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Ofsted updates
The Inspection Handbook has been updated in January in response to the findings of the inquiry into the death of Ruth Perry. The key changes are published here. For ease here is a synopsis of changes relating to school inspections (changes in bold):
Regarding conduct: ‘Inspectors will uphold the highest professional standards in their work. They will treat everyone they meet during inspections fairly and with the respect and sensitivity they deserve. Inspectors will work constructively with leaders and staff, demonstrating professionalism, courtesy, empathy and respect at all times.
Regarding monitoring inspections: Schools judged inadequate solely due to ineffective safeguarding will have an early monitoring inspection. This will normally take place around 3 months (12 school weeks, where a school week is any week in which there is at least one school day) from when the graded inspection took place, but can take place at any point. within 3 months of the publication of the graded inspection report.
There is a new keeping leaders informed section: At the heart of our inspections is a professional dialogue between inspectors and leaders and so the lead inspector will agree a process for keeping leaders informed of progress throughout the inspection. This will normally mean regular meetings with the headteacher and/or any other previously agreed school leader(s) to:
provide updates on emerging issues, including initial general findings and to enable further evidence to be provided
allow the headteacher to raise any issues or concerns, including related to the conduct of the inspection or of individual inspectors, or to seek clarification.
alert the headteacher to any serious concerns.
Feedback at the end of an inspection now includes a bullet: make clear that, in addition to being able to raise concerns at any stage during the inspection, the school has an opportunity to raise any issues, concerns or to seek clarification about the inspection, and can also contact Ofsted on the working day after the end of the inspection, if necessary.
Also, the headteacher can elect any person the headteacher or CEO wants present to assist and support them at the final feedback meeting.
If the feedback is likely to be challenging or is likely to raise difficult issues, the lead inspector will be sensitive to any implications arising from this feedback and will therefore discuss with the headteacher which other people may attend the meeting to ensure the necessary support for school leaders.
Also the handbook now states: Attendance at the feedback meeting is voluntary and any attendee may leave at any time, including leaving for a short time and then returning.
During the final feedback meeting of a monitoring inspection, the lead inspector will ensure that leaders, governors/trustees and all attendees are clear:
- that the judgements are provisional and so may be subject to change as a result of quality assurance procedures or moderation. We expect leaders to share the inspection outcome and findings with whoever they deem appropriate. The outcome and findings should be shared with governors/trustees, irrespective of whether they attended the meeting, and irrespective of what other role they may hold (for example, a teacher governor). Leaders may also share inspection outcomes, in confidence, with others, not involved in the school, provided the information is not made public or shared with parents. This may include leaders’ colleagues, family members, medical advisers, and/or their wider support group
- that, in addition to being able to raise concerns at any stage during the inspection, the school has an opportunity to raise any issues or concerns or to seek clarification about the inspection, and can contact Ofsted on the working day after the end of the inspection, if necessary
Updated wording added to the ‘Requests for inspections to be deferred or cancelled’ section:
While it is important that we carry out our planned inspections wherever possible, sometimes there may be reasons that a planned inspection may not go ahead and so a school may request a deferral of an inspection. A school may make a request during the initial notification phone call, or at the earliest opportunity afterwards, before the start of the inspection. Inspections may also, exceptionally, need to be paused once inspectors have arrived onsite. We will not normally consider deferrals if we receive them after 4.30pm on the day the school is notified. The lead inspector must immediately contact the regional duty desk. We will decide whether this should be granted in accordance with our deferral policy.
Updates on the notification call:
- make it clear that the headteacher is encouraged to have at least one other senior leader present during the call to assist and support them. This will usually be staff who typically deputise for them (or a member of trust staff) and who can understand and discuss the educational content of the call. The headteacher may also wish to have someone present to take notes.
- check on the headteacher’s well-being, and find out whether any steps need to be taken to ensure that any issues or concerns are addressed, including that appropriate support is available. The lead inspector should ascertain how to contact whoever is responsible for the headteacher’s well-being on a day-to-day basis (normally the local authority or trust), so that they can pass on well-being concerns when appropriate and necessary.
- agree a process for keeping leaders informed of progress throughout the inspection. This will normally mean regular meetings with the headteacher and/or any other previously agreed school leader(s) see Keeping leaders informed.
- give the school the opportunity to raise any issues or concerns or to seek clarification before the inspection.
- explain how the school will be able to raise any matters during the inspection itself.
When engaging with inspectors:
- Staff (including leaders at all levels) may always be accompanied by another person when speaking to inspectors. However, it is important that staff are able to express their views freely to inspectors.
- Inspectors should take careful account of the well-being of leaders and staff and adjust their approach or activity, as appropriate, as they go about their inspection work, in the best interests of pupils. If inspectors see or suspect that a staff member (including all leaders and the headteacher) is upset or distressed at any point during the inspections, inspectors should respond sensitively. Where appropriate, inspectors will consider suitable adjustments to enable the staff member to continue. Where appropriate, inspectors will inform those responsible for the person’s well-being. The lead inspector should contact the duty desk to discuss what action to take.
- In exceptional circumstances, inspectors may need to consider pausing the inspection.
- Meetings with pupils or parents must take place without the presence of any leaders or staff, unless there are exceptional circumstances.
There is also a new section on pausing inspections:
There may be exceptional occasions when a pause to inspection needs to be considered. We will consider these on a case-by-case basis according to our published guidance. This policy sets out in detail how to request a pause in inspection, the importance of leader and staff welfare, the role of the responsible body, and how leaders, responsible bodies and others can contact a senior leader in Ofsted directly if they have issues they do not feel they can raise directly with the lead inspector.
Updated wording added to the inadequate schools that are subject to special measures:
This judgement is not subject to moderation. We expect leaders to share the inspection outcome and findings with whoever they deem appropriate. The outcome and findings should be shared with governors/trustees, irrespective of whether they attended the meeting, and irrespective of what other role they may hold (for example, a teacher governor). Leaders may also share inspection outcomes, in confidence, with others who are not involved with the school. This may include leaders’ colleagues, family members, medical advisers and/or their wider support group. However, the information should not be made public or shared with parents.
Regarding who the headteacher can share inspection outcomes: Leaders may also share inspection outcomes, in confidence, with others not involved in the school, provided the information is not made public or shared with parents. This may include leaders’ colleagues, family members, medical advisers, and/or their wider support group.
In the Quality Assurance and Complaints section the following updates include:
The great majority of our work is carried out smoothly and without incident. If concerns do arise during the inspection, they should be raised with the lead inspector as soon as possible, in order to resolve issues before the inspection is completed. Any concerns raised, and actions taken, will be recorded in the inspection evidence. If there are any concerns that are not possible to resolve with the lead inspector during the inspection, the headteacher, another senior leader, the local authority or a trust representative can contact a senior Ofsted leader using the number provided as part of the notification process.
If an issue remains unresolved, the school or responsible body can contact Ofsted on the working day after the end of the inspection. This will be an opportunity for the school to raise informal concerns about the inspection process or outcomes, ask about next steps or highlight information that they feel was not fully considered during the inspection. This will be directed to an inspector who is independent of the inspection to discuss and to resolve, where appropriate, at the earliest opportunity.
So, what do these updates mean to you as a school leader? There is a recognition that you and your staff’s wellbeing is a valid consideration in every inspection. If you or your staff feel concerned about the conduct of inspectors or how the inspection is making you feel, then you have every right to raise this concern with the lead inspector or member of the wider Ofsted support team. Inspectors have also received additional training from Mental Health England and as such should be increasingly alert and aware of the signs and symptoms of distress. There is, however, no getting away from the fact that school inspections create heightened pressure in school for leaders, staff, students and governance. Being clear about the updates in the inspection handbook, coupled with the Ofsted Code of Conduct will give you the lever to ensure that any concerns that arise can be raised swiftly and professionally during the inspection process.
DFE Recruitment and Retention
The DFE announced their new measures to enhance recruitment and retention this week. New guidance is due in the Spring 2024, on how to tackle bullying and harassment of school staff.
Also, the Workload Reduction Taskforce has agreed early recommendations to help reduce teacher workload and encourage education staff wellbeing to support the department’s aim to reduce teachers’ and leaders’ working week by five hours within the next three years. Again, further recommendations will be published in the Spring 2024.
Research Posters
If you are thinking about sharing your research findings, a research poster is a simple yet engaging way to present in a format that is easy to digest. Using the format of the journal article, the poster allows the researcher to present their findings in a way that can be browsed by colleagues. The poster can also be a reference tool for the researcher to use during a presentation to a small group of colleagues. I have used research posters as a marketplace of ideas during a presentation of research. In the marketplace, the research posters are mounted on easels around the room so that staff can wander amongst them and discuss their content.
I ran a research project with a group of middle leaders across ten primary schools. The final stage of the project was to share the research findings and the researchers gave a two-minute presentation to the delegates from their schools. This was followed with a marketplace of the ten research projects where the research posters were used as a talking point for each researcher as delegates wandered freely around the hall. The casual atmosphere of the marketplace allowed staff to pose questions to the researchers about their research posters and gain a deeper perspective about the research undertaken.
Here are some tips for creating an effective research poster, adapted from NYU
Libraries (2020):
• Think about your audience and design your poster with them in mind.
• Make your font size readable from a comfortable distance away from
your poster.
• Grab your readers with a clear title/research question.
• Limit your words to keep your reader engaged and to be precise in what
you are communicating Use bullets, numbering, and headlines to make it easy to read.
• Think about your graphics and colours to enhance your poster rather
than distract the reader.
• Include logos from your organisation.
• Remember to put your name on the piece.
• Include references used in step 3 of the Research Cycle.
• Share your poster with a colleague/coach to make sure it is easy to interpret.
Here is an example of a research poster produced by two teaching assistants
whose research question was, ‘Can a nurture approach support pupils with
complex needs to improve their behaviours?’:
While this poster does not share the detail of the research undertaken, it allowed the researchers to share the key steps in the Research Cycle. In displaying this in a research poster, the researchers were able to talk through each step with colleagues. While this poster is not a perfect example of a research poster, I have included it to give you an idea of the form a research poster could take. My advice is to be playful and use the Research Cycle to help structure your poster.
Staff often enjoy creating research posters as it allows for creative flair. The posters can be produced digitally using programs such as Microsoft Publisher or PowerPoint or by a simple cut-and-paste onto A1 card backing.
Reference:
NYU Libraries. (2020, July). NYU Libraries. Retrieved from How to create a research
poster: http://www.bit.ly/3eGuG5N Accessed: March 2021
Irresistible Learning 