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OUTSTANDING Ofsted grade puts teacher training provider top in the North West and among top 7 in the country.

 

North West SHARES SCITT, a primary teacher training provider based in Skelmersdale, West Lancashire, has been graded as Outstanding by Ofsted in their February 2023 inspection – the only provider in the region to have achieved this highly coveted judgement under the new ITT inspection framework – with no areas for improvement!

The rigorous inspection scrutinised every aspect of the programme and found: “The exceptionally high quality training programme inspires trainees to excel” and the report commends the provider for how well it cares for its trainees: “The provider takes exceptional care of trainees as individuals; they thrive through the respectful relationships that are nurtured.”

The Chair of SHARES Angela Aspinwall-Livesey commented, “This is a wonderful accolade for our teacher training programme. We are deeply proud to be the only training provider in the North West to be awarded this outstanding grade.”

SCITT North West was set up by a group of Skelmersdale schools (SHARES – Skelmersdale Headteachers Aspiring to Raise Educational Standards) in response to a lack of quality teachers wanting to teach in the area. Angela explains, “Our original vision was to ‘grow our own’ teachers’. We wanted to equip trainees with the knowledge and skills to teach, particularly in areas of deprivation and challenge, like ours. As a result, we now have 270 ex-trainees teaching in 46 schools across the local area, so we most definitely achieved this goal – and continue to do so.”

The Chair of the SCITT Programme, Ian Eaton said, “We are absolutely thrilled with the outcome. It is a rigorous process, and we are delighted that our dedication, diligence, and passion has been recognised.”  He added, “In 2013, we set out to train the next generation of teachers, who would and could thrive as teachers, able to cope when teaching in a challenging locality. We have trained over 270 high quality teachers, who are making a difference to the life chances of children locally and in schools beyond our alliance.”

North West SHARES SCITT offer a school-led model of teacher training, producing highly effective, fully qualified teachers. The year-long course equips trainees with the skills and experience to find a teaching position in Early Years Foundation Stage (EYFS), Key Stage 1, Key Stage 2, or Specialist Provision for children with SEN/D.