The early career framework (ECF) reforms will create a step change in support for early career teachers, providing a funded entitlement to a structured 2-year package of high-quality professional development. The reforms are part of the government’s teacher recruitment and retention strategy, which aims to improve the training and development opportunities available to teachers. The early career framework is the evidence base which underpins this new entitlement for early career teachers’ professional development. It sets out what all early career teachers should learn about and learn how to do during the first 2 years of their careers.
It includes sections on:
From September 2021, the government is funding an entitlement for all early career teachers in England to access high-quality professional development at the start of their career. New teachers will now receive development support and training over 2 years instead of one, underpinned by the ECF. The offer for early career teachers includes:
Working for and on behalf of Cheshire West and Chester and providing independent quality assurance of statutory induction, Edsential’s comprehensive package of tailored support will guide Early Career Teachers (or ECTs, formerly Newly Qualified Teachers or NQTs), their schools, tutors and mentors from registration through to the final decision as to whether the ECT has satisfactorily met the Teachers’ Standards, based on the headteacher’s recommendation.
Choosing Edsential as an Appropriate Body
Once we have notification from the headteacher that they have appointed an ECT who is not currently undergoing induction, we will start their induction period. This includes:
For those NQTs and settings already registered with Edsential and completing their one-year programme (start date up to 31st August 2021), we will continue to provide:
Transitional arrangements for NQTs
After 1 September 2023, when the transition period ends, all Early Career Teachers (NQTs) will be required to a complete a two-year induction period. Those Early Career Teachers should not restart induction, but rather complete what remains of a two-year induction.
| What to check | Why check? |
| The headteacher has provided a suitable post for induction | The ECT has appropriate opportunity to complete induction |
| The headteacher has verified that the award of QTS has been made | The ECT meets the requirements to commence induction |
| The ECT is provided with a named contact (or contacts) within the appropriate body with whom to raise concerns | The ECT has appropriate contacts if they need to raise concerns about their induction |
| The Mentor has the ability and sufficient time to carry out their role | The Mentor has sufficient time to facilitate the support they provide ECTs with during induction |
| The Induction tutor has the ability and sufficient time to carry out their role | The Induction tutor has sufficient time to facilitate the support they provide ECTs with during induction |
| The school is providing a reduced timetable in addition to PPA | The ECT has sufficient time to engage with the ECF-based induction programme; this is also a statutory requirement |
| The headteacher has confirmed the type of ECF-based induction they are providing (see Chapter 4 for further detail) | The appropriate body can apply the required level of checks to ensure the ECT has access a high quality knowledge-based induction |
Initial checks can be done through correspondence with the headteacher and/or the induction tutor. Where the appropriate body asks the school to supply information or evidence that they have fulfilled their duties.
Full Induction Programme
If you are using a training provider to support meeting the new statutory induction requirements, please complete the online registration proforma.
Core Induction Programme
If you are delivering an induction programme in your own school using high quality materials and resources, accredited by the DfE please complete the online registration proforma.
Please also complete: Appendix A
School based programme
If your school are designing their own two-year induction programme based on the Early Career Framework please complete the online registration proforma.
Please also complete: Appendix B
Progress Reviews and Formal Assessment dates:
First Term: progress review December 2021 – complete Appendix D
Second Term: progress review April 2022 – complete Appendix D
Third Term: first formal assessment July 2022 – complete Appendix C
Fourth Term: progress review December 2022 – complete Appendix D
Fifth Term: progress review April 2023 – complete Appendix D
Sixth Term: final formal assessment July 2023 – complete Appendix C
Progress Reviews and Formal Assessment dates:
First Term: progress review December 2022 – complete Appendix D
Second Term: progress review April 2023 – complete Appendix D
Third Term: first formal assessment July 2023 – complete Appendix C
Fourth Term: progress review December 2023 – complete Appendix D
Fifth Term: progress review April 2024 – complete Appendix D
Sixth Term: final formal assessment July 2024 – complete Appendix C
Once an ECT has been appointed, the headteacher/principal must notify the appropriate body in advance of the ECT taking up post. Failure to do so may delay the start of the Induction period.
At registration, the appropriate body will provide the ECT with a named contact with whom they may raise any concerns about their induction programme that they are unable to resolve. This person should not be directly involved in monitoring or supporting the ECT or in making decisions about satisfactory completion of induction.
Appropriate bodies will inform the Teaching Regulation Agency of any ECTs who start an induction period or who have taken up a post in which to continue their induction.
The appropriate body makes the final decision about the equivalence to two school years in cases where the ECT serves induction in more than one setting or in non-standard settings such as those in the FE sector. In some exceptional circumstances the length of an induction period may be reduced.
Edsential CIC is an experienced Appropriate Body and follow statutory guidelines to:
From September 2021, appropriate bodies will be expected to check that all ECTs have access to an induction programme based on the Early Career Framework (ECF). This check is referred to as ‘ECF fidelity’ checking. The level of ECF fidelity checking expected of appropriate bodies will vary depending on the type of ECF-based induction being delivered. Please see Induction (below) for further information.
New funded entitlement and support for early career teachers’ professional development, providing a structured 2-year package of high-quality professional development. The reforms are part of the government’s teacher recruitment and retention strategy, which aims to improve the training and development opportunities available to teachers, setting out what all early career teachers should learn about and learn how to do during the first 2 years of their careers
A newly-qualified teacher in their first or second year of induction, registered with the TRA from 1st September 2021, who will follow the new Early Career Framework, or ECF. Teachers who have started but not completed their induction on 1 September 2021 will be allowed, until September 2023, to complete a one-year induction period. After this point, these teachers will still be able to complete their induction, but they will need to complete a full two-year induction.
The training and support through the ECF offered to an ECT over a two-year period. The length of the induction period an ECT is required to serve, whether the teaching post in which they are doing so is part-time or full-time, is the full-time equivalent of two school years. This usually consists of six school terms, divided into two periods each consisting of three school terms. The way induction is delivered may take different forms depending on the school’s choices and circumstances. From September 2021, schools will be expected to opt for one of three approaches to delivery of an ECF-based induction.
A government funded provider led programme offering high quality training for early career teachers and their mentors alongside professional development materials. Schools can choose to work with one of providers accredited by the DfE, who will design and deliver an induction programme. The providers are:
Schools can draw on the content of the high-quality professional development materials accredited by the DfE to deliver their own early career teacher and mentor support.
Where schools deliver induction through a Core Induction Programme or choose to design their own school-based induction programme using the Early Career Framework, additional quality assurance will be necessary in order to safeguard ECTs’ entitlement to an ECF-based induction. Schools delivering their own induction programmes will require an appropriate body to check these have been designed and delivered with fidelity to the ECF. This means that training and support provided to the ECT has covered the ECF evidence statements in sufficient breadth and depth.
The headteacher/principal should identify a person to act as the ECT’s induction tutor, to provide regular monitoring and support, and coordination of assessment. The induction tutor is expected to hold QTS and have the necessary skills and knowledge to work successfully in this role and be able to assess the ECT’s progress against the Teachers’ Standards. This is a very important element of the induction process and the induction tutor must be given sufficient time to carry out the role effectively and to meet the needs of the ECT. The induction tutor will need to be able to make rigorous and fair judgements about the ECT’s progress in relation to the Teachers’ Standards. They will need to be able to recognise when early action is needed in the case of an ECT who is experiencing difficulties. It may, in some circumstances, be appropriate for the headteacher/principal to be the induction tutor. The induction tutor is a separate role to that of mentor (see below).
The headteacher/principal should identify a person to act as the ECT’s mentor, to provide regular mentoring. The mentor is expected to hold QTS and have the necessary skills and knowledge to work successfully in this role. Mentoring is a very important element of the induction process and the mentor is expected to be given adequate time to carry out the role effectively and to meet the needs of the ECT. This includes attending regular mentoring sessions and mentor training where appropriate and should amount to at least 20 hours across the second academic year of the early career teacher’s induction. The mentor and the induction tutor (see above) are two discrete roles with differing responsibilities, and it is expected that these roles should be held by different individuals. In exceptional circumstances it may be necessary for the headteacher to designate a single teacher to fulfil both roles, which may be the headteacher/principal themselves. Where this is the case the headteacher should ensure that the induction tutor understands that they are fulfilling two discrete roles and that adequate safeguards are put in place to ensure that the mentoring support offered to the ECT is not conflated with assessment of the ECT against the Teachers’ Standards. Support and funding will be made available to enable mentors to undertake their duties – this will vary based on the delivery route a school chooses.
These qualifications (NPQs), already widely recognised and trusted by the sector, and are accredited by the Department for Education. They are designed to help practitioners develop their skills in order to become a more effective school leader and teacher in your school context. From September 2021, the reformed suite of National Professional Qualifications (NPQs) will offer teachers and leaders professional development opportunities and career progression pathways. These qualifications will build on key content areas of the Early Career Framework (ECF) reforms. This allows for further specialisation and development of expertise, helping prepare teachers and leaders for the next step in their careers.
Referring to a new entrant into the profession, registered with the TRA before 31st August 2021. Teachers who have started but not completed their induction on 1 September 2021 will be allowed, until September 2023, to complete a one-year induction period. After this point, these teachers will still be able to complete their induction, but they will need to complete a full two-year induction
These standards set the minimum requirements for teachers’ practice and conduct by which members of the teaching profession are assessed.
The statutory body which awards teacher status following a successful induction period.
Teaching school hubs aim to provide high-quality professional development to teachers at all stages of their careers, delivering school-based initial teacher training (ITT), the ECF, the new specialist national professional qualifications (NPQ), leadership NPQs. They may also provide appropriate body services for early career teachers and other high-quality evidence-based professional development to school leaders and teachers.
From September 2021, the government is funding entitlement for all early career teachers in England to access high-quality professional development at the start of their career. New teachers will now receive development support and training over 2 years instead of one. The offer for early career teachers includes:
From September 2021, all early career teachers will be entitled to an induction period of the full-time equivalent of two academic years.
Teachers who have started but not completed their induction on 1 September 2021 will be allowed, until September 2023, to complete a one-year induction period. After this point, these teachers will still be able to complete their induction, but they will need to complete a full two-year induction.
There are three approaches available, school leaders can choose the approach that best suits the needs for the ECTs and mentors. Full Induction Programme Core Induction Programme and School Based Programme
Schools can choose to work with providers accredited by the DfE, who will design and deliver an induction programme. This is funded by the DfE.
Schools can use the DfE–accredited materials to deliver their own early career teacher and mentor support.
Schools can choose to design and deliver their own induction programme for early careers teachers based on the ECF.
If you choose to use the DfE accredited materials or use your own based on the ECF, you will need to provide information to the appropriate body to demonstrate that their programme fulfils all statutory requirements.
ECTs will be assigned a dedicated mentor to support them throughout their induction period.
The end of the induction period will continue to be marked by a decision on whether the teacher is meeting the ‘Teachers’ Standards’ satisfactorily.
There is no requirement to take somebody on for two years and there is a process that all of the lead providers have in place should an ECT wish to move school because that that will happen.
The length of induction is being increased from one to two years. Judgements on whether an Early Career Teacher has successfully completed induction will continue to be made against the Teachers’ Standards and not against the ECF. Early Career Teachers will be entitled to 10% time-off timetable in year 1 and 5% time-off timetable in year 2 to complete induction activities.
The Appropriate Body makes the final decision as to whether an Early Career Teacher’s performance is satisfactory against the Teachers’ Standards. In doing this, the Appropriate Body would draw on the recommendation of the headteacher/principal.
FIP stands for Full Induction Programme and CIP stands for Core Induction Programme. More information on the Core and Full Induction Programmes is available?here.
A ‘Lead Provider’ is a Provider who has been contracted by the DfE to deliver the National Roll-out of the ECF. There are six Lead Providers in total who will work with Delivery Partners to deliver the programme on a national scale. The Lead Providers are:
The ECF and other changes being made to statutory induction will replace the current guidance, rather than being in addition to the current guidance.
All state-funded schools offering statutory induction will receive additional funding to deliver the ECF reforms. The funding will cover:
The ECF and other changes being made to statutory induction will replace the current guidance, rather than being in addition to the current guidance.
No state funded school in England should pay a fee for participating in the ECF.
There is additional funding for schools to backfill Mentor time spent undertaking the 36 hours of Mentor training on the Full Induction Programme. This is in addition to the funding for Mentors to spend time with the Early Career Teacher in their second year of induction. Time-off timetable for Mentors amounts to 10% time-off timetable in year 1 and 5% time-off timetable in year 2.
Early Career Teachers who have begun induction before September 2021 should finish a one-year induction period, under present arrangements.
Where possible, schools can extend Core Induction Programme based training to these teachers. Schools and Early Career Teachers can use, or draw upon, any of the four Core Induction Programmes published here.
The ECF Lead (or Induction Tutor) is expected to regularly review the Early Career Teacher’s progress against the Teachers’ Standards throughout the induction period, as well as providing support to the Early Career Teacher. The Induction Tutor role will be defined in more detail in the statutory guidance to be published this spring. This is a different role to that of the Mentor, who will provide dedicated one-to-one mentoring sessions with the Early Career Teacher throughout the induction period.
Schools will make their own arrangements with Lead Providers, however, the DfE expects the minimum commitment for one cohort of Early Career Teachers to be for two academic years in line with the extended induction period.
The DfE expects participants that start on a programme to finish the programme that they have started. However, for new cohorts of Early Career Teachers, schools can change from their existing provider.
The headteacher should identify a teacher to act as the Early Career Teacher’s Mentor, to provide regular mentoring. The Mentor is expected to hold QTS and have the necessary skills and knowledge to work successfully in this role. The headteacher is responsible for ensuring that the Mentor has the ability and sufficient time to carry out their role effectively.
The DfE has designed this programme to ensure that the strengthened induction will not add to the workload of Early Career Teachers.
In addition to the 10% time away from the classroom in their first year of induction, teachers will be entitled to 5% time away from the classroom in their second year of induction.
It should be possible for the programme to be completed entirely in their time-off timetable.
If a school has any concerns about the delivery of the programme, they should raise this with either the Lead Provider or the Delivery Partner responsible for delivery.
The DfE expects participants that start on a programme to finish the programme they have started. However, for new cohorts of Early Career Teachers, schools can change from their existing provider.
