Learn about the services appropriate bodies use, and how the services allow appropriate bodies to carry out their duties. Services include the ‘appropriate body portal’ and the ‘check data for appropriate bodies’ service.
Contents
Check data for appropriate bodies
Appropriate body portal
Get access to the TRA's appropriate body sign in
Access to the AB portal, and user management, is administered via DfE sign-in.
🔒 Within DfE Sign-In, each organisation has a nominated approver, and that person (rather than DfE personnel) is responsible for adminstering user requests for their organisation. This keeps the data safe from people within organisations that should not have access to it.
ABs as an organization are added or removed as needed through liaising with the induction data collections team in the TRA (Teaching Regulation Agency) via email. The TRA teams sends a CVS to DfE sign in with a list of all Appropriate bodies.
🔒 This means organisations can only get access that are legitimately appropriate bodies. Policy outlining who can be an appropriate body: Appropriate bodies guidance - section 3:1
View records for early career teachers that are already registered
They (Appropriate Bodies) can view historical records for ECTs they have claimed in a list on their Appropriate body account homepage.
They can also view their appropriate body ID. This is referred to later as an employer ID.
Individually claim an ECT for their induction status with the TRA
The process of 'claiming' an ECT refers to an AB telling the TRA which ECTs they are quality assuring the induction of.
The appropriate body needs to enter both the date of birth and the TRN number for the ECT record to show up and be claimed.
🔒 The AB needs both the TRN and DOB as a data privacy measure to ensure that the AB is only searching for ECTs they already have links with. This search locates the record in the database of qualified teachers (DQT).
If there is no TRN and DOB match, then an error message appears. The AB would then liaise with our induction data collections team or the teacher themselves
The record will still show but have a blank field in the QTS date section if they don't have QTS yet.
If the ECT has previously failed induction, they cannot do induction again.
📜 This is due to policy restricting those who have failed from reapplying to practice teaching. AB guidance details this here.
If an early career teacher did their initial teacher training (ITT) through an accredited ITT provider who is also an AB, the school cannot appoint that appropriate body for that teacher.
ECTs may be serving their induction at an AB. For example, they may work at a teaching school hub that is also an AB. If this is the case, the school cannot appoint that AB for that teacher.
📜 Find out more in section 2 of the statutory guidance on induction for early career teachers.
If an AB tries to claim an ECT who is exempt from the web UI, or via a bulk upload, it gives a message saying they are exempt.
📜 Those who are exempt cannot be claimed as they don't need to be inducted in order to teach
When the portal pulls up the record for the ECT, it would show:
Status
- Alerts
- The date they achieved QTS
- Induction, which is the current status of their induction.
This status would be one of the following: in progress, pass, fail, extended, not yet completed (when they have stopped induction with their current appropriate body but not finished their induction)
Teacher details
- Their title
- Forename
- Middle name(s)
- Surnames
Initial teacher training
- Qualification
- ITT establishment
- Programme type
- Subject 1
- Subject 2
- Subject 3
- Age range
- Course end date
- Course result
- Class and division
QTS status
- Qualified teacher status
- QTS date
- Date of Partial Recognition
Induction status
- Induction status (In progress/Not yet completed/Extended/Passed/Failed)
- Eligible to complete a one-year induction period under transition arrangements
📜 This part was related to temporary provisions when the ECF came in. If someone, as of 1 September 2021, had started but not completed induction, they had until 31 August 2023 to complete induction under the 'old regs'. TRA populated this themselves, based on data they had. ABs cannot edit it. The transition period is over, so this is now a 'no' for everyone.
Viewing induction history
There are provisions in the regulations for ABs to offer a reduced induction. Appropriate bodies have discretion to reduce the length of the induction period to a minimum of one term (based on a school year of three terms) to recognise previous teaching experience.
Induction history is shown, as subsection of induction status, if the ECT has a previous appropriate body(s) than their current one.
🙋 This section is so that ABs can track where their ECTs have been and how much induction they have served elsewhere.
The induction history table shows the following:
- Previous appropriate bodies
- Start date (when the ECT started induction with the previous appropriate body)
- End date (when the ECT stopped doing induction with the previous appropriate body, but did not pass or fail -- this is when they are released)
- Number of terms (this must be a whole number, and this is given when the ECT is released)
- Induction programme type (FIP/CIP/DIY)
Below the induction history are 2 more subheadings:
- Extension period (when an AB doesn't pass or fail them, but decides to extend their induction, this part will specify how much longer their induction is)
- Induction status completion date (if passed, this will be the pass date, if failed, it will be the fail date)
The appropriate body user can claim the ECT for induction if they are not already claimed by another appropriate body. If they are claimed by another appropriate body, they would not be able to do this.
🙋 This allows the TRA to keep track of where an ECT currently is or how many ECTs under an AB without overlaps in data.
Claiming an induction that is already claimed by another appropriate body
When an appropriate body user tries to view an ECT record to claim them, if the ECT is already claimed by another appropriate body, it would state they were 'in progress' and the appropriate body they were in progress with.
💻 They are unable to change this on the service so the appropriate body user would have to reach out to the other appropriate body or the TRA induction support team to get them to release the ECT.
📜 Sometimes, these appropriate bodies (particularly local authorities due to policy changes) no longer exist so the induction support team would help the ABs to navigate this.
Claiming an ECT
When they are claiming an ECT, the appropriate body user needs to state:
When the induction began for that ECT with that appropriate body
What type of induction programme they are doing (FIP, CIP, DIY)
On 1, there is validation that makes sure the date given isn't before the date QTS was recorded. This is because induction should only start after they received QTS.
There are some discrepancies in the rules on the portal. Future dates aren't allowed in the web update, but can get through the bulk import upload.
The end date of an induction period must be after the start date for an induction period.
When this data is submitted, the appropriate body user would see the employer ID and employer address. This is the same as the appropriate body ID, and should show the appropriate body address.
Release an ECT so another school can claim them or because the ECT dropped out of teaching
An appropriate body user can record an induction outcome of not yet completed when they click to update induction details. 'Not yet completed' means they did not finish their induction but are no longer with that appropriate body.
When they do this, they must:
- Confirm or update the induction start date for the ECT with their appropriate body -- this is auto populated from what they previously gave when first claiming the ECT but can be edited if needed
- Give the induction end date for when the ECT stopped induction with their appropriate body
- Give the number of terms served as a whole number. The number of terms can only be given at the point an outcome so this part isn't auto-populated and would need to be input
- Confirm or update the induction programme type -- this is populated from what they previously gave
They would submit that and then it would update DQT.
'Not yet completed' is the only status option for an ECT leaving an AB regardless of the circumstances.
If an ECT drops out of teaching, the appropriate body does not update the ECT's record any differently to when they would release an ECT who had changed appropriate body for their induction. The record just remains as 'not yet completed'.
Sometimes, ECTs will potentially come back and finish induction much later therefore keeping their record as not yet completed regardless of reasons for leaving allows their record to be picked up from where it was last updated.
Pass or fail an ECT's induction
This would be under where AB users 5ecord an induction outcome.
The following data points are given, updated or confirmed for this:
Dates of when induction started and ended
Number of terms completed
Induction programme type
📊📜 This is the data that's needed by the DQT to be on the record when giving an ECT an outcome
There is validation to not allow future dates or induction end date before the induction start date.
This is not the case when done in a mass upload as the DQT processes mass upload data overnight.
💻 This is because the system can't correct errors with validation rules as it's done on a template and will simply bounce them back a day after the upload once processed.
Extend an ECT's induction
There is a field for extending number of terms. The inputs to populate this field would be:
- Start date
- Programme type
- Length of the extension
If the person iscompleting their induction with the same AB, they don't have to enter an end date or no. of terms. If the person is completing their induction elsewhere, they must enter the end date and number of terms.
Mass actions to update an ECTs record for their induction status with the TRA
Mass actions refer to an AB's ability to upload mass induction data as opposed to the standard 1 by 1 record updates for ECTs.
This is done by uploading a CSV file (template given by the TRA) onto the portal. The columns on the file are the same as the details needed on the individual record but this allows ABs to update the TRA with all their ECT's data much quicker.
You can also release an ECT and extend them using the mass upload file.
This is processed overnight so there are no immediate error messages unlike the updating 1 record at a time route.
The TRA support team would email the AB of any discrepancies that flagged up overnight and ask them to amend the errors.
Due to the processing happening overnight the ABs wouldn't receive notifications to alert them of any errors and the system doesn't have a way to update them built in, therefore the only way to amend errors is via contacting the ABs through help desk.
There are some discrepancies in the rules on the portal. Future dates aren't allowed in the web update, but can get through the bulk import.
Check data for appropriate bodies
Access to the service
The appropriate body nominates the users who require access by emailing support. Support would then raise this as a second line ticket to the policy and engagement team. The policy team would contact the lead provider working with this appropriate body to confirm the user was valid. There is admin functionality where they can then add users to the appropriate body in the Manage ECT admin tooling.
🔒 Only approved appropriate body users can be added to view this data. As the check data service shows personal information for ECTs, it would be a GDPR breach to show this to users that do not require access.
📜 There were strict directions from policy to define who had access to this data. This is why it is escalated to policy teams, not just support teams. Appropriate bodies are often delivery partners too. The Appropriate bodies and regulation team gives information to the policy team on who is serving as an appropriate body.
Those users will then receive an email notification that they can sign in.
💻The email notification is used to alert users they can use the service.
If an appropriate body also acts as a delivery partner, access is given to each check data service separately.
💻 Some appropriate bodies may be delivery partners, but they have differing responsibilities for each role, and in theory might be responsible for different ECTs. Delivery partners are also responsible for mentors, not just ECTs.
🔒 Splitting the responsibility up allows them to see what is relevant for their role for their organisation. Some colleagues may only be responsible for appropriate body responsibilities, not delivery partner responsibilities, or vice versa.
Sign in to the service
The user, if granted access, can try to sign in. This will then send them a 'magic link' in an email to enable sign in.
💻 Magic link approach was decided to be the best sign in option at the time.
If the appropriate body user is also granted access to the check data for delivery partner service or any other related services, they will be required to state which role they need to carry out for that session.
💻 Some appropriate bodies may be delivery partners, but they have differing responsibilities for each role, and in theory might be responsible for different ECTs. Delivery partners are also responsible for mentors, not just ECTs.
🔒 Splitting the responsibility up allows them to see what is relevant for their role for their organisation. Some colleagues may only be responsible for appropriate body responsibilities, not delivery partner responsibilities, or vice versa.
View data for ECTs registered by SITs to their appropriate body
The data that is available to view in the service is the data submitted by SITs in the Manage ECTs service about ECTs.
🙋📊 This was built for appropriate bodies to cross-reference with their own data and information on ECTs with what schools had submitted in Manage ECTs. This could be useful when submitting other data to the Teaching Regulation Agency as well.
It also meant that appropriate bodies could follow up when necessary with schools, for example when: * a school has indicated they are using the appropriate body on Manage ECTs, but has not registered the ECT's details directly with them * a school has registered an ECT's details directly with them but has not registered the ECT correctly on Manage ECTs * an appropriate body has concerns that fidelity checks (needed for both CIP and DIY) may be required for an ECT's induction * an appropriate body may need to use this to double-check they have successfully registered for induction any ECTs on the TRA AB portal
There was also a hope that showing this information schools had submitted on Manage ECTs, would reduce the workload of appropriate bodies having to ask schools for the same information again in other places.
Appropriate bodies cannot see any data about mentors.
🔒 Appropriate bodies are responsible for the induction of new teachers. They are not responsible for any training mentors receive and do not need to see their data.
If there are users allocated to multiple appropriate bodies, they can choose from a list of appropriate bodies which one they want to view the data for.
💻 This seems to be just how it was built, and a way for the user to check what they needed to for their role as a particularly appropriate body. It's unlikely or unheard of for someone to work for multiple appropriate bodies.
It only shows data for the current academic year.
💻 This seems to be just how it was built, and it wasn't a priority to expand to other academic years.
Fields that can be viewed about an ECT
- Full name
- TRN
- School URN
- Status (defined below)
- Induction type (FIP, CIP or DIY)
- Induction tutor (their email)
📊🙋 There was an exercise to consider what appropriate body would need to see. The first 3 fields help them to ascertain if the ECT has been correctly registered with them and matches their records. Most of these fields are relevant to what an appropriate body would need to submit to the TRA, or what school and who they would need to contact if there were any issues. Information on the induction type also informs appropriate bodies to if they need to do fidelity checks or not.
Statuses for an ECT
- Contacted for information
- No induction registered - Check you've registered this ECT's induction with the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA)
- Not eligible for funded training - This means the ECT has either completed, failed, or is exempt from serving their induction
- Checking QTS - We're awaiting confirmation of their qualified teacher status (QTS)
- Induction confirmed - An induction period has been registered with the Teaching Regulation Agency (TRA) for this ECT
- Participant deferred - This participant's provider has reported that they've deferred. Contact the provider if you think this is wrong
- ECT not currently linked to you - The school has indicated you're no longer acting as the appropriate body for this ECT
- Induction completed - The Teaching Regulation Agency has recorded that this ECT completed their induction on 30 June 2023.
📊🙋 The statuses were transformed from how they appear to school users in Manage ECT to be more relevant to what appropriate bodies would need to see. They can help an appropriate know what they might need to action, e.g. to check in with a school if they're not eligible, or to make sure they've registered them for induction in the TRA AB portal.
Filters a user can apply
- Search by school name, URN, ECT name or TRN
- Filter by status
🙋 This helps appropriate bodies filter to ECTs they are interested in finding out about. For example, filtering by status allows them to see ECTs where they do not have induction registered on the TRA's AB portal. They could then follow up these queries with the school induction tutor or school. Equally, filtering by school can allow them to check that the school has registered on Manage ECTs correctly all the ECTs they are responsible for the induction of.
Download the data as a CSV
The data shown on the page is downloaded as a CSV. It remembers the filters or search that has been applied.
🙋 This is to help with appropriate bodies processes and record keeping, so they can choose to compare the data in Manage ECTs, the TRA's AB portal and their own systems how they want to. They can also use this to export data which will later disappear when the service updates to the next academic year.