OFSTED has laid out a series of changes to its operation following months of criticism which followed the death of Caversham head teacher Ruth Perry.
Ms Perry, head teacher at Caversham Primary School for 13 years, took her own life back in January this year– just days before the school was due to be downgraded to an “inadequate” Ofsted rating.
Her death sparked widespread criticism of Ofsted reporting and the methods of maintaining educational standards, with the inspectorate’s one-word ratings coming under fire for being reductive and simplistic.
Among those criticising Ofsted’s practises is Ms Perry’s sister, Professor Julia Waters, who said that the one-word ratings given to schools put schools and teachers under “intolerable pressure.”
Matt Rodda, MP for Reading East added that Ofsted needed to “rethink” its single-word assessments, “which seemed to be very harsh and inaccurate in this case.”
Reading Borough Council also penned an open letter to the educational standards body which said that they had “serious questions” to answer regarding their practises.
Now Ofsted has reported that it is making changes to how it communicates with schools ahead of inspections and will receive follow-up visits if they fail in certain metrics.
Proposals will see more notice given to schools about when their inspections are taking place, though the actual date of the inspection taking place will still be at short notice.
Schools will be informed what year their inspections will take place, but only 24 hours’ notice will be given before the inspection day.
Schools who fail on safeguarding alone will receive a follow-up visit three months after the initial inspection to see if changes have been made.
This is due to safeguarding being a limiting metric of the inspections, meaning that a failure in that category leads to an “inadequate” rating in most cases.
Only around 12 schools across the country are thought to have been judged poorly in safeguarding alone in the past 18 months.
Ofsted has also announced that it will offer “greater clarity” on what the thresholds of effective and ineffective ratings are through its inspection handbook and engagement events.
The inspectorate’s own figures show that only 1.3% of all state schools are currently being judged as “ineffective” in safeguarding alone with “adequate” or better results in other metrics.
Ofsted is also overhauling its complaints process, with the internal reviews process being dropped altogether, and schools will be able to lodge a formal complaint immediately.
Plans are seeking to “depersonalise” discussion of weaker areas of performance, referring to schools as a whole rather than individuals.
However the proposals have not gone far enough, according to Ms Waters: “My sister, Ruth, was an excellent headteacher who was much loved by her family and friends and hugely respected by her colleagues and pupils.
“Her tragic, senseless death leaves a terrible gap in our family and in the lives of so many.”
She explained: “The changes announced today are a start– I welcome any changes that ease some of the burden on headteachers undergoing what can feel like inescapable, ritual humiliation, but these changes do not yet go far enough.
“Parents, pupils and teachers deserve an inspection regime that they can trust and which supports schools to do the best for every child– ‘Trial by Ofsted’ must end.”
She continued: “Having listened to the outpouring of anger, distress, and outrage towards Ofsted’s current inspection regime in the past couple of months, since we first spoke out about what happened to Ruth, I do not believe these proposals adequately address the many problems that the system creates.
“I am encouraged from recent discussions with the Secretary of State that she has been listening to my family’s legitimate concerns– I believe that she recognises the need for urgent, significant reform of the current inspection system.”
Ms Waters said, however, that more work was still to be done: “We will continue to work with the Secretary of State and anyone who is committed to bringing about a thorough yet compassionate and supportive schools inspection system that is fit for purpose.
“Ruth was not the first headteacher or teacher to take her own life following an Ofsted inspection– I am determined that she should be the last.”
