What does 2019 look like for initial teacher training? I don’t think it will be a smooth ride exactly, but, at the same time, I don’t think we will face any new challenges, as we seek to address the issues facing school recruitment. Here are my hopes and fears for the new year:

* We must not let any political instability disrupt our transformative plans for the early career framework (ECF);

* We should formalise high-quality mentoring, and make sure that the development of early career staff is everyone’s responsibility;

* The government must invest in attractive salaries and career pathways for teachers;

* Recruitment policies should aim for “brightest and the best” and not simply “bums on seats”;

* The removal of prior school experience as an entry requirement has led to early withdrawals as a direct result. At a time when ITT providers are required to reduce workload, this isn’t good for anyone;

* The skill tests should be scrapped and replaced with on-programme assessment that is genuinely developmental;

* I’ve heard concerns about the ability of small school-centred initial teacher training (SCITT) providers to offer the breadth and depth of subject knowledge required in the new Ofsted framework. The National Association of School-Based Teacher Trainers (NASBTT) will support all members, irrespective of size;

* There has never been a more important time for investment in SCITT and School Direct providers and, especially, teacher educators, whose remit it is, ultimately, to provide schools with high-quality candidates;

* We need to ensure that there is continued support for partnership working;

* We must avoid the creation of a new and expensive structure to support the ECF. ITT providers are already ideally placed to develop a network of highly trained expert mentors to deploy into schools.

Emma Hollis is executive director of the National Association of School-Based Teacher Trainers