Appropriate bodies are tasked by the DfE with quality assuring the two-year ITTECF-based induction. The statutory induction guidance says that the AB should "assure itself that:

• Headteachers/principals (and governing bodies where appropriate) are aware of and are capable of meeting their responsibilities for monitoring support and assessment. This includes checking that an ECT receives a programme of training and support based on the ITTECF, a designated induction tutor and mentor with the appropriate skills and experience, and the reduced timetable and
• The monitoring, support, assessment and guidance procedures in place are fair and appropriate."

One of the ways we do this is via a visit to the school. There are several reasons why we might select your school to visit:

• Random! At the start of the school year, we look at the schools signed up to our service and select a certain number to visit at random – generally schools we haven't visited before.
• If your school is new to our service, or has not had an ECT for a few years. This visit will be to help your school make sure everything is in place to set your ECT up for success.
• If your school has a large number of ECTs at any one time. We'll come and see you to make sure nobody is overwhelmed, and that your induction tutor(s) have the time and resources to perform their role effectively. We can also share hints and tips to keep things running smoothly.
• If your ECT is struggling. Induction isn't guaranteed to run without a hitch, however experienced your induction tutor may be. Not all schools with ECTs on a personal support plan (PSP) will be visited, but some will.
• If we have concerns about the quality of induction at your school. This is by far the rarest type of visit.

School visits are always supportive in nature, not judgemental. We want schools, induction tutors, mentors and ECTs to have as positive an induction experience as possible.

What happens on a school visit?

Once we have selected your school for a visit, we will email you to arrange a suitable date and time – your school will have plenty of notice; we're not Ofsted. We will suggest a schedule and let you know who we'd like to speak with. A typical visit will include:

• Initial meeting with the Induction Tutor 
• Individual meetings with ECT(s) 
• Individual meetings with mentor(s) 
• Time for AB representative(s) to collate their notes 
• Final meeting with Induction Tutor and Headteacher to report our findings.

If you have multiple ECTs and mentors, we may not need to see them all. There may be more than one representative of the AB in attendance (e.g. to allow more efficient note-taking) but your designated AB lead will definitely be there. We won't ask for lots of preparation: we have no desire to add to your workload! The visit should take up to half a day.

After the visit, we will send your school our report. This will include:

• An overview of the school, its ECTs, and their progress so far, to provide context for the visit.
• Strengths noted by the AB.
• Recommendations for actions the school could take.
• Any required follow up.

For the majority of school visits, we won't need to visit again. We may request a short virtual meeting to follow up with the induction tutor.

We hope this demystifies the process!