Early Career Teachers - FAQ

Photo of a literacy teacher with a pupil

How long does it take to go from DfE registration to being set up on Steplab?

How does the registration process differ for independent schools?

Do Induction Tutors need to onboard?

I can’t see my ECT/Mentors on Steplab

My ECTs/Mentors haven’t received any emails from Ambition Institute

How do I match my mentors and ECTs on Steplab?

I need to change my ECT/Mentor’s details

I have an ECT/Mentor transferring in/out of my school, what do I do?

I am a new induction tutor - I have onboarded on My Ambition but am unable to see my year 2 ECTs

On the DfE portal it says ‘waiting for induction to be recorded’ - is this something I need to action?

I feel like I need more Steplab training

I’m new to ECT and there are a lot of new terms, please help!

How do I reduce/extend the length of an ECT’s induction?

Who should I inform if I can’t make a programme event?

How long does it take to go from DfE registration to being set up on Steplab?

Unfortunately, the answer is ‘it depends’...but we can say that validated registrations come through to us from the DfE hourly and are invited to onboard immediately. If you aren’t seeing your ECT/mentor on Steplab yet, the first thing to ask them is, ‘have you completed your Steplab access form on My Ambition?’. If they are having trouble accessing their My Ambition account or finding the Steplab access form, they should contact our ECT Support Team.

How does the registration process differ for independent schools?

Please take a look at one of these pages, depending on your role: ECT,mentor, induction tutor.

Do Induction Tutors need to onboard?

Yes. All participants, no matter their role, need to complete the Steplab access form to gain access to Steplab.

I can’t see my ECT/Mentors on Steplab

If you (the induction tutor) have successfully registered your staff on the DfE Portal, then they might not have accessed their My Ambition account and/or completed their Steplab access form yet. If both of these steps are complete and you still can’t see them, please contact the ECT Support Team.

My ECTs/Mentors haven’t received any emails from Ambition Institute

If you (the induction tutor) have successfully registered them on the DfE Portal then it might be that our emails have gone into their junk folder. If they are using a school email address and trying to access the emails at work, we advise that you ask your IT team to add our email addresses to their safelist; @salesforce.com // @ambition.org.uk // @steplab.co // @steplab.co.uk. Otherwise, please contact the ECT Support Team.

How do I match my mentors and ECTs on Steplab?

You don’t! All mentor pairing is done on the DfE Portal. Once ECTs and new mentors are registered you can match them on the DfE portal (you can also match ECTs with existing mentors). Then, the information will come through to us. You won’t see your ECTs or mentors on Steplab until they have accessed their My Ambition account and completed their Steplab access form.

I need to change my ECT/Mentor’s details

If you need to update the name or email address of an ECT or mentor, you will need to do this on the DfE portal. If you are changing roles and will no longer be the induction tutor, you will need to update this on the DfE portal. Please keep your Delivery Partner informed of induction tutor changes.

I have an ECT/Mentor transferring in/out of my school, what do I do?

For Transfers OUT of your school - Log in to the DfE sign-in and report on there that your ECT/Mentor is leaving your school. This will generate a Transfer Out notification to the DfE and your Lead Provider.

For Transfers IN to your school - Log in to the DfE sign-in and register your new ECT/mentor as a transfer from their previous school. This will generate a Transfer In notification to the DfE and your Lead Provider.

I am a new induction tutor - I have onboarded on My Ambition but am unable to see my year 2 ECTs

New Induction Tutor registrations for this year will be sent to us via the DfE portal, however for access to other cohort years you will need to get in touch with your delivery partner.

On the DfE portal it says ‘waiting for induction to be recorded’ - is this something I need to action?

If you haven’t already then you need to inform your Appropriate Body that you have ECTs joining your school, If you have done this, there is nothing else you need to do. This will not stop registrations being received by us.

I feel like I need more Steplab training

Fear not! We will be running Steplab training sessions in September/October. These sessions are designed to provide ECTs, mentors, and Induction Tutors who are new to the programme with a walkthrough and overview of the key aspects of Steplab relevant to their role, and returning participants with a refresher of the same. We will send out further information about these sessions in due course.