This week’s highlight was attending the AELP Hair and Beauty sector forum.
Amongst other excellent presentations, we were particularly impressed by SAKS Education’s very impressive account of how they retained their Ofsted Outstanding grade.
Tina Ockerby, SAKS’ Managing Director, described the company’s relentless pursuit of excellence in assessment that had enabled them to gain an Ofsted Outstanding grade not just once, but twice.
Tina touched on a few things that were particularly key to their successful inspection:
- Safeguarding – as we have seen elsewhere, this has become a real focus of inspection.
- Advice and Guidance – often seen as a slightly marginal topic, SAKS’ A&G approach was also scrutinised.
- Provision of feedback – the Inspectors were keen to see examples where an assessor had provided feedback to a learner, which had been acted upon and the learner’s evidence, or competency, had improved as a direct result.
- Review process – it was very important to be able to prove a considerable degree of employer input into the review process.
- CPD – Ofsted were keen to see that individuals such as assessors were continuing their professional development to enhance their skills and to stay abreast of new industry developments.
All in all, Tina’s account demonstrated an organisation that was thoroughly committed to providing an excellent service and with a real focus on providing an enjoyable and successful experience for the learner. Congratulations to all at SAKS!