In a previous article, we’ve talked about Appropriate Bodies, who they are and what they do in order to support you during your induction – in this article, we aim to outline how Appropriate Bodies actually go about doing this work.
What do Appropriate Bodies work to when undertaking their role?
There are two main documents that Appropriate Bodies use when supporting ECTs through induction – these are:
What do Appropriate Bodies have to do for ECTs?
There are lots of things that an Appropriate Body has to do for you, as an ECT, to ensure that your induction progresses as easily as possible.
Most of these things, however, are things that you don’t really need to concern yourself with – they’re things that happen ‘behind the scenes’, between the Appropriate Body and your school.
However, the following points from the Statutory Guidance below may be relevant to you, as an ECT:
Paragraph 2.28
The Appropriate Body must provide you with a named contact within the Appropriate Body with whom they can raise concerns they cannot solve.
This will usually be given to you by email following your registration with the Appropriate Body or during a Welcome event that the Appropriate Body may hold.
Paragraphs 2.36 to 2.38 and 3.5
If you work part-time during any part of your induction, you will need to serve the full-time equivalent (FTE) of two school years to complete; for example, if you work as a 0.5 FTE teacher, you will need to serve four school years.
It is for the Appropriate Body and Headteacher to decide a fair induction length, that takes into account your working patterns, and – where you may have completed a period covering, but not equivalent to, a minimum of two school years and can demonstrate your meeting the Teachers’ Standards – the Appropriate Body may be able to reduce the length of your induction.
Initial discussions around this may begin after your induction has covered five or ten full terms (dependant on whether your school year is made up of three or six terms).
Paragraph 2.54 and 2.55
Your Induction Tutor or Headteacher should send a copy of each Progress Review and Assessment Report, as it is completed, to the Appropriate Body, notifying them of your progress and – where satisfactory progress is not being made – outlining the plan put in place to help you get back on track.
This will usually be done using ECT Manager or another process that the Appropriate Body has in place.
Paragraphs 2.60 and 2.65 to 2.70
When you reach the end of your induction period, you will have a final assessment meeting with your Headteacher and Induction Tutor, after which your final assessment report will be completed and this, along with your Headteacher’s recommendation on whether you have successfully completed induction, should be considered for an extension or have not successfully completed induction, will be sent to the Appropriate Body.
It is the Appropriate Body who ultimately decide whether to agree with the recommendation made.
The Appropriate Body have up to twenty working days after the receipt of the final assessment report to decide whether you have successfully completed induction, should be granted an extension or have not successfully completed induction – this decision should be made using the final assessment report and recommendation and all available evidence from your induction period.
Once this decision is made, the Appropriate Body has three days in which to notify, in writing, the ECT, Headteacher (of the school worked in at the end of induction) and employer of this decision.
Where this decision is one of extension or failure, the Appropriate Body must inform you of your right to appeal against the decision, with details of the Appeals Body (TRA) and the deadline for submitting an appeal.
Fortunately, it is statistically unlikely that you will receive a final assessment recommendation that doesn’t allow you to successfully complete induction, and it would be unheard of to receive a final assessment recommendation of extension/failure where this recommendation wasn’t anticipated – Appropriate Bodies will work closely with you, and your school, as soon as any issue is raised with them.
Paragraphs 4.1 to 4.3
Where your progress during the course of your first year of induction is unsatisfactory, this should be recorded clearly on the relevant progress review and the progress review and support plan put in place should be sent to the Appropriate Body – they will then review these and offer support.
Where unsatisfactory progress is reported on the first formal assessment, the Appropriate Body will ensure that:
Paragraphs 5.8 to 5.12
These paragraphs outline the Appropriate Body’s roles and responsibilities during the induction process.
Paragraph 5.8 states that the Appropriate Body has the main quality assurance role during the induction process – through its quality assurance processes, the Appropriate Body has to assure itself that Headteachers (and Governing Bodies, where appropriate) know, and can meet, their responsibilities for monitoring support and assessment.
This is usually done through random sampling of ECTs, arranging short, informal online meetings with them to ask abut specific aspects of their induction, and also requesting samples of evidence-based paperwork between progress reviews.
It is imperative that Appropriate Bodies build relationships with the ECTs it supports and those supporting them in schools – it is only through doing this that there will be the open and honest relationships needed for effective support and challenge of this support.
We hope that this article gives you more of an idea of how your Appropriate Body will support you during your induction.