Ofsted round-up – This week: Three Train to Gain providers

Rentokil Initial, Dudley

 

Summary of grades awarded:

Effectiveness of provision Satisfactory: Grade 3

Capacity to improve Satisfactory: Grade 3

Achievement and standards Inadequate: 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

Literacy, numeracy and ESOL Satisfactory: Grade 3

Business administration and law Inadequate: Grade 4

 

Rentokil Initial employs more than 78,000 people across the world, with over half based in the United Kingdom. The group offers services ranging from pest control to interior landscaping, and all learners are employees of Rentokil Initial. It has a contract with the National Employer Service to provide Train to Gain funded Level 2 and Level 3 National Vocational Qualifications. At inspection, 359 learners were on programmes, of which 54 per cent were white British, 33 per cent were male, and two per cent had a disability.

Ofsted said overall effectiveness of the provision is satisfactory, as is its achievements and standards, quality of provision, leadership and management and equality of opportunity. Provision in health, public services and care were also judged as satisfactory, however, business administration and law was found to be inadequate.

The group has a satisfactory capacity to improve. The report noted: "Management of the provision has recently much improved and positive action has been taken on quality improvement arrangements. The recently formed quality improvement group is starting to impact on the arrangements to monitor the quality of the Train to Gain provision."

Key strengths included a good development of work skills and personal effectiveness, good standard of health and safety practice and a high level of commitment to learning and development. Weaknesses included the insufficient use of data to raise standards of performance, poor planning of learning to meet individual needs and an incomplete skills for life strategy.

 

Eastwood Park, Watton-Under-Edge

 

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 Inadequate: Grade 4

Equality of opportunity Contributory grade: Inadequate: Grade 4

Sector subject area:

Health, public services & social care Satisfactory: Grade 3

 

The National Health Services established Eastwood Park (Ewp) as a training centre in 1963. It was later privatised in 1997 and became a privately owned company in 2003. Ewp delivers a variety of training and development provision in healthcare support services to the public and private sector. The group has been contracted with the Suffolk and Hampshire and Isle of Wight Learning and Skills Councils since 2007 to deliver Train to Gain provision for the health national vocational qualification.

Through inspection, Ofsted found the overall effectiveness of the provision to be satisfactory. Its achievement and standards are satisfactory too. The standard work in learners’ portfolios is good, and they demonstrate good development of their job-related skills and knowledge. Although learners generally make slow progress to complete the NVQ units, roughly ten per cent of them have achieved the qualification before their planned end date.

The quality of provision is satisfactory, and teaching and learning are also satisfactory. The on–the-job training was found to make effective links between theory and practice. Ofsted added: "Assessment practice is satisfactory and some is good. However, the arrangements to review learners’ progress are weak and not all learners have individual learning plans."

Key strengths included a good development of learners’ work skills and knowledge and a clear strategy for development. Areas for improvement included learners’ slow progress to complete the NVQ, weak progress reviews, insufficient performance monitoring of the programme and insufficient support for trainee work-based assessors and verifiers.

 

The Quinn Centre, Southampton

 

Sumarry 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: Good: Grade 2

Sector subject area:

Health, Public Services and Care Good: Grade 2

 

The Quinn Centre (the Quinn) is the training arm of the SCA group, a wider charitable organisation. Established in 2002, the Quinn is an education charity delivering training in health and social care in Hampshire. The charity gained its contract with the Hampshire and Isle of Wight Learning and Skills Councils since 2007. It now has 45 learners, but this number is reducing because its contract will be terminated in 2009/10.

Overall, the effectivenes of its provision is good, as is its achievements and standards. Inspectors noted success rates, both overall and timely, are high with learners developing effective work-based skills and self confidence. The Quinn is particularly flexible and responsive to meet the needs of learners, and its assessment is thorough.

Ofsted noted: "The centre works well with employers and is responsive to their business needs. Information, advice and guidance services are good. Individual support for the NVQ training is effective, though formal arrangements for literacy, numeracy and language are insufficiently established."

Key strengths included very high success rates, good training and assessment and good management of training. Weaknesses included insufficiently focused progress reviews, insufficiently formalised information, advice and guidance and the insufficient use of management information.