consistently high quality? 2 2

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Overall effectiveness

Promoting equalities and diversity To what extent does the provision promote equality of opportunity, value diversity and eliminate harassment and unlawful discrimination? 2 2

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Capacity to improve further and/or sustain high quality

Secondary Employment- based routes To what extent do the leadership and management at all levels have the capacity to secure further improvements and/or to sustain high quality outcomes? 2 2

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Capacity to improve further and/or sustain high quality

How effectively does the management at all levels assess performance in order to improve or sustain high quality? 2 2 How well does the leadership at all levels anticipate change, and prepare for and respond to national and local initiatives? 2 2 How effectively does the provider plan and take action for improvement? 2 2

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Capacity to improve further and/or sustain high quality

1 The criteria for making these graded judgements are in the Grade criteria for the inspection of ITE 2008-11 ; Ofsted July 2008; Reference no: 080128. set out in the guidance ‘Complaints about school inspection’, which is available from Ofsted’s website: www.ofsted.gov.uk

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