The government has said that the one-word Ofsted judgements for schools in England have “significant benefits” and should continue. The grades, such as “outstanding” or “inadequate”, have been lauded by the government as providing parents with an important summary of local schools. Responding to a report by the cross-party education select committee which called for an end to the single-word judgements, the Department for Education said that it would “look for ways to improve the current system rather than developing an alternative to it”.
The government’s response has been condemned by Paul Whiteman, the general secretary of the NAHT school leaders’ union. Whiteman has described the inspection system as “inhumane and unreliable” and has warned that unless the inspectorate changes, another tragedy like the suicide of head teacher Ruth Perry in January 2023 could happen again. Perry took her own life after Ofsted downgraded her school, Caversham Primary in Reading, from “outstanding” to “inadequate” due to safeguarding concerns. In December 2023, a coroner ruled that the inspection “contributed” to Mrs Perry’s death and said there was a risk of further deaths unless action is taken.
The Association of School and College Leaders’ General Secretary, Pepe Di’Iasio, has also criticized the government’s response, arguing that the system is fundamentally flawed “despite all the evidence that these single-phrase judgements are the source of sky-high stress and anxiety, damaging the wellbeing of leaders and teachers, sapping morale and causing many people to leave the profession”. However, the government believes that changes can be made to improve the current system, including how Ofsted findings are presented and highlighting more detailed underpinning information.
Labour has previously stated that Ofsted’s system of one-word judgements “cannot capture the breadth of school life”. Instead, they have claimed that a report card system would be more appropriate. However, there appears to be no government plans to change their stance on the current system, despite the condemnation from school leaders and others
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