Summary: what appears in the NOF ICT Training 'Red Book'

The entries for England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are different. This is an amalgam of what appears in each country’s Red Book as published in February 2000.

Name of approved training provider:

Inclusive Consultancy and Training Syndicate (ICTS)

Organisations involved in provision of training:

ACE Centre
Advisory Trust
ACE Centre North
The Advisory Unit
CALL Centre, Edinburgh University
CENMAC
Cwmni Cynnal (for Welsh materials)
Down’s Syndrome Association
Inclusive Technology Ltd
Manchester Metropolitan University (for unit validation)
Royal National Institute for the Blind

LEA areas covered by training provision:

This training is offered in all one-hundred-and-fifty-one English LEAs. Also in all thirty-two Scottish EAs, all twenty-two Welsh LEAs and the five Northern Ireland ELBs. Non-Maintained Special Schools in England are now included too.

Subjects covered by training available:

Our training is designed to show how pupils with profound, severe and complex special needs can access communication, learning and the curriculum through the medium of ICT.

Medium of instruction for training:

The printed course materials and most on-line materials will be offered in Welsh and English. Face-to-face tuition will normally be in English.

Training for teachers of pupils with severe & complex SEN:

Yes - the sole focus of this training is severe and complex special educational needs.

Specialisms to be covered will include:

This programme is suitable for pupils with physical difficulties and communication difficulties, pupils with profound and multiple learning difficulties or severe learning difficulties and additional sensory impairments or a severe degree of autism. Also for visual impairment and multi-disabled, including visual impairment (MDVI), hearing impairment where pupils have additional problems such as early learning difficulties or multi-sensory impairment (MSI).

Approximate duration of training for each teacher:

The average requirement is forty hours (although a good proportion of this time will be working with your pupils in school time). The training will be completed within two school terms.

Conditions or limits of training:

We would require a minimum teaching group of five for schools or LEA support teams. These numbers can be made up by informal clusters of schools or units, or arrangements between schools and support staff.

Requirements on schools will include:

We would prefer a member of the senior management team of the school (or advisory service) to undertake the training and to be our named contact for the teaching group.

Scope for flexibility in agreements with schools:

Each school will liaise with a training consultant from ICTS to arrange the training with the school (or service): there is flexibility in the start and finish date of the training and hence the duration from a minimum of one school term to a maximum of two school terms. A wide choice of units will allow each school or service to select a route that is relevant and useful to them. There is flexibility for each member of staff to select the range and depth of the training they undertake.

Hardware and software on preferential terms:

Schools and services undertaking the training can obtain appropriate access devices at a 10% discount and software at a 15% discount from Inclusive Technology Ltd.

Opportunities for accreditation of teachers:

Manchester Metropolitan University will validate each of the units and provide opportunities for accreditation.

Costs of training and cost options:

A minimum of five people per training group. Price to the school in England is £750 per school or service, plus £400 per teacher. Wales is £750 per school or service, plus £420 per teacher. Scotland has a flat fee of £458 per teacher and Northern Ireland has a flat fee of £525 per teacher. LSAs may also take part in the training at these prices (and will count towards the training group numbers), but an LSA’s fee cannot be reclaimed through NOF. Schools and services may form informal clusters to forge links (and reduce costs), but the in-school training will take place in one establishment nominated by the cluster.

Distinguishing features of training:

Pupils with severe and multiple disabilities each pose an individual challenge to their teacher if they are to access communication, learning and the curriculum. This course gives the opportunity to find out what ICT resources are available for each of them and to try them out in your own classroom. Whilst you are doing this you will gain confidence and competence with ICT. During and after the training you will be connected to a network of support and expertise led by the training providers: ACE Centre, ACE North, The Advisory Unit, CALL Centre, CENMAC, Down’s Syndrome Association, Inclusive Technology and RNIB. For accreditation it is possible to follow a path through the programme validated by Manchester Metropolitan University.

The training comprises two one-day consultancy visits to your school or service. Between these are two introductory units, plus your choice from a selection of ten specialist distance learning units written by the expert institutions involved with on-line resources and support. Your course tutor will support your path through each unit via email. Second level support is available from the unit’s authoring team. There is also an optional out-of-school network day where you can learn of the latest resources and approaches from experts in their field.

More information

This ICTS website is maintained by Inclusive Technology.