Primary Teacher Programme
Do you want to train to be a primary school teacher?
South Cumbria School Direct Primary is based at our Furness Education Trust ‘Outstanding’ school; Victoria Academy, Barrow-in-Furness and works in close collaboration with the Ripley ITT in Lancaster.
We offer a 12 month Primary programme which gives you PGCE and recommendation for QTS. The PGCE is awarded by Leeds Beckett University and includes 60 credits at Master’s level.
As a trainee teacher on the South Cumbria School Direct Programme you will spend a much greater proportion of time in school than you would on a traditional PGCE programme and the curriculum will be delivered by outstanding teachers.
Courses
We offer this course:
We are working in partnership with Ripley ITT and Leeds Beckett University to offer a School Direct Programme which offers a superb route into our rich and rewarding profession. If you study with us, you will be working towards a PGCE course at Masters Level which will lead to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS); this is the qualification required to teach in maintained schools in England.
You will train in a range of ‘good’ and ‘outstanding’ schools in the Barrow and Furness area who are very experienced at delivering high quality teacher training and have a range of contrasting contexts. You will learn from and work alongside excellent teachers and experienced staff in over 22 schools comprising Key Stage 1 and Key Stage 2.
Our programme begins early September and from the outset you will have 4 days per week of placement in one of our partner schools; a valuable opportunity to learn from being in a classroom environment and to make connections between your experience and your taught module content. Each Friday, you will attend training sessions, hosted and delivered by Headteachers, Specialist Leaders of Education (SLEs) and other outstanding classroom practitioners. These training sessions take place at our partner provider campus; Ripley SCITT in Lancaster.
You will have training and experience in important primary education topics, including phonics and early reading, assessment, special needs and inclusion, working with support staff and leadership. There are many different subjects taught in primary education and you will audit your subject knowledge for the topics you will need to teach at KS1 and KS2. Some of the training sessions will focus specifically on these subjects, whilst others will focus on generic teaching skills, such as classroom routines and behaviour.
Leeds Beckett University provide the PGCE for our programme and this is all online. The modules perfectly compliment the training we deliver and you will gain 60 Master’s level credits (https://courses.leedsbeckett.ac.uk/PGCE_distancelearning/)
You study three modules in total, all learning will integrate theory and practical application.
If you choose to study the PGCE alongside the QTS, you will have academic assignments at Masters level which require you to read, research and reflect on your learning and experiences within the training year.
Assessment of trainees for QTS is provided by SCSD and Ripley ITT who have been highly praised by Ofsted for their approach to trainee workload and for keeping requirements concise yet effective.
Assessment of trainees for QTS is based on all of the following:
- Regular observations of lessons with feedback and target setting
- Grading against our curriculum strands at the end of each placement
- Formative feedback about progress against our curriculum throughout the placement and against the Teachers’ Standards at the end of the course
- Assessment of a Best Evidence Portfolio at the end of the programme.
You will complete 2 school placements which take place within our partner schools in the Barrow and Furness area. The first placement will begin in September; an excellent time to see how rules and routines are established at the start of the academic year. You will start with focused lesson observations before you begin to plan and teach parts of lessons. After a few weeks you will be planning and delivering whole lessons, building up to approximately 7 hours per week of teaching by the end of your first placement.
The second placement will be in a different school, which will give you a contrasting experience and broaden your professional development. Again, you will gradually increase your teaching timetable and will be teaching up to 70% of the school week by the end of the placement in July.
You will have 2 assessed placement blocks:
- Placement A from Sept to Dec
- Placement B from January to July
These will occur in two different schools and in 2 different key stages to meet the requirements of gaining QTS.
You will have 1 day per week of training in Lancaster; a valuable opportunity to learn from being in a classroom environment and to make connections between your experience and your taught module content.
Placements are selected for you on the basis of high quality mentoring, individual training needs, the opportunity to experience the full primary age range, contrasting schools and reasonable commuting distance. We have 22 partner schools in the Barrow and Furness area in which you can carry out your placements.
You will have the opportunity to learn in 2 of the following schools:
Barrow Island Primary | Cambridge Primary | Chetwydne School |
Dalton St Mary’s CE Primary | George Romney Junior School | Greengate Junior School |
Newbarns Primary | Ormsgill Primary | Parkside Academy |
| Roose Nursery & Primary | Sir John Barrow | South Walney Junior School |
St James’ Junior School | Victoria Academy (Lead School) | Yarlside Academy |
The South Cumbria School Direct programme will be delivered within the Ripley ITT partnership. As the Lead School in the partnership, Ripley St Thomas has a successful track record in training teachers. All the schools in the partnership are highly experienced and have all been graded outstanding or good by Ofsted.
Rated “Outstanding” by Ofsted.
Read the June 2023 OFSTED report here
https://www.ripleyitt.co.uk/app/uploads/2023/09/June-2023-OFSTED-report.pdf
Course Fees and Funding
- Tuition fees for all training programmes leading to Qualified Teacher Status (QTS) are £7,500.
- For QTS with PGCE the tuition fee is £9,250.
Bursaries
Currently there are no bursaries available for primary teacher training.
Financial incentives in the form of non-repayable bursaries are available for postgraduate non-salaried trainees studying high priority SECONDARY subjects. The government defines which subjects are ‘high priority’ each year. Your eligibility for financial support, and the amount you can expect to receive, will depend on the subject you choose to teach and your degree classification or highest relevant academic qualification. You don’t need to apply for a bursary – if you are enrolled on our non-salaried postgraduate course and meet the eligibility criteria, you will begin receiving payments automatically from Ripley ITT. You will receive more information on the arrangements and how this is distributed prior to the start of your course.
For 2024-25, bursaries are offered to trainees intending to train to teach in the subjects listed below:
- £28,000 in chemistry, computing, maths and physics
- £25,000 in geography, biology, design and technology and languages (including ancient languages)
- £10,000 in English, music and RE
Applicants may be eligible for a bursary if they have a 1st, 2.1 or 2.2, or if they hold Master’s or PhD.
For further information on bursaries and scholarships visit;
Tuition Fee Loans
If you are on our non-salaried postgraduate teacher training course, you will have to pay tuition fees. Home and EEA students may be eligible for a tuition fee loan to cover the cost of tuition fees. This is available through Student Finance England. You won’t have to pay the cost of tuition charges up front and you will only repay the loan once you are in full-time employment and earning above £21,000.
Maintenance Loans
Home students in England may also be eligible for a maintenance loan to help towards accommodation and other living costs. EU students cannot apply for Maintenance Loans. The loan is paid directly into your bank account at the start of term. You will have to pay the loan back. This is available through Student Finance England.
Please see Get into Teaching and The Department for Education website for bursary and scholarship details.
Applicants who meet the entry requirements will be invited to interview at Victoria Academy in Barrow in Furness. The interview process includes a written task, subject knowledge audit, pupil panel, and a panel interview. You will be interviewed by the SDCD Programme Leader and the Furness Education Trust Executive Primary Lead . We are looking for the potential to be an excellent trainee, someone who is ready to start training in a school setting from early September. We are also looking for potential employees in our schools and the vast majority of our trainees go on to gain positions in local schools.
Throughout the selection process, the panel will consider your:
- Quality of subject knowledge.
- Ability to communicate effectively.
- Capacity to establish effective relationships inside and outside the classroom.
- Passion and drive to deliver the highest quality of educational standards.
- Commitment to develop as an educator of character.
- Suitability to train to teach and to meet the Teachers’ Standards by the end of training.
- Flexibility to adapt to change and ability to think instantaneously.
- Resilience and your ability to commit to tasks.
- Time management and organisation.
- Enrolment procedures and pre-course support
If successful at the interview process, SCSD will then provide you with a conditional offer based on the selection process outcomes. You will be invited to a pre-course orientation session in July, to give you further information and answer any questions you may have about next steps.
Qualifications Required
- All candidates must have GCSE grade 4/C or above in English, Mathematics and Science, or an equivalent qualification.
- An honours degree, ideally 2:2 or above If your degree is not in a related subject you may be required to complete a Subject Knowledge Enhancement course.
- All offers made will be subject to a full DBS check and Health and Capacity to Teach check.
- All candidates must have the right to work or study in the UK. For British nationals a birth certificate or valid UK passport will support this.
- Please note, we do not sponsor student visas for overseas applicants, However, if you are currently an overseas student in the UK and wish to go on to train to teach following completion of your degree, you can apply for a Graduate Visa:
The following is taken from the gov.uk website which can be found here.
If you are already an international student in the UK, you can apply for a graduate visa on successful completion of your degree. To apply, you will need to have been sponsored by a Home Office licensed student sponsor over the course of your studies.
The graduate visa will allow you to study, work, or look for work in the UK for up to 2 years after completing your studies (3 years for PhD students) without a sponsor. This includes training as a teacher on a salaried or fee-paying initial teacher training course […].
You will be able to switch from a graduate visa to another visa (such as the skilled worker visa) without having to leave the UK, if you meet the requirements for the other visa route.
Other useful information for international applicants can be found on the getintoteaching website
Personal Qualities
We are looking for people who are keen to learn in a school setting and this model suits trainees who are able to learn as they go along and incorporate their own experience into this learning process. Successful applicants will have an understanding of the professionalism and resilience needed to become a teacher and to be reflective learners. A real commitment to a career in teaching, passionate and enthusiastic with an interest in teaching all subjects and a positive attitude towards children are essential qualities.
As part of the enrolment process, you will be required to complete documentation including safeguarding checks which are outlined below.
Statutory Safeguarding Checks
South Cumbria School Direct are required by statutory guidance to make specific safeguarding checks on everyone we place in schools. We undertake the following documentary checks as part of our programme registration process.
Identity
South Cumbria School Direct checks your identity against the DBS approved list of documents, most commonly:
- Passport
- Photo driving licence (UK)
- Utility bill or bank statement (dated in the last 3 months)
Right to Work in the UK
- Valid or Expired UK/EU passport or
- Non-EU passport with visa and Biometric Residence Permit or
- EU National ID card or
- Full UK birth certificate and NI number or
- Certificate of Naturalisation and NI number
Criminal Record Check
- Enhanced DBS Enclosure from Protocol Education dated within 12 months or
- Enhanced DBS Enclosure with valid Update Service subscription
- Overseas Police Check (where applicable)
Barred List
- Checked as part the Enhanced DBS Check and then re-checked annually
Prohibition from Teaching Orders
- Checked against the DfE database
Entry References (2 required)
- Most recent employer
- One other professional reference
- University tutor and references from school placements (work-based and volunteering)
- Non-school references and character references are accepted where you have not previously worked in schools.
Health Check
Before being accepted onto the programme, all trainees must satisfy the DfE requirements with regards to health and capacity to teach. You will be required to complete a confidential medical questionnaire if you are offered a place on our training courses.
All applicants who are successful at interview will need the following before they can start:
- DBS and barred list check
- Medical check
- Have the right to live and work in the UK for the duration of the programme
- Satisfactory online checks
It is important that you have a good awareness of what the role of a teacher involves so that you can be sure it is the right career choice for you. We offer school experience for people at all stages of this career decision, including after interview, in order to support you with this.
We welcome applicants of all ages, from university graduation to mature career changers.
