Ofsted’s work with schools
Education Committee
Closed
Inquiry
The Education Committee has launched an inquiry into Ofsted’s work with schools. The inquiry aims to assess how well Ofsted is fulfilling its role in inspecting schools and whether and how it could be improved, to inform the work of the incoming His Majesty’s Chief Inspector. The inquiry will look …
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8
Recommendations
41
Conclusions
1
Report
3
Oral sessions
3
Events
Activity timeline 9 events
25 Apr
2024
2024
11 Mar
2024
2024
29 Jan
2024
2024
Report published
8 Nov
2023
2023
Oral evidence
8 Nov
2023
2023
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 15, Palace of Westminster
24 Oct
2023
2023
Oral evidence
24 Oct
2023
2023
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 15, Palace of Westminster
17 Oct
2023
2023
Oral evidence
17 Oct
2023
2023
Formal meeting (oral evidence session) · Room 15, Palace of Westminster
Oral evidence sessions 3 sessions
8 Nov 2023
View on parliament.uk
Ofsted's work with schools
Amanda Spielman · Ofsted
Juliet Chua · Department for Education
Rt Hon Nick Gibb · Department for Education
24 Oct 2023
View on parliament.uk
Ofsted’s work with schools
Carole Willis · National Foundation for Educational Research (NFER)
Dr Bernardita Munoz Chereau · UCL Centre for Educational Leadership
Dr Sam Sims · UCL Centre for Education Policy and Equalising Opportunities
Natalie Perera · Education Policy Institute
Sir Michael Wilshaw, Former HMCI
The Rt Hon. the Lord Knight of Weymouth · Beyond Ofsted inquiry
17 Oct 2023
View on parliament.uk
Ofsted’s work with schools
Charlotte Rainer · Children and Young People’s Mental Health Coalition
Daniel Kebede · National Education Union
Ian Hartwright · National Association of Head Teachers
Jason Elsom · Parentkind
Sam Henson · National Governance Association
Steve Rollett · Confederation of School Trusts
Tom Middlehurst · Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL)
Reports 1 report · click to expand
| Title | HC No. | Published | Items | Response |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| First Report - Ofsted’s work with schools | HC 117 | 29 Jan 2024 | 49 | Responded |
Recommendations & Conclusions
6 results
4
Recommendation
Accepted in Part
First Report - Ofsted’s work with …
Require Ofsted to urgently address seven concerns from Ruth Perry's coroner's report and report progress.
The serious nature of a Prevention of Future Deaths report will not be lost on the new HMCI. We expect him to make every effort to address the coroner’s report fully. Ofsted should review the seven areas of concern set …
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Government Response
The government states it has responded fully to the coroner’s report and committed to appointing an independent expert this month to lead a learning review of Ofsted’s policies regarding tragic incidents. They will respond to this review's recommendations as part of the Big Listen, but do not explicitly commit to reporting to the committee every six months.
Department for Education
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18
Conclusion
Accepted in Part
First Report - Ofsted’s work with …
Improve Ofsted's transparency by publishing comprehensive information and data wherever possible.
We have heard that access to training materials gives school leaders working as inspectors a disproportionate advantage over those who do not, and that Ofsted does not make enough data available to qualified researchers. While we accept that Ofsted publishes …
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Government Response
The government commits to publishing all training materials unless there is a strong reason not to, noting that much is already public and some is withheld due to context or external ownership. They also intend to publish data wherever possible.
Department for Education
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19
Conclusion
Accepted in Part
First Report - Ofsted’s work with …
Publish more data for researchers and all inspector training materials for transparency.
Ofsted must ensure that it is publishing as much information as possible to maximise the transparency of its work. In particular, it must make more data available to key educational research organisations to allow for high-quality research to be conducted. …
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Government Response
The government commits to publishing all training materials unless there is a strong reason not to, explaining that some material is already public or withheld due to context. They also intend to publish training material and data wherever possible.
Department for Education
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33
Conclusion
Accepted in Part
First Report - Ofsted’s work with …
Ofsted's complaints process lacks transparency and access to evidence for schools.
Schools have also told us that the complaints process is hampered by a lack of access to inspectors’ notes and documents that have been used to reach a conclusion. While we understand that there are considerations around confidentiality regarding these …
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Government Response
The government commits to providing percentages of complaints per inspection remit from 2024-25 and separating information about the proportion of inspections upheld by remit. It also states that improving transparency and understanding of judgements will be discussed with the sector as part of the 'Big Listen'.
Department for Education
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36
Recommendation
Accepted in Part
First Report - Ofsted’s work with …
Publish separate complaints data for each sector, including per inspection and upheld rates.
In its annual report and accounts, Ofsted should publish separate complaints data for each sector in their remit, including data on the number and percentage of complaints per inspection, whether these relate to conduct or judgements, and the percentage of …
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Government Response
The government states they already publish some complaints data and commit to providing percentages of complaints per inspection remit from 2024-25, and separating information about the proportion of inspections upheld by remit. They will also investigate the practicality of separating conduct and judgement complaints.
Department for Education
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41
Conclusion
Accepted in Part
First Report - Ofsted’s work with …
Undertake research to understand and reduce inspection-related workload pressures on school staff.
The Department and Ofsted must go further than simply ‘myth-busting’: they must undertake a programme of research to fully understand the causes of inspection- related workload pressure and assess what changes would be genuinely helpful in reducing this. The new …
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Government Response
The government states that the 'Big Listen' initiative will serve as a programme of research to gather feedback on the impact of inspection and is committed to reducing workload. They will evaluate how leaders address well-being and reduce workload as part of this.
Department for Education
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