Initial Teacher Training: DFE Announcement

Yesterday, the Department for Education announced that the requirement for all Mentors (Learning Coaches) to receive 20 hours of initial training this year and 6 hours of annual refresher training has now been removed.  The decision is likely due to schools nationally offering fewer placements this year due to the reformed requirements – we know that placement capacity in the sector is vital for the teacher supply pipeline.   

Arthur Terry SCITT has always been fortunate to have high levels of engagement from our partner schools.  We appreciate the challenges that the 20-hour requirement brought and hope that the removal of this requirement encourages a continued broad offer of placements going forward.

Arthur Terry SCITT has now trained over 150 Learning Coaches through our Tier 1 Mentor Training package. This training has demonstrated a significantly positive impact in a relatively short amount of time.  Mentors have commented on how the training has revolutionised their practice and we have clearly seen this when we have visited your schools this term. The training they have received is empowering them to effectively coach any colleague, no matter their level of experience, and this benefits not only ITT outcomes but also wider school improvement.

As a result of this announcement, we are considering our future professional development package for new and existing Learning Coaches.  The DfE has stated that “all mentors must receive sufficient high-quality training to ensure they can effectively support a trainee teacher to obtain the knowledge and skills they need to successfully complete their ITT school placement”, so there is still a required commitment for continued engagement in training from Arthur Terry SCITT. We do not want to undo the good work that has already been done in this area, however, we will ensure that we are mindful of workload demands on schools and teachers in our decision making.

As already communicated, the ability for schools to claim funding for mentor training undertaken between April 2024 and July 2025 remains in place.  We will support schools with the process of claiming this funding in the New Year.

Thank you for all that you do to develop Associate Teachers and I hope you recognise how important your role is to develop the national teacher workforce – we certainly do!

You can read more about this decision in Lucas Cumiskey’s article in Schools Week.