All trainees spend at least 120 days of the course in Partnership schools, undertaking four block placements (in a minimum of three different schools), in order to develop their teaching skills in a closely monitored environment, and to gain experience of many of the important tasks and responsibilities teachers take on outside the classroom. In addition, trainees will experience at least 5 further settings, which include schools with identified specialisms, centres of excellence and schools with specialist SEN provision. There is also an opportunity for some trainees to undertake a museum education placement. Partnership schools reflect a variety of contrasting environments: rural village schools, inner city schools in Peterborough and Cambridge and urban schools in towns such as Harlow, Stevenage, Ely, Huntingdon, Bury St Edmunds and March. No trainee is placed in a school which is beyond daily travelling distance, and those who live at distance are, where possible, placed in Partnership schools nearer to their homes. For the final placement a few trainees have the opportunity to work in London. During the first term, trainees spend two two-week placements working in a class with a trainee partner. This pairing provides peer support and allows for collaborative working. Trainees work with small groups of children and will teach some whole class sessions. An eight week placement takes place across Terms 1 and Term 2 and is spent working with the same trainee partner in a different age phase. During this placement, trainees progress from teaching individual lessons to teaching whole days. In the second term, all trainees spend one week in an SEN environment and a further week in a school offering enhanced provision, for example, forest school, creative curriculum or IT specialism. The final eight week placement in Term 3 provides the opportunity for trainees, working in a class on their own with their mentor, to gain further classroom experience and to confirm that they have reached the required level for the award of Qualified Teacher Status. There is also opportunity for involvement in a wider range of school activities and extending the experience and education of pupils beyond the conventional classroom context. Mentors have experience of working with trainees and many are former trainees themselves; they have in-depth knowledge and understanding of the requirements and demands of the Cambridge PGCE. Trainees have regular meetings with their mentor before and throughout every placement. Mentors support trainees in all aspects of teaching and learning and will help them to reflect and analyse their practice through constructive dialogue and target setting. Mentors observe trainees teach, give feedback on lessons and offer encouragement and advice. Faculty tutors also visit trainees in each placement to observe teaching, offer support and monitor progress.