Early Career Teachers

All ECTs must be registered with an Appropriate Body (AB) in order to complete statutory induction. The AB is responsible for ECT assessment and registration.

All ECTs must also complete a 2-year induction that is based on the Early Career Framework The ECF programme is the statutory ECT professional development programme.

There are two separate sign-up processes.  Many schools complete one but not the other and then find that their ECT is not correctly registered.

From September 2024, Teaching School Hubs (TSHs) will become the main provider of AB services.

Local authorities (including Services for Education in Birmingham) will no longer be able to offer AB services, and will withdraw from their AB role in two stages: 

1. From September 2023 they will not take on any new ECTs. 
2. From September 2024 they will cease operating as ABs. 

Schools who currently access AB services through Services for Education or another local authority will need to ensure that from September 2023 they register all new ECTs with a Teaching School Hub Appropriate Body. 

We are working closely with Services for Education to ensure that this transition is as smooth as possible. We are advising that existing ECTs stay with their current AB, although we are able to register ECTs at all stages of their induction if required.

Most current ABs use the ECT manager system, so this transition should be straightforward for schools and ECTs.

If you register your ECT with the Teaching School Hub for both AB and for our ECF full induction programme, all of your ECT services will be in one place. You can be reassured that your ECTs are receiving a fully resourced, evidenced-informed induction programme that fully complies with the ECT statutory entitlements.

This will also simplify the registration process.  You will have one point of contact within the TSH team who will be able to respond rapidly to your queries and support you through the registration process on ECT manager and the DfE portal.