The Commons Education and Skills Committee chaired by Barry Sheermanlast week said that it was concerned about Ofsted's ability to cope withits increased remit.
In April, Ofsted became the Office for Standards in Education,Children's Services and Skills, taking on the Adult LearningInspectorate, children's homes, fostering and adoption, and theChildren's Rights director as well as local authority inspectionfunctions.
Mr Sheerman said, 'We will be interested to see what will be achieved inthe first 12 months of the new Ofsted and what value has been added byits creation. We cannot disguise our concern as to the fitness forpurpose of the organisation at the moment.'
While welcoming 'the potential for the new Ofsted to take a morecomprehensive and strategic view of the issues affecting children, youngpeople and adult learners', the committee's report raised concerns aboutthe 'increased complexity of this large bureaucracy'.
A number of sectors that now fall under Ofsted's remit have expressedreservations about whether they will be disadvantaged by its previousfocus on schools and early years, said the report.
Read The Work of Ofsted at www.parliament.uk/edskills.