West Midland CETT Inaugural Meeting
18 October 2007 ~ 10.30 – 12.30
Worcester
Attendees
Fergus McKay – WMCETT Director and FE Lead (Chair)
Chris Wilkins – Hereford & Worcester
Elaine Goodall – Manager, Essential Skills Resource Centre and WMCETT Lead Skills
Jean Garner – Shropshire, Telford & Wrekin Voluntary Sector [PTLLS]
Jill Hardman – WMCETT Priority Area Facilitator
John Keenan – Education, Department, University of Worcester [CPD Diplomas]
Katie McCombe – Manager Shropshire, Hereford & Worcester Professional Development Partnership
Margaret Hunter – WMCETT Lead Adult Voluntary and Community Sector & Adult and Community
Learning Sector, and Coventry and Warwickshire Professional Development Hub
Mike Smith – Hereford & Worcester Training Providers Association [PTLLS plus]
Penny Ottewill – WMCETT Lead Work Based Learning
Susie Knight – Freelance consultant national projects and LLUK
Sue Fellows – WMCETT Administrative Coordinator (Minutes)
Welcome
FM welcomed all those involved in WMCETT activities to the inaugural meeting of the CETT. The
University of Warwick (UoW) was informed their CETT bid was successful in April. The lead-in time to
develop the CETT was May to September and a meeting was held with the priority area leads in July.
There are 4 priority areas – Further Education, Work Based Learning, Skills, and Voluntary and
Community Sector & Adult and Community Learning – and these areas overlap to varying degrees.
Regular meetings will be very important to share what is being done, to work collaboratively, to support
activities rather than replicate them and to review progress through year 1 which is a short year (1 May –
31 March). Dierdre Kimbell will visit the UoW on 13 November to discuss funding for year 2. As the
funding is a tapered model, what is allocated in year 2 may be based on what was spent in year 1.
1. National Update
There are 11 CETTS which are not distributed geographically 1 per region. There are 3 in the North
East of England but none in the North West. Newcastle will be working with Skelmersdale to cover
this area. Westminster Partnership CETT (Oxford Brookes College, Westminster College) and
EMCETT (South Leicestershire College) are the nearest to WMCETT which is in talks with both to
work with them.
Tony Nasta, LONCETT (London Institute of Education) will organise up to three national one-day
events to review the progress of the new teacher training qualifications to be held at Huddersfield,
Warwick and London. WMCETT’s contribution to these days would be running 1 or 2 workshops
detailing the testing and trailing of the PTLLS plus.
The Government funding formula for ITT CPD has now been released. The CETTS can bid for up to
an extra £25K for another priority area around mentoring. This may provide opportunities to work
with other HEI ITT providers in the West Midlands. FM and Russell Moseley (Director, Centre for
Lifelong Learning, UoW) recently met with Dr Alex Kendal at the University of Wolverhampton to
discuss the possibility of closer collaboration.
The official launch at the Houses of Parliament of all the CETTs, postponed from
May until Thursday 25 October, will be attended by FM .The official launch is
important as it signifies DIUS’s commitment to the CETTs up to year 3 and possibly
beyond, if available funding continues to be channelled through the CETTs.
WMCETT has very positive support of Coventry and Warwickshire LSC and also
Hereford and Worcester LSC. Neil Bromley (Principal NEW College) has kindly
agreed to Chair the WMCETT board meetings Jane Peters who heads the regional
lifelong learning portfolio is also on the board.
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2. Priority Area Updates
Priority Area 3 Voluntary and Community Sector & Adult and Community Learning (Margaret Hunter)
First task was to devise a questionnaire about needs analysis which was sent out to various
organisations including Jean Garner, Elspeth Rolls and Community First, H&W plus Faye Williams,
Leaning Consortium C&W (also on the Board). 110 responses have been received so far and these
will be collated.
Next focus groups will be with NIACE and Groundwork for CPD work. Focus groups will be set up in
other areas to find out needs, especially ITT needs and management and leadership.
UoW ran a pilot PTLLS with the voluntary sector in Coventry, delivered at a college, which has been
reviewed. Next PTLLS course is now being delivered by Sue Spiers at Shrewsbury. There are
people who are very keen to get onto a PTLLS course, including sectors in H&W. However, there
are concerns about how to get this through to volunteers and about costs. Need to identify potential
trainers to be trained to deliver the course so it will be cheaper and more sustainable.
MH to set up a member ship list to send information out to a lot of larger voluntary organisations
(such as large national charities) which are unaware of the new qualifications.
MH will also facilitate sorting out the problems about mentoring which will be required for those on
the course who will be teaching outside their own teaching environment.
Priority Area 2 Work Based Learning (Penny Ottewill)
50 questionnaires sent out to providers (aided by Kerry Amos, Development Executive from C&W
APT and Mike Smith Executive Officer S,H&W ATP) to establish who the workforce are, and their
initial teacher training and CPD requirements. Conscious there will be some overlap with MH’s
questionnaire. Once results are collated, focus groups will be organised to explore developmental
opportunities.
Two national PTTL pilots in Coventry and Warwickshire for Work Based Learning providers ran in
association with the ATP. Both programmes offered the PTLL Plus with the content aimed at trainers
working with 14 – 16 year olds. From the pilots and subsequent discussions with the ATP, the
course has been modified. Two further PTLLs are due to commence in November and December in
Hereford and Worcester, using a different delivery model, requested by the providers. There will be 2
days training, a break of 6 weeks for tutoring, assessing, studying and observations, and then a
further 2 days training. There has been a good response from 38 members of H&W Association so
places are limited to 3 per organisation. All participants have to undergo an initial assessment and
results from the pilots suggest that it would be better to do this in the third week rather than at the
beginning as this might deter people from enrolling onto the programme. The CETT is to look at
ways to address this and how to inform the region of the need to have the same requirements for the
same courses.
The initial pilot tested an actual teaching observation rather than microteaching, which all candidates
responded to positively. To continue to deliver this, an action research bid has been submitted to
train nominated personnel from TP across the region to undertake teaching observations within own
provider.
Two workshops were delivered in C&W to 20 providers who are now asking for bespoke PTLLS and
generic 14-16 courses.
JH – All awards ANV/ENTO NVQs have gone to LLUK and put into QC Framework. There will be
long consultations so it will take some time to happen. Qualifications as they are now will run until
May 2009. The CETTs role will be to provide a positive attitude for teacher trainers towards these
changes.
Priority Area 4 Skills (Elaine Goodall)
Level 5 Literacy and ESOL courses have been developed and there are three running (1 of each in
Coventry and Literacy in Lincoln).
A flexible distance learning Level 5 Numeracy course will be developed.
A day for SfL teacher trainers will be held on 13 November. No audit questionnaire has been
prepared yet as it will be useful to talk to the teacher trainers about what questions should be asked.
Added value will come from working with LSN on a Key Skills project – an accredited programme will
be delivered starting at the end of October. This is a pilot for the Centre.
A pilot PTTLS+ teaching literacy course is being delivered at level 4 to prepare people wanting to
take the Level 5 diploma. Also hope to deliver a PTTLS+ in Shropshire.
Two dates have been arranged to meet SfL providers in H&W and Shropshire with KM.
Working with existing partners of the University, one session of a pilot has been delivered to a
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diverse group of generic teacher trainers to give ideas/suggestions to teach the minimum core.
Some participants are already doing this and others were pleased to receive the pack and will use
and adapt the ideas. This pilot will be offered to the rest of the CETT. Coordinating with Sue Spiers,
(coordinator teacher training) a checklist will be devised to help collect evidence of achieving
minimum core.
Further added value will come from LSN e-learning project which will be piloted by the University and
delivered by Sara Hattersley. E-learning activities will be piloted in the level 5s and PTTLS+.
Work has been done with frontline staff in Jobcentre in awareness raising and a 1 hour package is
available which could be used for volunteers. The SfL part of it could be built into PTTLS, especially
in H&W.
Elaine Scott may contact FM to arrange to attend a WMCETT meeting to make links between SfLIP
and CETT.
FM – 2 e-learning courses have been developed - a 30 credit HE level 2 diploma for practitioners
and a 15 credit HE level 1 award for CPD requirement. There will be opportunities to take accredited
courses for IFL. Attendance will be limited as work will be mainly done on-line. This model will be
explored further.
Priority Area 1 ITT PCET (Fergus McKay)
Work has been done with teacher trainers in the FE sector, testing and trialling pilots, raising
awareness of resource implication and identifying other useful workshops. CPD issue will be looked
at/addressed as the CPD has been rolled out in institutions in unique ways, some have tied into their
appraisal system, others have accredited programmes. A mapping exercise will need to be done
before starting.
A discussion was held with a group of principals on how they are prepared to support partners and
to review current mentoring activities. All partners will be invited to engage in mentoring project. Peer
support – Michael Gray – LSN have lost the contract which is now with Deloitte Touche. There will
be a meeting launching peer review and delivery supported by funding of £20K per group. Institutes
can opt in as individuals wanting to be involved or find partners in existing joint ventures. PDP
Shropshire have 5/7 organisations and PDP H&W 4/9 who have made expressions of intent.
3. Research
A number of projects have been received and will be responded to as soon as possible. There is still
time to put in a bid for a research venture.
4. Business Plan Update
Bring HEs in the WM together
Activate mentoring project
Activate peer support with PDPs
CPD
5. AOB
KM expressed concerns that the CETT may affect existing customs and practices within Shropshire.
FM reassured that these issues have been addressed in meetings with principals who were pleased
with these talks. The CETT is about wider lifelong learning communities and will strive not to disturb
existing customs and practices, nor take work away. Further support systems may be needed. Two
principals have not yet responded to invitations to meet – KM to try to contact.
Staffordshire have requested to be involved in the CETT. Funding has been allocated on the original
number of partners so FM to raise the question at next QIA meeting. Reluctant to charge
organisations so they may be invited to join through partner organisations.
Next meeting: Tuesday 15 January 2008 ~ 10.30 – 12.30 ~ Venue to be confirmed
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