红桃影视

The government has published guidance on how to form initial teacher training partnerships following its controversial re-accreditation process that will cut the number of teacher trainers by a quarter.

Ministers are hoping that trainers that failed to get accreditation will join partnerships and continue to operate under other accredited providers.

is meant to help these partnerships to form, but also provides an update on the direction of travel with some key routes into teacher training.

Here’s what we learned.

1. School direct fee-funded route scrapped…

School direct is a school-led route into teacher training run by partnerships between lead schools, other schools and an accredited ITT provider.

There are currently two types of school direct training – salaried, where schools foot the training bill, and fee-funded, where training is paid-for with tuition fees.

In the guidance, the DfE said accredited teacher trainers should 鈥渃ease marketing a 鈥榮chool direct鈥� fee-funded route to candidates for courses starting from September 2024鈥�.

The DfE said there would be “little change” for candidates and trainees, however, as they would still be able to train at schools partners with accredited providers through other fee-funded routes.

Providers can also “continue to market particular features of their graduate fee-funded programmes”, even though school direct fee funded will stop being a “distinct” route.

This year,

2. …and salaried route could be rolled into apprenticeship

The school direct salaried route accounts for around 3 per cent of recruits a year.

The DfE said salaried teacher training 鈥渨ill remain an important part of the ITT offer鈥�, but said it was 鈥渃onsidering how best to streamline salaried routes into teaching, whilst ensuring they remain viable and attractive for both providers and trainees鈥�.

As part of this, 鈥渢he DfE is considering how to consolidate the school direct salaried route and postgraduate teacher apprenticeship into a single employment-based route under the apprenticeships banner鈥�.

Schools Week revealed in 2017 that ministers were considering this option. The DfE has been under pressure to encourage greater take-up of apprenticeships in education.

No timeframe is given, with further guidance promised 鈥渋n due course鈥�. However, the DfE said 鈥渁ny changes regarding the future of school direct salaried will be announced to the sector with due regard for implementation timelines鈥�.

3. Trainers can let their accreditation go 鈥榙ormant鈥�

Some accredited teacher trainers 鈥渕ay prefer to collaborate to deliver ITT at greater scale under one partnership鈥�, the DfE said.

For those that do so under another accredited provider, the DfE will 鈥渁llow a two-year accreditation dormancy period to support them in determining their future partnership plans鈥�.

This means teacher trainers that have been accredited from September 2024 may request that their accreditation status be kept on-ice for up to two years, 鈥渁s long as they are delivering ITT as a lead partner with another accredited provider during this period鈥�.

Without this protection, accredited providers that don’t head up their own provision would risk losing their accreditation.

Formal requests for dormancy must be made by April 28 next year.

4. Readiness checks must be completed by spring 2024

As part of the next stage of the ITT review, accredited teacher trainers will face readiness checks.

This will allow the DfE to 鈥渃heck the progress that accredited providers have made in preparing to deliver ITT and where required, will provide improvement support to ensure that all ITT programmes are of high quality鈥�.

Checks, carried out by the DfE鈥檚 鈥淚TT market quality associates鈥�, will include reviewing a selection of providers鈥� trainee curriculum materials.

The timetable for the readiness to deliver checks 鈥渨ill vary slightly across providers, but the process must conclude by Spring 2024鈥�.

5. Three ‘key responsibilities’ in each partnership

The DfE said it would 鈥渘ot prescribe the structure of partnerships or the number of organisations involved鈥�, but said partnerships must cover three key responsibilities.

The accredited provider will have 鈥渇ull and final accountability for all aspects of training design, delivery and quality across the partnership鈥�.

Lead partners will have an 鈥渙perational or strategic role with responsibilities such as trainee recruitment, involvement in curriculum design, supplying lead mentors or running intensive training and practice鈥�.

And placement schools will provide placements and general mentors.

6. Providers can delegate and roles can overlap

All partnerships must be led by a single accredited provider, but the DfE said 鈥渙ther roles may overlap鈥�.

鈥淔or instance, an accredited provider may have lead partner responsibilities and some schools that are placement schools may also have a role as a lead partner.鈥�

Accredited providers also have the flexibility to 鈥渄elegate responsibilities to their lead partners, as long as the accredited provider has sufficient oversight鈥�.

All organisations in a partnership 鈥渕ay have some involvement in the development of the ITT programme and, in some cases, the accredited provider may wish to delegate aspects of their course design to lead partners鈥�.

7. Partnership make-up will inform inspection schedule

Ofsted is due to move to a three-year ITT inspection cycle from September 2024, with newly-accredited providers having their first inspection in their second year of delivering ITT.

However, where a partnership has been formed between an accredited provider and one that is not accredited, the DfE will 鈥渓iaise with Ofsted who will determine the appropriate timing of the first inspection鈥�.

The DfE will recommend to Ofsted that consideration should be given for newly formed partnerships where an accredited university is involved, or where there are 鈥渕ultiple unaccredited partners and there have been demonstrable changes in governance, leadership and quality assurance鈥�.

Ofsted will 鈥渦se this information as well as the process outlined in their published risk assessment methodology to determine the timing of an ITT inspection鈥�.

8. Partnerships need formal agreements

The DfE said partnerships can take various forms, from collaborations between two or three organisations to larger networks.

But they should be 鈥渂ased on a formal agreement鈥�.

This should be a 鈥渃lear, working document that can be used to guide and inform the contributions of each partner and help to support coherent arrangements across the various contexts in which the training takes place鈥�.