What is it Like to Train With Educate?

If you want to gain QTS through a practical, ‘hands-on’, school-based route in a school of your choice, then Educate Initial Teacher Training is for you. Educate is a large ITT provider, with a long-standing reputation for successful Primary and Secondary QTS programmes based in varied and diverse partner schools.

You have the unique opportunity to train in a school near to where you live and gain QTS with a PGCE (60 Master’s credits), validated by Leeds Beckett University.

Trainees spend a full-time year teaching and training in schools and also attend provider-led lecture/workshop sessions to enhance subject knowledge, general classroom practice and teaching pedagogy. To support trainees, provider-led training takes place once a week and is predominantly online, reducing both the time and cost of travel to trainees.

Centralised training sessions cover content such as High Expectations, Behaviour Management, How Pupils Learn, Adaptive Teaching, Classroom Practice, Curriculum and Assessment in line with the Initial Teacher training Early Career Framework (ITTECF).

This is supplemented by opportunities to observe other teachers in a range of school settings and to undertake a variety of school-based training enhancements, including a six-week placement in a contrasting school and short placement visits to other schools.

“Educate Group Initial Teacher Training has created a strong sense of community that trainees value.”
“Trainees spoke highly of the wide range of support that is available to them, including for their well-being.”
“Leaders have designed an ambitious and flexible ITE curriculum that suits trainees’ individual circumstances, while preparing them sufficiently well to embark on a career in teaching.”
“Ensures that trainees become fully immersed in the realities of what it means to be a teacher.”

(Ofsted, 2024).

With Educate, Trainees enjoy the advantage of an ‘on the job’ experience, where the realities of life as a teacher are fully explored and understood.

We are a national teacher-training provider operating across Lincolnshire, Yorkshire and the Humber, Cheshire, Shropshire, the East Midlands and the North West.

We offer training in Primary (age 5-11) and Secondary (age 11-16) in Biology, Chemistry, Computing, English, Geography, History, Mathematics, Physical Education and Physics.

Through our partnership with Northern Education Trust, we also offer Art and Design & Technology placements in the North East.

If you already have a placement school arranged, we may also be able to establish a new partnership with that school.

Please contact us to discuss whether we can offer training in your area.

Ousted

We’re paid members of NASBTT, the National Association of School-Based Trainers and all of our trainees have free access to a wealth of support, resources, and subject knowledge training from leading experts for both trainees and their mentors.

Which Programme?

We offer the School-Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT) programme. This is a school-based route leading to QTS with PGCE, validated by Leeds Beckett University.

01. School-Centred Initial Teacher Training (SCITT).

You can arrange your own placement school, provided it meets the requirements of initial teacher training and is approved by Educate. Alternatively, Educate will find a suitable placement school for you.

Our SCITT route offers Primary and Secondary. Find out more about the Primary and Secondary Programmes below:

Primary

Our hallmark at Educate Group ITT is personalised support and our primary programme is testament to this. We support you through your subject knowledge development through all National Curriculum subjects so that you receive the support you need at exactly the right moment. We work with specialist teachers to support your training, so that your programme is based on the most recent evidence-base. We place significant emphasis on the importance of early reading and phonics as part of early literacy development.

Not only will you learn from the teachers you’ll be closely working with, but there are plenty of opportunities for self-study, one-to-one tutorials and drop-in groups provided by Educate Group ITT.

If you are a Primary trainee, you will train across the 5-11 age range.

Secondary

At Educate Group ITT we believe that as a secondary teacher, your role is to inspire a passion for your subject, enabling each student to reach their absolute potential and thrive throughout the important ages from 11 to 16 and beyond.

You will work with committed teachers, who will show you how to teach your subject in school and to help students overcome their subject challenges.

We are passionate about making the changes to the lives and development of young people. We hope to help you to become a brilliant teacher and subject specialist at KS3 and KS4.

If you are a Secondary trainee, you will train across the 11-16 age range.

To Note:

Educate covers a wide geographical area, please contact us here to ensure we cover your location,
Please note, following the award of QTS you will commence the Early Career Teacher Entitlement (ECTE), a 2-year programme that supports Early Career Teachers (ECTs) when they start their teaching career.

Find out about entry requirements and how to apply here

02. Assessment Only Route To QTS.

Already have teaching experience? Our three-month assessment period is for experienced, unqualified teachers, who have taught in two schools and already meet the Teachers’ Standards.

Benefits:

A maximum of a three-month assessment period.
Flexible start dates.
No training required.
Move up the teachers’ pay scale.
Progress your teaching career.

Placements.

As an accredited ITT provider, Educate is responsible for securing and maintaining suitable school placements that enable the programme to be delivered in line with the Department for Education’s criteria and to meet the needs of all trainees.

A suitable placement is one that allows the provider to deliver the ITT curriculum effectively, ensures access to relevant key stages and subjects, and provides the necessary opportunities for trainees to demonstrate the Teachers’ Standards.

We take careful account of each trainee’s individual circumstances, including home location, caring responsibilities and travel considerations, when allocating placements. Whilst we cannot always guarantee a specific school or distance, every effort is made to secure a placement that is practical, balancing personal circumstances with school availability, capacity, and the overall quality of the training experience.

Once an offer of a place has been accepted, the Educate team will begin sourcing a suitable placement. Trainees are expected to engage proactively in this process, maintaining communication with Educate and, where appropriate, with potential placement schools to arrange visits and confirm suitability. We always aim to confirm placements as early as possible, though the timeframe can vary depending on school availability and capacity.

*If you are currently working or volunteering in a school and they would like to support you with your teacher training, we are always happy to discuss this with you and your school.

GCSE Equivalency.

GCSE Equivalence Tests are for anyone who has not met the standard educational grades required to enter the teaching profession or alternative career choice with similar entrance requirements.

They are intended to provide the opportunity to gain a qualification which is equivalent to a GCSE Grade 4 awarded by one of the traditional awarding bodies. It is important to appreciate that whilst the majority of institutions and organisations will consider a Grade 4 in an equivalence test as being equivalent to a Grade 4 pass in a GCSE, they are under no obligation to do so.

Our Equivalence Tests are written and marked by examiners who have many years of experience in this field.

We offer GCSE Equivalency tests in the following subjects:

Mathematics
English Language
Combined Science

Results are guaranteed to be available within ten working days following the test.

Candidates can sit the tests at our Office in Wrexham.

Candidates also have the option to sit the tests at an Ofsted approved setting. The test must be taken in examination conditions and invigilated by a person approved by Educate Group.

Prices:

External Candidates – £144.00
Educate trainees and Assessment Only candidates who have accepted a place on an Educate Group programme – £24.00

Our Mission

Unlocking Opportunity

Get in touch

Alternatively,
why not give us a call directly on…

01978 281 881

WALES OFFICE
The Educate Group
Unit 5, Blackwood Business Park
Ash Road South
Wrexham Industrial Estate
Wrexham
LL13 9UG

ENGLAND OFFICE
Educate Group Initial Teacher Training,
Education Management Direct Ltd.
Regus House
Herons Way
Chester Business Park
Chester
CH4 9QR

itt@educate-group.co.uk