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Ofsted is not reforming – it is rebranding

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Only root and branch reform will end the tyranny of Ofsted’s regime and the ‘climate of fear’ that school inspections too often create, says Daniel Kebede
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Blink and you would have missed it, but at the start of term Ofsted took a two-week pause on inspecting schools.

The reasons are well known. Ruth Perry, a headteacher in Caversham, Berkshire, died by suicide just over a year ago.

The inquest held by senior coroner Heidi Connor led to damning conclusions about the role of Ofsted in the weeks leading up to her tragic death.

The inspection "lacked fairness, respect and sensitivity". It was "rude and intimidating", and Ruth's "mental health deterioration and death was likely contributed to" by Ofsted.

This is a very serious matter. Both Ofsted and the Department for Education have now responded to Connor's call for an action plan to address safeguarding concerns.

It is my conviction that these responses are wholly inadequate.

Inspectors spent those two weeks in January sitting through training which aims to raise awareness of the wellbeing of headteachers during Ofsted visits. Ultimately, by late March, they will all have taken this training.

One of the great shocks to emerge from this affair was that there had been no training for inspectors on reducing stress and distress. And when asked to confirm how many previous inspections had been paused due to wellbeing concerns, the then chief inspector Amanda Spielman was unable to do so.

Wellbeing has never been the priority of Ofsted – and I do not believe things will change in any significant way. 

In almost every other respect, it will be business as usual. This is about rebrand, not reform – and we really need the reform. 

Education secretary Gillian Keegan's response to Ms Connor (DfE, 2024) was particularly galling, boasting of wellbeing initiatives for after inspections, rather than anything pre-emptive to stop the situation.

Ms Keegan treats the stress of an inspection as a given. She also brushes away any “duty of care” onto employers, rather than the government.

This in spite of the DfE holding all the levers for change and perpetrating this awful system in the first place.

We surveyed National Education Union members about Ofsted and its “pause”. Just 3% feel that two weeks is enough; 39% believe it is a positive step but not enough, while 58% think it will not make any meaningful difference.

One respondent spoke for many: "No matter what training they have and how they come across, we will still be scared of them because it feels like our jobs are on the line.”

Members describe a climate of fear. Inspectors are giving verdicts on areas of education in which they have no expertise, display racist or sexist biases, and arrive at inconsistent judgements. Our members have told us about inspections that have provoked panic attacks and even complications with pregnancies.

The survey also reveals cases of students being reduced to tears or otherwise being made to feel "uneasy", "tricked and tested". Inspectors have also disclosed sensitive personal details about pupils in front of their class.

It is clear that inspectors themselves are a safeguarding risk. Ofsted has a harmful effect on schools, its staff and students. There is no use in having a bad process done nicely, which is all the recent spate of online training can promise.

Until we see the end of single-word judgements and move to a new system which is supportive, effective and fair, then we will continue to see the same results.

I believe that Sir Martyn Oliver, the new chief inspector, is acting within the remit he has been allowed – but he works with the government of the day and it really is the government which needs to take Ofsted by the horns and deliver wholescale reform.

Ofsted has fallen well short of what is needed. It should be done away with and replaced by a supportive inspectorate which brings its expertise rather than its judgement, like the one proposed by the recent Beyond Ofsted inquiry (Perryman et al, 2023).

We cannot continue with a system where a headteacher has less job security than a football manager. Ofsted needs nothing short of root and branch reform and its work should be paused until that reform has been completed.

 

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