The sister of a headteacher who took her own life has said Ofsted’s new school inspection proposals are a “rehash” of the same “dangerous” system they are meant to change.
One-word grades were scrapped by the government after Ruth Perry’s death in 2023 following the downgrading of her Caversham Primary School in Reading from “outstanding” to “inadequate”.
Schools in England could instead be judged across a variety of different areas – including attendance and inclusion – using a colour-coded five-point scale.
But Mrs Perry‘s sister Professor Julia Waters said: “I am worried that this proposal is a rehash of the discredited and dangerous system it is meant to replace.”
She said while the new model has some improvements, it “retains many of the dangerous features of the previous system, while introducing a series of changes with potential new risks to the wellbeing of teachers and headteachers”.
“My sister Ruth Perry died as the result of a rude and intimidating Ofsted inspection, and its disproportionate consequences on her and her school,” she said.
“Ofsted says it has listened, but it still does not appear to have adequately learned.”
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A 12-week consultation on the inspection process for schools teaching pupils of all ages, including further education institutions, was launched on Monday.
The proposals include a new report card format to replace the single-word grade system, where schools were given an “Outstanding”, “Good”, “Requires Improvement”, or “Inadequate” rating.
Instead, judgements will be made using a 1-5 grading system using the terms: “Exemplary”, “Strong”, “Secure”, “Attention Needed”, and “Causing Concern”.
The previous judgements will remain valid until schools undergo another inspection under the new model.
Safeguarding will be assessed as a standalone category and will be classified as either met or not met.
The number of inspection areas in schools will expand from four to nine, or ten for those with a sixth form.
Under the new proposal, the areas of inspection will be Achievement, Attendance, Behaviour and Attitudes, Curriculum, Developing Teaching, Inclusion, Leadership and Governance, Personal Development and Well-Being, Sixth Form, and Safeguarding.
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Ofsted has already started training inspectors to facilitate the changes for the new style inspections.
Chief inspector of Ofsted Sir Martyn Oliver said: “The new report card will give parents a clearer picture, while helping schools focus on meaningful improvements.
“We will make sure that we deliver for parents regardless of what we do.
“Our mission is to improve education for all children, particularly the most disadvantaged.”
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But Daniel Kebede, general secretary of the National Education Union, said Sir Martyn “has failed to deliver”.
“The proposals outlined in today’s consultation will make matters worse, not better,” he said.
“The secretary of state was right to remove one-word judgements, because she recognised the damage that they cause.
“Instead, the 1 to 5 grading scale proposed for the report card maintains the current blunt, reductive approach that cannot capture the complexity of school life nor provide more meaningful information to parents.”
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Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson said: “Our proposals will swap single headline grades for the rich, granular insight of school report cards.
“Raising the bar on what we expect from schools, shining a light on all the areas that matter, each given their own grade.”
