Early Career Training Programme

Specialist support for early career teachers and mentors, based on the Early Career Framework.

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Overview

EDT's Early Career Training Programme (ECTP) empowers teachers with evidence-led knowledge and skills for immediate impact in the classroom. Designed around how people really learn, and a flexible approach that considers what works best in each teacher's unique situation. They will access engaging in-person and online learning designed and delivered by experts. We understand how busy teachers are so we’ve designed it to fit flexibly around their schedule with maximum accessibility.

Our programme is funded by the Department for Education (DfE) with intakes starting in September, January and April 2025.

Register your interest now

Registrations need to be completed by the Induction Tutor, or main school contact, and not by participants.

Why EDT?

EDT has 15+ years’ of experience in successfully delivering DfE funded education development programmes. We have been a lead provider of the Early Career Framework since 2019 with the Early Career Professional Development Programme (ECPDP). We have already supported over 25,000 early career teachers (ECTs) and mentors and worked with more than 3,000 schools.

95% of ECTs and mentors said they were 'very satisfied' or 'satisfied' with the programme (from Cohort 3 End of Year 1 Survey)

Partnering with schools and academic experts

We are committed to working with schools to ensure all our programmes are compatible with school life – providing outstanding professional learning.

Our Early Career Training Programme builds on work previously designed in collaboration with schools and Sheffield Hallam University.

Benefits of this programme

Evidence-led training, designed to develop ECTs’ professional confidence and efficiency. Helping them understand what works best in their situation.
Engaging and fully accessible online learning, pitched to meet ECTs at their individual level.
Face-to-face and virtual live training delivered by local school-based experts.
A focused development programme for mentors, with training run by expert facilitators. Peer coaching is embedded into mentor training sessions.
Flexible delivery designed to fit around teachers’ busy schedules.
Diagnostic tools to support programme tailoring and meet ECTs ‘where they are’ at every stage of the course
Comprehensive exploration of the Framework in Year 1, opening out to specialised options in Year 2 and preparing for life beyond induction.

“I particularly enjoyed meeting with other teachers from different schools doing the CPD training and learning about their different experiences. This enabled us to share resources and teacher tactics for behaviour in an interesting environment first hand.”
ECT on ECPDP

Programme content

Curriculum

Our curriculum is constructed to take ECTs from foundational understanding of concepts and techniques – met first during their initial teacher training – through to mastery of this knowledge.
This is enabled through carefully timed revisiting of key ITTECF concepts and skills, building in higher levels of complexity and depth, as appropriate to ECTs’ growing experience, understanding and confidence.
Year 1 ensures full coverage of ITTECF content, through personalised pathways that consolidate or extend ECTs’ understanding as appropriate.
Year 2 then opens out into structured but individualised learning that is owned by the ECT and their mentor – a phase that recognises the ECTs’ growing agency and prepares them for life beyond induction.

Self-Study

Interactive, research led materials with extensive subject and phase-specific examples provide clear models of effective teaching for ECTs.

Mentor Sessions

One-on-one sessions help ECTs apply research to their context, develop develop a pool of effective strategies, and set personalised action steps.

Training Sessions

Group sessions with expert facilitators to explore research, engage in deliberate practice and benefit from collaborative learning with peers.

Personalised Pathways

Tailored learning routes based on ECTs’ needs, prior experience, and school context to avoid repetition and focus on personal areas for development.

Diagnostic tools help mentors and facilitators adapt to ECTs’ evolving needs.

Inclusive by design

Enhanced guidance for teaching adaptively to every learner in the classroom, including those with additional needs and pupils from under-resourced backgrounds.

Evidence-Led Approach

Access to top-tier international research, ensuring participants become research-literate and confident in evidence-informed practice.

Promotes intellectual rigour and creativity in engaging with various teaching methods, without prescribing a single “right way” to teach.

Delivery Partners

We partner with organisations that share our values. Our Delivery Partners are selected for their track record of delivering high-quality professional development.

Delivery Partners act as the main point of contact for schools and teachers registered on this programme, providing training events with experienced local facilitators. All materials are adapted to fit the needs of teachers and pupils in their area.

Find out more about our Delivery Partners, see who's in your area or discover how your organisation could partner with us to deliver Early Career Framework-based training via the links below.

Find a Delivery Partner

Become a Delivery Partner

Funding

The Department for Education is funding all training, at no cost to schools.

All state funded schools, who offer statutory induction, will receive additional funding to deliver the Early Career Framework reforms.

The funding will cover:

5% off timetable in the second year of induction for all early career teachers to undertake induction activities including training and mentoring.
Funding for mentors to spend time with early career teachers in the second year of induction - this is based on 20 hours of mentoring across the academic year.

Further information on funding can be found on GOV.UK.

How to register

Registrations with EDT for the academic year 2024-2025 are open.

Please choose from the following three options to find the information which is most relevant:

If your school has not previously registered with Education Development Trust

Check our list of Delivery Partners to ensure we are delivering the programme in your area.
The Induction Tutor or main school contact needs to register with Education Development Trust. You only need to know the number of ECTs and mentors at this point.
Register the details of your ECTs and mentors on the Department for Education's digital service. You will need details of each individual for this part of the application.

If your school has previously registered with Education Development Trust

Department for Education (DfE) will be in touch with an invitation to enter new ECT and mentor details for 2023-2024 cohort on the DfE's digital service. You will need details of each individual for this part of the application.

Please note, there is no need to register with Education Development Trust again, as we have your school details from the previous academic year.

Change in Induction Tutor

If there is a change in Induction Tutor or main school contact, please use the DfE's digital service to update DfE with changes / withdrawals to the Induction Tutor who is registered with DfE.

Education Development Trust will then receive updated Induction Tutor information directly from DfE and we will update our records.

If you have participants who started their induction in the academic year 2023-2024

If you have participants joining your school, who started the Early Career Professional Development Programme in academic year 2023-2024, please use this form to register. You do not need to register individual participants at this point, the DfE will contact you to collect participant information.

Got a question?

If you would like to talk to a member of the Early Career PDP team, get in touch with us.

Contact