Ofsted inspection changes: Why teachers and schools say they still have concerns - in new snap poll
One school leader said changes like these “leave me thinking I don’t want to be a head anymore” 🔎
- Ofsted will soon be changing how it inspects schools, and what the reports will look like for parents
- But a snap poll of teaching union members has shown many still have serious concerns about these
- Now leaders are calling for them to be paused and rethought “before it’s too late to change course”
- Ofsted says its changes are in the best interests of children, parents, and teachers
- It will continue to work with school staff in the lead-up to the new inspections starting
Educators and union leaders fear revamped Ofsted inspections starting later this year will leave schools trapped in the same “punitive, high-stakes system”.
Earlier this week, the Government’s schools watchdog announced that it would be going ahead with many of its recently proposed changes to inspections. Schools would now be assessed on at least seven different criteria – including a new ‘inclusion’ category – and would be given one of an expanded five grades, eventually published in a colour-coded report card designed to be more accessible to parents.
Following Ofsted confirming the upcoming changes to its inspections, the National Education Union (NEU) carried out a snap poll of more than 1,500 teachers and school leaders, who were members. It found that many educators didn’t believe the changes would help fix their “long standing concerns” about the impact inspections had on the mental health of school staff.
Union leaders and headteacher Ruth Perry’s sister – Professor Julia Waters – say the inspection system overhaul represents a “missed opportunity”, and needs to be paused. Perry took her own life in 2023, after an Ofsted inspection saw her Reading school downgraded from ‘outstanding’ to ‘inadequate’. A coroner ruled that this had been a contributing factor in her death.
But why exactly do some teachers say they are worried about the changes, and what does Ofsted itself have to say? Here’s what you need to know:
Reforms ‘not the positive change we needed’
In the NEU’s snap poll, nearly 9 out of 10 (88%) of the members who responded said they didn’t believe the new inspection system would address the impact of Ofsted inspections on the mental health of school staff. Some 94% also doubted inspectors would be able to reliably assess seven different areas of school life in just a single inspection.
Inspections under the new framework are set to begin on November 10. But a similar amount (91%) of school staff felt that just nine weeks before the rollout of the new system wouldn’t give schools enough time to be ready. Nine out of 10 respondents wanted a pause – so that the changes could be given further consideration.
Many of those who responded to the poll described “feelings of distress, anxiety and fear” as a result of the high-stakes accountability system, the NEU continued, something they felt wasn’t addressed through Ofsted’s reforms. One teacher said they feared more of her colleagues would leave the profession due to stress. “We need to start from scratch and come up with a better, more reliable and responsible process for monitoring schools and supporting them to make improvements,” they wrote.
Meanwhile, a headteacher said: “Change was brought about because a headteacher committed suicide. This inspection framework has added to the workload and stress of Heads. It’s changes like these that leave me thinking I don’t want to be a head anymore!”
NEU general secretary Daniel Kebede said the changes left teachers and school leaders “trapped in a rehashed version of a punitive, high-stakes system that has been proven to pose a risk to life”. He continued: “These reforms are not the positive change we needed – they will be bad for our schools, bad for the workforce but also bad for parents and students. It’s time now for our education secretary to intervene before it’s too late to change course.”
What does Ofsted say?
An Ofsted Spokesperson told us that yesterday, chief inspector Sir Martyn Oliver had a positive call with over 900 school leaders to explain the changes – which were being made “in the best interests of children, parents and education professionals”.
“Ofsted looks forward to working with sector organisations in the months ahead to ensure a safe and secure introduction of the renewed framework,” they continued.
The inspections watchdog earlier reported that independent polling by YouGov had shown strong support from parents for their new approach. Almost 7 out of 10 of parents said they preferred the new-look report cards to current inspection reports, with just 15% preferring the old system. Nearly 9 out of 10 parents found the report cards easy to understand too.
Ofsted had also commissioned an independent wellbeing impact assessment of the new changes. To address concerns around workload it would be following some of the recommendations which were made, such as adding an extra inspector to each inspection.
To find out more about how inspections will be changing, what the new school ‘report cards’ will look like, and when parents might start to see them, check out our other coverage online here.