Case Studies
Read about the real experiences of teachers who have trained with the Surrey Downs Partnership, and be inspired that this is something you can do too!
Jason Perfitt 
Science Teacher Trainee, The Ashcombe School, Dorking
When I made the decision to move into teaching, following more than 25 years in the pharmaceutical industry, I knew I needed a provider that had significant experience in training teachers into second careers. Surrey Downs Partnership, with Xavier Teach South East (XTSE), met and exceeded this benchmark, and their Surrey teaching hub based in Woking was accessible to me. My placement at The Ashcombe School in Dorking is being very successful. The school has excellent values and an ethos aligned to my personal values, and the science department has brilliant educators and technical staff. The team has been very welcoming and supportive of my learning with no silly question being met with eye-rolls and sighs! The mentorship I receive is hugely valuable to developing my own skills: feedback is balanced, formative, immediate and supportive. My SCITT Lead, who I meet with every week, is vastly experienced and has on several occasions helped ‘clear the path’ for me to be able to give of my best.
One day a week, the XTSE Surrey Hub meet for formal training in pedagogy and subject specific learning. These sessions are more than the sum of their parts as all trainees are together from all disciplines which provides fruitful debate and opportunities to share strategies, successes, and failures with like-minded professionals on the journey to QTS/PGCE. The quality of the training course is outstanding (according to Ofsted, not just my opinion) and the central team at XTSE have a proven track record of forming and delivering high quality teachers.
As an experienced leader in another industry, I know it is not always easy to find the right provider, the right place and the right people with the right values in any walk of life. Alignment across each of these areas has happened for me with Surrey Downs Partnership, XTSE and The Ashcombe School. The training year is tough – everyone tells you so, and from my experience they are right – so I am delighted that I chose this path for such a crucial year. Thank you for the journey we have been on together to date; I am supported and challenged every day and I am confident I will become a very successful, adaptive and supportive teacher when entering my ECT years.
Laura Mayne
English Teacher at The Ashcombe School, Dorking
I left University and went straight into a career in London but found myself always doing volunteer outreach work with schools. I soon realised that I much preferred the challenges that the classroom brings and decided to commit to a year-long teacher training course. There are many different teacher-training courses now, which can be slightly overwhelming; but it does mean that there is an available route into teaching to suit different individual needs (the stage you are at in your career, your home and family demands, the degree and A-Levels you have, your financial situation etc.) The various courses offered provide for everyone wishing to embark on a teaching career. I knew I wanted to specifically train in a mixed local comprehensive school and I was interested in the PCGE, Teach First and Schools Direct courses offered in Sussex and Surrey schools. After speaking to current teachers and University course leaders, I decided that I was best suited to the Schools Direct training route.
The Schools Direct programme requires you to have spent time in employment, which is great as it means your training school will recognise your level of previous experience. I found that my mentor (and the wider SMT team) both respected my experience and were keen to find ways in which to enable me to draw on skills I had already developed during my previous career. They were also sensitive to everything that was new to me about school life (particularly the unpredictable nature of students’ behaviour in the classroom) and ready to support me in every way possible. The training programme means you hit the ground running with your own classes to prepare for and lessons to teach but this definitely suited my independence and enthusiasm. I could readily seek feedback from observations and support and guidance at weekly mentor meetings. Because Schools Direct trainees spend the majority of time in school (from the first term you only attend University once a week), I felt fully immersed in the wider school community from the very beginning. This made training at the Ashcombe all the more enjoyable as there was so much going on to get involved in (school productions, Christmas Bazaars, Charities Week, Sponsored Walk etc.… the list could go on and on…) There were also extra responsibilities that I was required to commit to such as Parents’ Evenings and weekly departmental and pastoral meetings, but experiencing these demands was valuable preparation for my NQT year.
As part of the Schools Direct training programme, you are required to commit to a placement in another school; however, this is often shorter than the average second training placement. As the teaching demands during this second placement were not quite so intense to begin with, it enabled me to carry out more lesson observations than I had done previously and also provided me with an insight into a similar comprehensive ethos but very different styles of management, behavioural policies, pastoral support frameworks, exam board choices and individual teaching strategies. My lead school, The Aschombe, were very keen for my placement at this second school to facilitate the sharing of best practice and I enjoyed feeding back about my experience during INSET training.
A salaried Schools Direct Training placement is certainly intense and the expectations of trainees are very similar to that of an NQT; so it is excellent preparation for the realities of a long term teaching career but it does require trainees to be confident from the first day when you will step into your own classroom and begin teaching your own lessons – a very exciting prospect!
Charlotte Glass; Schools Direct trainee. 
Having known for several years that I wanted a career in teaching, I found the choice of applying for a teacher training programme an easy one. However, with a few training routes now being offered, at first it seemed like a daunting process; I was quickly proved wrong through the application of the School Direct placement. Having researched into the direction it took, the clear opportunity for an inclusive school experience greatly appealed.
From the outset I was treated like any other member of staff, with responsibilities and expectations helping me to fully immerse myself into the school’s environment and culture. This was hugely beneficial, especially helping the relationship with my students who also recognised me as an equal member of the teaching team and not a trainee-student. The expectations of me were the same as a fully qualified teacher: INSET days, staff training evenings, parents’ evening and extra-curricular activities are just a few examples of the opportunities you have, to help fully engage and enjoy the career choice. Being treated in this manner meant that I immediately began to experience the rewarding role that a teacher has.
However, I was far from being alone with these new responsibilities and demands. The supportive team ensured I was never left panicking over the new experiences I encountered on a day-to-day basis. Thanks to my Professional Tutor and Mentor, I was able to receive continuous feedback and advice on how to further improve and better my teaching ability. My Mentor kindly ensured she was available any hour of the day, so that I did not feel unsupported or alone within this new role. If I stumbled upon a difficult or unfamiliar scenario, I knew that I could ask any member of the team to assist my understanding and actions, whilst still being able to maintain the professional role required for the placement.
In terms of my teaching and lesson planning, my placements ensured I was observed in every lesson: a daunting prospect at first, but one that proved extremely helpful and practical throughout my experience. After every lesson I received feedback and suggestions as to how to continually better myself and improve my teaching practice. My Mentor regularly helped guide and support my planning ideas, helping me to equip myself with not only the subject of English, but the wider school responsibilities and roles required of a teacher.
Not only did the school provide a vast assortment of extra training and opportunities, but the supporting University also ensured progress and improvement was taking place. By attending University one day a week, I was able to take the time to acknowledge the requirements of the course and receive extra instruction and methods that I could then adapt to my lessons. The University supplied a vast array of lectures and resources that deepened my understanding of the role, as well as offer talks from leading professional within the teaching institution. Overall, this route has proved to be a challenging but enriching experience. The structure and support has ensured a stable pathway, alongside allowing an independently inclusive experience to learn and progress within.