Ofsted round-up – This week: A look at provider provision in the Midlands and North of England

Nottinghamshire Training Network, Nottingham

Summary of grades awarded:

Effectiveness of provision Satisfactory: Grade 3

Capacity to improve Satisfactory: Grade 3

Achievement and standards Satisfactory: Grade 3

Quality of provision Satisfactory: Grade 3

Leadership and management Satisfactory: Grade 3

Equality of opportunity Contributory grade: Satisfactory: Grade 3

Sector subject areas:

Health, public services and care Satisfactory: Grade 3

Engineering and manufacturing technologies Good: Grade 2

Construction, planning and the built environment Inadequate: Grade 4

Retail and commercial enterprise Satisfactory: Grade 3

Preparation for life and work Inadequate: Grade 4

Business, administration and law Satisfactory: Grade 3

Established in March 2001, Nottingham Training Network (NTN), based in Mansfield, had the support of the Nottingham LSC. Through collaborative working and sharing best practice, the network was formed to develop the capacity of the work based learning sector. NTN has 15 staff; in addition there are 5 learning and development advisors, one literacy and numeracy tutor, one quality and contracts co-ordinator and one marketing co-ordinator. At the time of the inspection there were a total of 695 learners on Train to Gain programmes.

The report found that the overall effectiveness of the provision is satisfactory and that the NTN’s leadership and management are satisfactory as is equality of opportunity. Ofsted found that NTN’s self-assessment process is satisfactory and that the report is reasonably critical, involving all staff in the process. Most of the strengths and areas for improvement identified by inspectors were not proposed by the organisation, however, most grades proposed were judged accurate.

The quality of the provision is satisfactory. Most training and learning occurs in the workplace with a frequently planned assessor visiting learners. However, the inspection has found that progress reviews are inadequate in most areas and lack detail. Programmes were found to meet the needs of both learners and employers well with current workplace skills being reinforced and new skills developed. However Ofsted found that not all learners are made aware of the progression opportunities available once they have completed their current qualification.

Learners agreed that NTN helped them gain a real sense of achievement with some learners gaining a qualification for the first time. Ofsted found that learners benefit from one-to-one training and learning in the working environment. These factors with the commitment of training staff and the increase in employability skills means learners are satisfied with NTN.

Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders, Birmingham

Summary of grades awarded:

Effectiveness of provision Good: Grade 2

Capacity to improve Good: Grade 2

Achievement and standards Good: Grade 2

Quality of provision Good: Grade 2

Leadership and management Good: Grade 2

Equality of opportunity Contributory grade: Satisfactory: Grade 3

Sector subject area:

Engineering and manufacturing technologies Good: Grade 2

Established in 1997, The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders Industry Forum (SMMT IF) was formed to develop and sustain the global competitiveness of the UK based vehicle and components industry. Since its establishment, SMMT IF has widened its scope and provides services for other sectors including aerospace and food and drink manufacture. Since 2007, SMMT IF had held a contract with the West Midlands LSC Train to Gain employer responsiveness fund to provide NVQ programmes at Levels 2 and 3 in engineering and business improvement techniques.

The investigation has found that SMMT IF has demonstrated that it has a good capacity to improve and is very good at applying the same improvement principles to its own training programmes. SMMT IF works closely with employers and learners to improve the quality of provision by collecting, analysing and responding to their feedback particularly well.

As recognised in its self-assessment report, achievement and standards at SMMT IF are good and success rates are high. The overall success rate for learners in 2007/08 was 79%. Some learners were found to demonstrate high standards of work, making significant financial savings for their company by implementing improvements.

The investigation found that the planning of learners’ programmes is particularly effective and ensures that learners complete their training within the identified time-scale. Learning sessions were found to be well-planned and included content specifically designed by employers, using high quality work-related learning materials.

Ashtree Management Services LTD, Ipswich

Summary of grades awarded:

Effectiveness of provision Satisfactory: Grade 3

Capacity to improve Satisfactory: Grade 3

Achievement and standards Good: Grade 2

Quality of provision Satisfactory: Grade 3

Leadership and management Satisfactory: Grade 3

Equality of opportunity Contributory grade: Satisfactory: Grade 3

Sector subject area:

Health, public services and care Satisfactory: Grade 3

Established in 1999, Ashtree Management Services (AMS) offers accredited training to the health and social care sector. Currently AMS have 49 learners on programme towards NVQs in care. All learners work in care settings such as residential and nursing homes or in the community. AMS became a training provider as part of the Suffolk Brokerage in 2005 and gained its first contract with the LSC in 2007.

With AMS demonstrating satisfactory capacity to improve, success rates in 2007/08 are good with most learners who joined the programme in 2008 making satisfactory or better progress towards completing their qualification. The self-assessment progress at AMS is inadequate as they were not aware of the need to complete a self-assessment report, however a first draft has been completed within the last two months.

Keys strengths within AMS include high success rates, good development of skills, particularly good support for learners and a clear and effective business focus. However improvement needs to be applied for the insufficiently thorough initial assessment process, more qualified assessors and trainers are needed, continuous quality and improvement processes need to be revised as do coherent literacy, language and numeracy policies and procedures.

Success rates are high at 95% for 2007/08 and most learners who joined the programme in 2008 are making satisfactory or better progress towards completing their qualification, however 22 learners who started their learning in October 2007 are making slow progress. Ofsted has found that one of the main areas of improvement within AMS is communication between trainers and learners.