Outstanding. How does it feel?

Sue Pittock OBE, CEO Remit Training

The question I have been asked the most this week:

How did you feel once you realised Remit had achieved an OUTSTANDING grade by Ofsted?

My biggest takeaway from the experience was how many individuals played such different roles to contribute to the greater whole.?

I have never seen teamwork like I witnessed during this inspection. Many colleagues worked tirelessly from the moment the call came in until the inspection concluded the following Friday.?

There were so many individuals who came alive during the whole process and so many little subgroups who became great friends during this experience.?

Some colleagues who were on holiday, commented that they felt like they had missed out not being part time of this experience - you know you have colleagues who really CARE when you hear comments like that.

When Jane Firth, Director of Quality & Compliance, and I reflected on this inspection, it was the first time we had seen so many colleagues instantly know what part they felt they could, and wanted, to play.?

Some colleagues set themselves very high benchmarks, and at times you could see the strain when they felt things did not go perfectly for their group. In those cases, they would simply prepare again and go straight in for their next interview.?

We worked with Kerry and Bob from Fellowship of Inspection Nominees (FIN) , who were a great support to many colleagues who were interviewed. I have not named those colleagues who played a great role during this inspection as those 44 know who they are, but...

...an inspection is not just about the week you go through it, but the whole build up from the last inspection which involves so many colleagues all of whom played an integral part.

We had a year of daily 8 a.m. calls , different team captains, spot prizes and much distance was travelled in that time. These practices were so effective that we are continuing with them now.

In summary, my reflection, one week on, is that I could not be more PROUD and I feel truly blessed to work with such an awesome #TeamRemit. ?As Rob Foulston , Remit Chairman said, for him, achieving Ofsted Grade 1, OUTSTANDING, was the best moment in 15 years of Remit.

For me, this was a great way to celebrate my 10-year anniversary with Remit and be part of such a hard-working, dedicated, tenacious and committed team of individuals.?

We know our sector is navigating its most choppy waters currently. Whether this is because of the demise of Traineeships, the challenges of Adult Education Budget (AEB) procurement, funding rule challenges with Skills Bootcamps, or the fact we have not seen a pound of inflationary increases for Apprenticeships. We can see that Gillian Keegan, Secretary of State for Education and Robert Halfon, Minister for Skills, Apprenticeships and Higher Education are very committed to see our education ecosystem go from strength to strength and I am sure they will fight to see Apprenticeships funded appropriately and ensure our sector moves to calmer waters soon.?

Once again, thank you to every single Remit colleague, and Kerry and Bob at Fin, you are all OUTSTANDING ??

Much appreciation and thank you for everything you do.?

Find out more about how Remit can support your apprenticeship strategies at www.remit.co.uk

Read our full Ofsted Inspection here