The National Education Union’s State of Education survey highlights the extent to which teachers, support staff and school leaders continue to be dissatisfied with Ofsted and its inspectors.
One respondent said that the approach of inspectors continues to be ‘abrasive and rude, despite recent training’.
Another argued that the inspection system ‘feels nakedly political’, and that the best interests of pupils is defined by the Government, meaning it can never be objective’, so the ‘whole system is flawed’.
Almost 6,000 teachers, support staff and school leaders took part in the NEU’s survey into Ofsted ahead of its annual conference in Bournemouth.
Key findings reveal:
- 90 per cent of teachers believe that single word judgements are unfair reflections of performance.
- Just 3 per cent believe Ofsted is a reliable and trusted arbiter of standards.
- 82 per cent think Ofsted should be replaced with a new system of inspection.
- Only 4 per cent believe Ofsted acts independently to the Government.
- Two thirds of teachers (66 per cent) believe that inspection does not take account of the level of pupil need and the challenges a school may face, such as poverty, English as an additional language and SEND. However, respondents working in primary schools or nursery provision disagreed with this view the most.
- 83 per cent of teachers think the current inspection system adds to their workload; 79 per cent say it not only distorts workload but distracts from the core aspects of their job. For 62 per cent it causes mental ill-health and affects the home life of 59 per cent.
The NEU says this year’s survey is consistent with two years ago when a similar question was asked. 'In 2022, 74 per cent of teachers told us they strongly associated Ofsted with “a huge amount of unnecessary extra work.”'
'Ofsted is out of touch and out of favour'.
In this year’s survey members described the impact of inspection in their own words:
One teacher whose school was recently inspected and was unhappy with feedback from Ofsted said, ‘It was so frustrating as we aren’t able to meet all of the needs of SEND, because there is only one teacher and no support staff to provide interventions or pastoral support. Yet, our CEO expects above national data outcomes, with less staff and extra demands on the teacher. I am already offering 1:1 support in my own time at lunchtime and after school to plug the gaps.’
The NEU’s joint general secretary Daniel Kebede argued that Ofsted is ‘out of touch and out of favour’, and the survey findings show the inspectorate’s reputation has worsened since 2022.’
‘No amount of rebranding will eradicate the entrenched view that Ofsted’s days are numbered. If it ever commanded respect, those days are now long gone’, he added.
‘We know that Ofsted has been forced into a listening exercise because of that tragedy, but the NEU and its membership do not believe this will lead to fundamental change.
‘Ofsted is not a supportive system. It does not offer advice or solutions. It is a wholly negative force, and never stands up to Government’, concluded Kebede.
