THE NEW OFSTED INSPECTION
FRAMEWORK - NUT MEMBER GUIDANCE:
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS
SEPTEMBER 2009
What’s new about the inspection framework?
There are a number of new features in the inspection framework which OFSTED will use
from September 2009 onwards. These include differentiated inspection cycles for
individual schools based on their performance, more emphasis on pupil attainment,
more time spent on classroom observation, the involvement of the head teacher in
inspection team activities and specific recommendations about how schools can improve
in inspection reports. More information about all of these can be found in this document.
What determines the timing of my school’s inspection?
From September 2009, the inspection cycle will be differentiated according to your
school’s previous inspection performance and a yearly assessment of its subsequent
performance. An Annual Assessment will be undertaken for all schools by OFSTED,
which will focus on schools’ published results for examinations, attendance etc and the
views of parents and pupils. This will be used to help determine the inspection schedule
for individual schools.
Schools judged by OFSTED to be ‘outstanding’ or ‘good’ will receive an inspection visit
every five years, with an Interim Assessment report published after three years, unless
OFSTED has specific concerns about performance, safeguarding and/or welfare or the
school is part of a statutory hard federation, thereby making it necessary to inspect all
the schools in the federation at the same time.
Any school categorised as a special school, Pupil Referral Unit or a school with
residential provision for 0-3 year old children which receives an ‘outstanding’ or ‘good’
grade will be inspected every three years, as OFSTED believes that it cannot rely on the
Annual Assessment to judge standards in these schools.
Schools which are judged to be ‘satisfactory’ at their previous inspection will be
inspected every three years, although approximately 40 per cent of these schools will
receive an interim monitoring visit if their progress is judged to be static or in decline by
the Annual Assessment.
Schools judged ‘inadequate’ in their overall effectiveness will continue to receive
monitoring visits and be inspected after a specific period dependant upon whether they
have been categorised as in ‘special measures’ or given a ‘notice to improve’.
Inspections can take place at any point after the end of the first complete week of the
Autumn term. If a nursery or primary school has a new intake of pupils at the start of the
Spring or Summer term, OFSTED will not inspect in the first full week of term.
Will I be observed teaching by the inspectors?
A higher proportion of inspectors’ time, up to double that in the current inspection
framework, will be spent on classroom observation. Various models of observation will
be used such as “short” observations of less than 20 minutes, part lesson observations
of 25 – 30 minutes, “long” observations of one hour or more as well as trailing a class or
group of pupils over a school day or part of a day. Both core and foundation subject
lessons will be inspected.
Will I have the opportunity to give my views about the school to inspectors?
As well as any formal interviews with inspectors which you might be asked to participate
in, a staff questionnaire is available to gather the views of staff. Its use is at the
discretion of the head teacher and participation in the staff survey is voluntary.
Questionnaires should be completed and handed to the lead inspector by the end of the
first day of inspection. The views of staff are used to help inspectors plan the inspection
but they are not normally reported in the inspection report.
Inspectors may also give a short briefing to staff at the start of the inspection, at the
discretion of the head teacher, but this would be used to provide information about the
inspection process rather than used to seek staff views.
The NUT has welcomed the introduction of the staff questionnaire, in particular the
sections relating to access to professional development and the extent of staff
involvement in school development and self evaluation activities. The NUT advises
members to, via their school representative, request a staff meeting to discuss the
new inspection arrangements and to press the head teacher to use the OFSTED
staff questionnaire.
Members are further advised to complete such questionnaires in a factual way.
Responses to the open-ended section at the end of the survey should be detailed,
specific and based on direct experiences rather than contain generalisations.
Overall, members should try to take a realistic view of the school’s work in terms
of the resources that have been available to it. They should not be based on an
unrealistic view of what the school might do given unlimited resources.
My head teacher seems to be spending a lot of time with the inspectors – why?
As well as the joint observations head teacher may undertake with inspectors, heads or
their nominee are now also invited to attend the formal inspection team meetings each
day. At these meetings, the head teacher will be able to comment on conflicting
evidence and suggest further sources of evidence if necessary. He or she will not,
however, be able to negotiate with the inspection team on its final judgement.
Protocols have been established by OFSTED to clarify who can be invited to participate
in what and to confirm that these joint activities are voluntary and that there is no
requirement for head teachers and senior leaders to accept the invitations. Further
information and guidance is available in the document “OFSTED School Inspections
2009: Guidance for Head teachers”, which is available to download from the NUT
website www.teachers.org.uk
My school does not have good test or exam results - will we automatically fail?
Judgements on the quality of learning will now give more emphasis to “attainment”, or
the standard of pupils’ work as shown by test and examination results, including in
relation to the national expectations for “average” pupil performance. OFSTED is clear
that expectations for this aspect of the inspection framework have been raised and that
a school cannot be “good” if pupils are not doing well.
OFSTED has told the NUT that pupil progress and “value added” data will still be
considered as part of the inspection judgement and that schools which demonstrate
“good” progress could still receive a “good” judgement even if absolute levels of
attainment are below the national average, such as in National Challenge schools.
In addition, OFSTED has identified three ‘limiting’ judgements: if pupils’ achievement is
judged to be inadequate; if schools are not promoting equality and tackling
discrimination (including different groups of pupils’ academic performance) adequately;
and if safeguarding arrangements are inadequate, schools’ overall effectiveness is likely
to be judged ‘inadequate’.
How will I know when my school will be inspected?
The Inspection Service Provider (ISP) or contractor will telephone your school to inform
you when the inspection will take place. The maximum notice of inspection is two days.
Most schools receive one and a half days’ notice. Within 24 hours of your school being
made aware that it is to be inspected, the lead inspector will make contact with your
school to talk to the head teacher or most senior member of staff that is available. In the
event of serious concerns about the safety or well-being of pupils, inspections can take
place without advanced notice.
There will also be “no notice” monitoring visits for schools in an OFSTED category of
concern (special measures or notice to improve) and for those “satisfactory” schools
which OFSTED deems as needing an interim monitoring visit (see below).
What’s an Interim Assessment Report?
If OFSTED decides that a school previously judged to be “outstanding” or “good” is not
to be inspected after three years, OFSTED will publish an Interim Assessment report.
This will provide a summary of the school’s published performance data and explain why
it will not be inspected in that academic year. The Interim Assessment report will be
published after the school has checked it for factual accuracy and the school will be
required to send it to parents within five working days of publication, in the same way
that schools are required to distribute full inspection reports.
Can my school ask for an inspection to be rescheduled or cancelled?
OFSTED has very strict criteria about the circumstances in which an inspection could be
deferred, for example, if the school is closed to all pupils due to a staff training day or the
school has been open for less than six months. If the majority of pupils at the school are
still receiving education, generally the inspection will go ahead. Inspections would only
be cancelled if the school was due to close in the next six months. Members who
believe that their school might be eligible for a deferred or cancelled inspection
should contact their NUT regional office for advice.
How long does an inspection last?
Inspection teams usually visit schools for no more than two days.
school, for example, could have a one day visit.
A small primary
Who will inspect my school?
An inspection team comprises a lead inspector and usually one or more additional
inspectors, depending on the size of the school. Her Majesty’s Inspectors (HMIs) lead a
high proportion of secondary school inspections and a substantial minority of primary
school inspections. Other inspections are led by additional inspectors who are recruited,
trained and employed directly, or contracted by, inspection service providers (ISPs).
Additional inspectors are also team members in most inspections. There are three ISPs:
CfBT Education Trust covers the contract area for the North of England, Serco covers
the Midlands and Tribal Group the South of England.
Will the inspectors want to talk to me after they have observed my teaching?
OFSTED expects that inspectors offer feedback to teachers on the lessons they have
observed. Individual feedback should be offered by inspectors to teachers who have
been observed for at least 20 minutes. Where only a small part of a lesson has been
observed, inspectors should offer to meet all the teachers concerned and give feedback
on general points.
If it is not possible for you to receive feedback as soon as the lesson has ended, the
inspector should offer to speak to you, at a time convenient to you, at break or lunch
time or before or after school. It should last only a few minutes. Feedback should
include a summary of the lesson’s strengths and weaknesses and how it could be
improved, as well as the inspector’s judgement on the quality of teaching, learning and
any other aspects which are considered pertinent.
Members are advised to use the feedback session as an opportunity to give their
point of view and challenge any points with which they disagree in a
professionally assertive, rather than defensive, manner.
I have been asked if I would be willing to be observed by both my head teacher
and an inspector – should I agree?
Head teachers will usually be invited to undertake at least two “joint observations” (one
in small schools). The purpose of these is to assess the quality of their observation skills
and evaluations, rather than the quality of your teaching. Feedback to you on the lesson
would be given by the inspector, who will also give the head teacher feedback on the
accuracy of their judgements.
OFSTED says that joint observations must never be used as part of a disciplinary
procedure for the teacher concerned and that the teacher should agree to it beforehand.
You have the right to refuse the offer of a joint inspection if you feel that you would
rather not participate.
The NUT advises members that they have the right to refuse to participate in joint
observations and that they should contact their school representative in the first
instance if they feel pressurised to take part.
My school has not been inspected recently but my colleagues and I have been
observed a lot – why?
This has come about in many schools because of the joint observations and the
OFSTED self evaluation form (SEF). Some head teachers have felt the need to use
observation as evidence as their monitoring activities, particularly as, under the new
framework, school leaders will now need to provide far more evidence of their own
management of teaching and learning and the quality of leadership and management is
key when making decisions about placing schools in the “concern” categories.
The OFSTED guidance on inspections is clear, however, that schools should not
undertake any activity specifically for inspections, therefore the NUT believes that
schools’ regular monitoring procedures and records should be sufficient. NUT guidance
on classroom observations is available to download from the NUT website
www.teachers.org.uk. If you are concerned about excessive classroom observation
undertaken specifically for the purposes of inspection, you should contact your
NUT division for advice.
How will the school’s Early Years Foundation Stage provision or Sixth Form be
inspected?
The same inspection arrangements and evaluation schedule as outlined above will apply
to the Early Years Foundation Stage and the Sixth Form where such provision is
managed by the governing body of the school. Any provision which is voluntarily or
independently managed will be inspected under separate arrangements.
What kind of documents will the inspectors ask my school to provide?
Apart from the school’s self evaluation form (SEF), which the lead inspector will
download from the OFSTED website, schools should only be asked for one electronic
copy of each of the following before the inspection begins:

the most recent school improvement plan;

school timetable information;

times for the school day;

any information about the school’s (pre-planned) interruption to normal routines;
and

a staff list.
During the inspection itself, inspectors will be looking to corroborate what the school has
said in its SEF. If the school has said that it has developed a new monitoring policy, for
example, then it is likely that the inspectors will ask to see it and examples of the recordkeeping which accompany it. Inspectors will always ask to see the most recent copy of
the School Improvement Partner (SIP) report.
OFSTED says that it does not require any kind of documentation, including lesson plans
and policy documents, to be produced specifically for an inspection and that inspectors
should not request additional data or information from schools.
If you are being expected to produce documentation for inspection which you
believe to be excessive, you should contact your NUT school representative or
otherwise seek advice from your NUT division.
Why do I need to prepare special lesson plans for the inspectors?
You do not need to do anything “special” for the inspection. OFSTED does not require a
particular format for written lesson plans or lesson plans produced specifically for an
inspection. Inspectors will look for evidence of good planning as part of their evaluation
of the quality of teaching and learning using a range of evidence, including observing
lessons and from pupil outcomes, rather than from scrutiny of individual teachers’ lesson
plans. You should continue to meet your school’s regular planning requirements.
NUT guidance on lesson planning is available to download from the NUT website
www.teachers.org.uk. If you are concerned about excessive planning undertaken
specifically for the purposes of inspection, you should contact your NUT division
for advice.
How is the School Evaluation Form (SEF) used in school inspections?
The SEF is used to plan the inspection and provides important evidence about the
quality of leadership and management and the school’s capacity to improve. During the
inspection itself, inspectors will be looking to corroborate what the school has said in its
SEF.
Completing the SEF is not compulsory, but schools are “strongly encouraged” by
OFSTED to keep their SEFs updated in preparation for the Annual Assessment which
will determine when an inspection should be scheduled.
OFSTED advises schools to be selective when deciding which evidence to include: it
does not expect to see large amounts of data and descriptive detail.
A new version of the SEF is available online at the OFSTED website but schools are not
expected to complete it until the end of 2009. The new SEF has been redesigned to
encourage schools to make a brief summary of their evaluations using the OFSTED
grade descriptors. It also lists the types of evidence that inspectors may wish to see for
each of the sections.
NUT members are advised to refer only to a reasonable level of existing evidence.
New evidence, specifically for the inspection, should not be required by
inspectors. If inspectors demand additional evidence which the school considers
to be unreasonable, the OFSTED Complaints Helpline (see below) should be
contacted and advice sought from NUT Regional Office.
What happens if my school has an inspection before it has completed filling in the
new SEF?
During the autumn term 2009, inspectors will use the most recently submitted version of
your ‘old’ SEF as well as any parts of the “new” SEF which have been completed.
Inspectors will be steered by the school about the relevance of different sections in each
of the SEFs. The NUT advises members that schools should not attempt to
complete the new SEF as soon as it is available but should gradually tackle the
new sections in it as part of planned school improvement activities.
How often should the SEF be updated?
Because the SEF is used by OFSTED as part of its Annual Assessment, it encourages
schools to submit their SEF each time it is updated, so that inspectors can access the
most up-to-date information available.
Schools may up-date their SEF as regularly as they wish, although the NUT
recommends that this is done on an annual basis, as part of the school’s
established development planning cycle, in order to avoid excessive workload.
If you have concerns about excessive workload arising from the SEF, contact your
NUT school representative in the first instance, otherwise your NUT division for
advice.
How are pupils and parents involved in school inspections?
Schools are required to distribute parental questionnaires on the day before the
inspection is due to take place, including to parents of pupils who are excluded or absent
from school. The questionnaire is broadly similar to the previous format but now asks for
views on “overall satisfaction with provision”.
The questionnaire, together with a standard letter, can be downloaded from the
OFSTED website. These are expected to be returned to the lead inspector and will be
analysed by inspectors as early as possible in the inspection, to inform inspection
activities.
Inspectors make a judgement on the effectiveness of the school’s
engagement with parents and how this is impacting on outcomes for pupils.
During the inspection, inspectors gather the views of pupils via questionnaires for a
sample of pupils. The questionnaires should be completed in school prior to the start of
the inspection. The completed questionnaires from each class tutor group should be
sealed in an envelope and handed to the lead inspector on arrival at the school. The
results of the pupil survey will be used by the inspection team but will not be published.
During the inspection, inspectors also talk to pupils from different groups and also those
pupils who hold a representative position, such as members of the school council.
Inspection trails may be altered to investigate issues raised in parent and pupil
questionnaires, for example, concerns about bullying or behaviour. Inspectors have
been told by OFSTED that their judgements should not be based on questionnaire
responses alone and that the inspection report should say why the inspectors disagree
with the view expressed by parents and/or pupils.
OFSTED considers the views of pupils and parents of vital importance to the new
inspection framework and plans to introduce annual surveys to gather their views
between inspections, which could be used to inform when schools should be inspected,
as part of the Annual Assessment.
What happens at the end of the inspection?
As under the previous inspection framework, before leaving the school at the end of the
inspection, the lead inspector will briefly indicate whether the school is offering adequate
provision and will give feedback on the main sections of the evaluation framework.
As head teachers may now attend inspection team meetings, the lead inspector may
decide to arrange a short formal feedback meeting so that the main points can be
communicated to others, such as the Chair of governors, senior staff and, if appropriate,
the school’s SIP and a local authority representative. If the head teacher has not
participated in inspection team meetings, the lead inspector will inform the head teacher
of the main findings before the formal feedback session. At the end of the formal
feedback, the lead inspector is requested by OFSTED to say “the judgement grades
awarded may be subject to change”.
The school will receive a draft copy of the inspection report the next working day. The
school will then have one working day to check it for factual accuracy, unless it is placed
in a category of concern, in which case it will have five working days for checking.
OFSTED will publish reports on its website within fifteen working days of inspections.
The school must send a copy to parents and carers within five working days of receipt.
Schools are required by OFSTED to modify their existing plans to address any
weaknesses identified by the inspection – they do not have to produce a specific
document for this.
Inspection reports will now include more specific recommendations on how schools can
address identified weaknesses, improve to the next grade or sustain outstanding
provision. OFSTED intends that these recommendations should be detailed but not
prescriptive. OFSTED will look at whether these recommendations have been included
in the SEF and if any progress has been made towards them as part of the Annual
Assessment. The NUT advises, therefore, that schools use their SEF to document
all of the measures they have taken to address the recommendations made in the
inspection report.
I have noticed a letter addressed “To the School Council” attached to my school’s
OFSTED report – what is this?
A letter in “child-friendly” language, setting out the main findings and recommendations
of the inspection, is attached as an annex to every inspection report. The letter is
addressed to “the School Council” but OFSTED expects that schools will make all pupils
aware of its contents.
There is no statutory requirement on schools to distribute the pupil letter to pupils. The
only statutory requirement is to distribute the report, which includes the letter, to parents.
The head teacher may make a professional judgement that the findings are best
delivered through another means, for example, using it in assembly or Circle Time.
How do inspectors decide that a school is failing?
There are two categories of schools causing concern:
schools which require special measures. OFSTED describes these schools as
“failing to give its pupils an acceptable standard of education, and the persons
responsible for leading, managing or governing the school are not demonstrating the
capacity to secure the necessary improvement.”
and
’notice to improve’ schools. OFSTED describes these schools as either “failing to
provide an acceptable standard of education, but is demonstrating the capacity to
improve” OR “not failing to provide an acceptable standard of education, but is
performing significantly less well than they might in all the circumstances reasonably be
expected to perform.”
There will be three strands to inspectors’ judgements about the capacity of the school to
improve, which is the crucial part of deciding whether a school is placed in special
measures or given a notice to improve. These are the school’s track record and
leadership and management’s success in improving pupil outcomes; the accuracy,
success and impact of school self-evaluation; and leadership and management’s
effectiveness in tackling weaknesses, including setting challenging targets.
As soon as an NUT school representative is aware that the school has been placed
in an OFSTED category of concern, he or she should inform the NUT division in
confidence.
What happens if my school is given a notice to improve?
“Notice to improve” schools receive a monitoring visit approximately six to eight months
after the original inspection, usually for one day by one inspector. The monitoring visit
will be “no notice”, which means that the school will be informed at the start of a four
week period and told to send the relevant documents to the contractor but will not be
told the actual day of the visit. The lead inspector will call the school about half an hour
before they are due to arrive.
The school will be re-inspected after one year, where the notice to improve may be
removed or renewed or the school placed in special measures. If the school remains
inadequate, OFSTED says that it will probably be put into special measures.
The NUT is committed to acting to protect members from excessive demands
arising from monitoring visits, including demands to prepare substantial
documentation and excessive classroom observation.
Where members in
schools placed in an OFSTED category of concern believe that their workload has
become excessive, they should seek support from their regional office.
What happens if my school is put in special measures?
Schools in special measures receive their first monitoring visit of up to two days from
HMI four to six months after the original inspection. They will be given between one and
two days’ notice of the first visit, but “no notice” of subsequent visits, as outlined above
for notice to improve schools. At the end of the visit, which will usually last two days,
schools will receive oral feedback on progress. This will be followed up by letters which
set out the main findings of the visits. These letters are published on the OFSTED
website.
When the school is deemed to have improved, special measures will be removed. If it
remains subject to special measures two years after the original inspection, it will be reinspected.
My school was graded “satisfactory” by OFSTED, so why is the head teacher
worried?
OFSTED says that it is “raising the bar” on school performance and that satisfactory is
no longer good enough. Schools which have been judged satisfactory overall but whose
progress is judged to be static or in decline by OFSTED in its Annual Assessment will
receive a no notice monitoring visit at some point during their three year inspection
cycle.
My school is very unhappy with the way the inspection was carried out and does
not think the inspectors were fair – what can we do?
Schools should raise any concerns they might have with the lead inspector as early as
possible. If you are unable to resolve the matter in this way, or believe that your
concerns have not been taken seriously, or you want an independent view, you should
contact the OFSTED helpline on 08456 404040.
If you are unable to resolve the matter through the OFSTED helpline, you should write to
OFSTED setting out your concerns. If, after it has investigated your complaint, you
disagree with OFSTED’s decision, you may appeal to the Independent Complaints
Adjudicator. For further information, including contact details, see the OFSTED leaflet
“Complaints Procedure: Raising Concerns and Making Complaints about OFSTED’,
which can be downloaded from the OFSTED website.
NUT members who wish the NUT to advise or act for them in making a complaint
about an OFSTED inspection, without prejudice, should contact their NUT regional
office at the earliest opportunity, if possible, during the inspection or before the
report is published.