"The curriculum has been sequenced to support trainees in managing different challenges across the academic year....trainees really valued the ‘bespoke support’ and ‘dedicated support tutor’ they had access to if they needed."
Ofsted, July 2022
About Us
Essex Schools ITT has a long tradition of successful teacher training and were centrally involved in the ‘pilot’ year 2012-13 when the Government launched the programme.
- On our 2022-23 programme, we had 53 trainees across 24 secondary and 5 primary schools
- We provide a very special, school-based training experience in partnership with Tes Institute, who have a reputation for innovative on-line learning materials, especially in shortage subjects, with its Subject Knowledge Enhancement courses
- In recent years, we've had class leading results - our completion rate is an average of 97%, which is well above average for Initial Teacher Training programmes. From our current cohort, 89% found teaching jobs before the end of the course, and 74% of these were in our partnership schools, which shows the strength of our teacher training network
- Our programmes are accredited by the National College for Teaching and Leadership (NCTL) and provide a blend of online learning and in-school experience leading to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) and an option to add a Postgraduate Certificate in Education (PGCE)
- Our programmes are offered on a training, unsalaried basis with government bursaries being available for shortage subjects. (Bursaries will be confirmed in October.) Only those with significant prior teaching experience (ie; on an unqualified basis) would be considered for a salaried training place (and only then on a school's recommendation)
- The PGCE is accredited by our partner university (UEL) and is subject to annual review
- Tes Institute is committed to supporting school-based teacher training, helping schools to create great teachers. Through our team of highly experienced Pathway Tutors working in partnership with schools and trainees, Tes combines the best of in-person and online learning to deliver truly flexible teacher training. Starting with just 2 partnerships and 27 trainees in 2013-14, Tes have trained thousands of teachers since, and have expanded further with 7 partnerships, from Essex into Suffolk and Kent. Tes schools work in partnership to share best practice and develop and deliver high quality teacher training
- Find out more about Tes Institute
- There are 24 schools in the Essex Schools ITT Partnership, and our trainees are managed from our base at the Lead School, Davenant Foundation School in Loughton
- We work with organisations in Harlow and Chelmsford, such as TeachHarlow and The Chelmsford Learning Partnership (CLP)
- Our unique blended learning programme combines school-based training, online learning materials, a network of experienced subject specialists to deliver pedagogy and subject knowledge and a number of off-site visits to special schools, primary schools and Leading Teacher days
- The Directors of Essex Schools ITT have been involved in teacher training locally for many decades and have been working in partnership with TES for the last 5+ years. The collaboration and cooperation between the schools is well established and is a strength of the partnership
- Each Partner School provides a fully trained Mentor for each trainee, supported by a Pathway Tutor from Tes, who visits each half-term.