Today, the school leaders' union NAHT reacts to Ofsted's
publication of its Big Listen exercise; two pieces of
independently commissioned research; and Dame Christine Gilbert's
independent learning review.
Reacting to Dame Christine Gilbert's Independent review of
the work of the inspectorate, Paul Whiteman, general secretary of
the school leaders' union NAHT said:
“The independent report by Dame Christine Gilbert has identified
a range of very significant issues that the inspectorate will
need to address as a matter of urgency. The time for listening is
now over, and Ofsted must begin to tackle the major task of
reform that lies ahead.
“The report has shown that Ofsted itself needs to undergo 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. Dame Christine is
also right to shine a spotlight on the complaints process which
our members tell us is still not fit for purpose. While these may
be hard messages for the organisation to hear, they cannot be
ignored or glossed over.
“Dame Christine is right to emphasise both the need to ‘rebalance
the accountability model' and for the government to initiate a
debate ‘about the essential elements of a public accountability
system'. NAHT is clear that Ofsted requires deep and
collaborative reform, not an ‘evolution' of the current approach.
“Change to how inspections are carried out in England is now
inevitable and unavoidable. We need to work towards a more humane
and fair system as quickly as possible. That work cannot be
carried out in isolation by the inspectorate. It must be carried
out in partnership with the profession, and we stand ready to
play our part in building a fairer, more humane inspection
system."
Reacting to the independent research, Paul Whiteman
said:
“We welcome the independent research commissioned as part of the
Big Listen - it has confirmed many of the issues NAHT has been
raising for years, including our major concerns around the use of
single-word judgements. The findings that less than half of
parents and only two-fifths of professionals trust the
inspectorate reaffirm the scale of the work that now needs to be
done. Similarly, the finding that almost half of professionals
would be uncomfortable raising a concern during an inspection
shows the culture of fear that has grown over many years – this
cannot be allowed to continue."
Responding to the Big Listen, Paul Whiteman, said:
“We are pleased that the inspectorate is committing to ensuring
that inspections are more tailored to the relevant phase and to
improving training for inspectors. The shift to giving schools
notice of routine inspections only on a Monday could be a
positive step, although the feedback from the pilot will be
important. These are small steps within the existing
system, but more fundamental reform is now essential.
"As NAHT and others have previously pointed out, much of the
quantitative data arising from the Big Listen consultation itself
will be of limited value due to the way many of the questions
were worded. Not only were key issues ignored, but also many of
the questions were presented in a highly leading manner. The
concerns we raised about this were not properly addressed. It is
therefore hard to see how such data can be used to inform the
design of a new approach to inspection. It is important that
Ofsted has acknowledged the strength of feeling that came through
the free text boxes and the recent announcement that overarching
grades will be scrapped is a clear step in the right direction.”
