Schools in England will be judged on how well they deal with post-Covid behaviour, absenteeism and special educational needs as part of far-reaching reforms to Ofsted aimed at better supporting the most vulnerable children and easing pressure on headteachers.
Following the government’s announcement that Ofsted’s single-word overall judgments are to be scrapped with immediate effect, the chief inspector of schools in England, Sir Martyn Oliver, insisted the revised inspection model, based on a report card, would continue to hold schools to account and effectively inform parents.
Asked what could be included in the new report card, he said: “I think behaviour and attendance separately stand out,” adding: “We know that attendance is a national issue, and so I think attendance should be pulled out and focused on separately.”
Oliver also announced plans for a more robust complaints procedure and a new “Ofsted academy” to spread “professionalism, courtesy, empathy and respect” across the organisation, following after complaints from school leaders about the conduct of some inspections.
At the core of the new framework will be a commitment to increase the inspectorate’s scrutiny of how well schools are meeting the needs of vulnerable and disadvantaged pupils, with a specific focus on inclusion. Consultation on the changes will begin early next year, with a start date of September 2025.
“This is the beginning of a new chapter for Ofsted as we reset our priorities, refine our practices and rebuild our relationships,” said Oliver.
He acknowledged the death of the primary school headteacher Ruth Perry – who killed herself last year after her school was downgraded from the highest ranking, outstanding, to the lowest, inadequate – was the catalyst for reform.
“But the case for change has been building for years,” Oliver said. “We recognise the growing challenges facing education and social care, particularly since the pandemic. We don’t want to add to this pressure.”
As part of that, Ofsted will pilot a new approach, announcing all routine inspections on a Monday, to then take place over the following two days. Currently a school leader can be notified of an inspection on a Monday, Tuesday or Wednesday.
Ofsted also announced that from this month it will pause the publication of inspection reports where safeguarding concerns are identified in an otherwise high-performing school – as was the case at Perry’s Caversham primary school in Reading – until inspectors re-visit the school within three months.
Parents will still be told about the safeguarding issues, but delayed publication will give schools the opportunity to correct issues without intervention from the Department for Education.
An independent learning review for Ofsted, also published on Tuesday by the former chief inspector Dame Christine Gilbert, urged the inspectorate to ensure the changed approach to safeguarding “does not shift the balance to the point where it causes inspectors to avoid making the right decisions in the interest of keeping children safe”.
Ofsted fully accepted 10 of Gilbert’s 14 recommendations, which also included a call for a review of Ofsted’s governance framework, to strengthen the role of the board so in future it can play a crucial role “in ensuring a culture that prevents a tragedy like this from ever happening again”.
Julia Waters, Perry’s sister, said Gilbert’s learning review highlighted that Ofsted’s response to her sister’s death had appeared defensive and complacent. “She reveals a culture that has allowed inspectors to come across as remote and infallible, with an unfair power balance between inspectors and those they inspect. I am glad that Ofsted has accepted the majority of Dame Christine’s recommendations.”
Paul Whiteman, the general secretary of the National Association of Head Teachers, said Gilbert’s findings showed Ofsted needs major cultural and institutional reform. “Issues linked to inconsistency across regional teams, inadequate governance, the use of unofficial guidance and weak performance management systems for inspectors are alarming to read, and raise serious questions about the consistency and accuracy of inspections.”
Pepe Di’Iasio, the general secretary of the Association of School and College Leaders, said: “Ofsted certainly needs reform, and their response sets out a blueprint for what changes we can expect, but we absolutely must avoid replacing one flawed system with another one.”
The government’s announcement on scrapping single-word judgments continued to attract widespread support, but also criticism. Katharine Birbalsingh, a headteacher who was a social mobility tsar for the Conservative government, said on X that abolishing judgments “because of leaders ‘feeling bad’ is a nod in the wrong direction”. She added: “This ‘report card’ will NOT give more clarity to parents. That’s bluster from the politicians.”
Oliver said: “I absolutely truly believe that we can hold schools to account, and even greater account, by having a far more nuanced report which actually points to individual areas of strength and areas for improvement, rather than just summarising it all down to one word at the end.”
The planned changes follow Ofsted’s “Big Listen”, which attracted 20,000 responses online, including 4,000 from children.
