In another article for SecEd, I offer eight practical suggestions to help school leaders tackle the pressure and anxiety that Ofsted inspection can so often cause.
I have been directly involved in almost 40 inspections over the years including four inspections during 2023. In this article, I now want to offer some more general advice from across these experiences to help your school thrive when Ofsted calls.
1, Prep the phone call
The first thing I do with leaders I am supporting is to help them prepare for the phone call. There are scripts available (search on social media) which are well worth a look. You can then prepare for the questions that you may be asked and ensure that you understand all the terms that may be used.
When a school is telephoned by the Ofsted duty desk to notify them of inspection, they are asked in that call or in a subsequent brief one from the lead inspector when they would like the pre-inspection call.
I always use that window before the call takes place to arrange who will be present and to go through that script so that leaders can feel more confident. In a secondary school you need to consider which colleagues from the senior leadership team will be present on the call and be clear who will speak and when.
A short overview of the call is given in paragraph 102 of Ofsted’s inspection handbook.
2, Track the pastoral data
In paragraph 106 of the handbook is a list of information which schools are required to share with inspectors on the morning of the inspection, including records and information about behaviour and attendance.
I would strongly urge all schools to track the statistics on these on a weekly basis. It does not have to be burdensome – just keep running totals of bullying, discriminatory and prejudiced behaviour, sexualised behaviours, and any restrictive physical interventions.
You also need to have numbers for internal suspensions and the number of children who have left the school at points other than the end of year 11 or year 13.
It can be very difficult to pull this information together quickly even with the best management information systems and we all know schools that have got into a mess during inspection when they have not had the information to hand. So, either have low-tech trackers which are updated weekly or practise pulling the information together.
3, The school is the trust and the trust is the school
One of the largest changes I have seen is the way that inspectors are now prepared to engage with trust leaders. They are happy for us to be present during the phone call and to take part in any inspection activities with school leaders. This is vastly different from the past where you almost had to fight to support your school leaders.
4, Prep middle leaders
It is vital to spend time working with middle leaders so that they are prepared for conversations with inspectors, whether that is around the element of the curriculum they lead or the behaviour, attendance, or personal development responsibilities they may have. Again make use of the scripts that are available on social media to sit down and have coaching conversations with them so that we can all present our school at its best.
5, Who can provide wider support?
One of the issues during inspection is that leaders may be tied up having meetings with inspectors which means the routine presence that we provide during lesson time and non-lesson time disappears.
Are there some colleagues who may be able to help you with these routines while you are tied up? In the MAT world, it can be good to have colleagues from the wider MAT who understand your behaviour routines and can walk those corridors for you.
Or maybe there are recently retired staff who are prepared to help you in such circumstances, or perhaps part-time staff can be available. Again, try and be prepared as your Ofsted window approaches so you have an idea of who may be available and can keep them in the loop.
6, Assurances from alternate education providers
The use of alternative provision can rapidly turn into a rabbit warren if you are not prepared – or even if a colleague unintentionally misphrases something.
So have records to hand of when you have seen or spoken to those pupils who may be using alternative provision. Have details of their attendance and any issues that they may be having. Have letters of assurances from providers about their safeguarding policies.
This includes provision such as hospital school or any short stay provision which the local authority provides as well as anything you commission independently.
7, Plan deep dives in advance
This links with point 4 on preparing middle leaders. Have an idea of which subjects you will be encouraging inspectors to deep dive. Think about what activities the children may be engaged in on those inspection days.
Also think of your tactics so that these middle leaders can be seen teaching but are also able to take part in the learning walk. Perhaps start in that colleague’s classroom and when the inspector is ready to continue the walk another colleague can take over the lesson.
8, Every Ofsted team is very different
There is no doubt that while many inspectors make considerable efforts to put school staff at their ease and reduce the huge stress and pressure that is felt during inspection, there are still some who do not have these soft skills and can seem either completely process driven or in the worst cases rude and intimidating.
If this is your experience, call it out. And remember, it is easier for a trust leader who is supporting a headteacher to make these kind of comments to inspectors. If you are concerned you can also call the duty desk.
9, There is nothing more dangerous than a colleague who has experienced one inspection
While all school leaders will be trying to learn everything they can from colleagues who have experience of a recent inspection, remember that just as every team is different, every inspection is different.
Just because one colleague has been asked for something or indeed has not been asked for something, it does not mean the same will happen during this inspection.
Equally the way that leaders build relationships with inspectors can make the process feel different. So, either speak to a number of colleagues from different schools or speak to people who have experienced inspections in different schools.
Final thoughts
So, these are nine important points that I have learnt from inspection during 2023. We do not yet know exactly what 2024 will bring in the world of inspection but all we can do is ensure that we present our schools at their best while being aware that there will always be things that are out of our control.
- Paul K Ainsworth has held director of school improvement roles in four multi-academy trusts and is currently the education director with Infinity Academies Trust in Lincolnshire. He has supported leaders of small rural primary schools to large 11 to 18 urban secondaries, working intensively with those in Ofsted categories. He is the author of No Silver Bullets: Day-in, day-out school improvement and a TEDx speaker. Paul often appears on the Headteacher Update Podcast, including recent episodes on Ofsted and school inspection, self-evaluation in the primary school, and a school leadership survival guide. Find these and all his articles for the magazine via www.sec-ed.co.uk/authors/paul-k-ainsworth