Ofsted inspections

New arrangements for pre-inspection phone calls

Schools will be notified of inspection from 9.30am on a Monday, with inspections starting the following day, rather than waiting until Wednesday afternoon for notification of an inspection that week – a welcome step forward in alleviating pressure and anxiety. 

Exceptions:  

• An urgent or monitoring inspection may be notified on any day.  
• If deferred, a new inspection date can be notified on any day of the week.  
• In weeks that include a bank holiday, Ofsted may give notice of an inspection on the Tuesday of that week.  
• Ofsted has said this new policy will be evaluated at the end of year. 

A new ‘report card’ to replace current inspection reports

•  Ofsted has said that it will introduce report cards that will:
• show what a school is doing well and what are the areas for improvement, allowing for nuance and variation
• increase the focus and scrutiny on how providers are meeting the needs of children and young people with vulnerabilities such as socio-economic disadvantage and special educational needs and disabilities (SEND)
• improve the way it describes how schools are performing, removing unnecessarily negative terminology like ‘inadequate’; it will instead focus on how schools can be better in the context they are working in
• have a separate safeguarding criterion in the new report cards. This will be distinct from leadership and management, to emphasise that all members of staff should be proactive about safeguarding.

Deep dives and when to expect them during an Ofsted inspection

Deep dives are intended to gather evidence of the curriculum within a certain subject and to build an understanding of the curriculum in the school as a whole. They encompass a range of activities, including: 

• talking about the curriculum with leaders 
• joint visits to lessons 
• work scrutiny 
• talking to and observing pupils in addition to joint visits to lessons 
• discussions with teachers. 

All schools should expect deep dives to take place during a graded Ofsted inspection. On graded inspections, the number of deep dives will vary depending on the size of the school and the inspection team: 

• In primary schools (and infant, junior and lower middle schools), inspectors will always carry out a deep dive in reading and deep dives in one or more foundation subjects. In addition, inspectors will often carry out a deep dive in mathematics. 
• In secondary schools, the deep dives will typically focus on a sample of four to six subjects, looking at a wide variety of pupils in different year groups across that sample. 
• For maintained nursery schools and specialist settings, see the provision-specific considerations section 

Being held accountable for your subject area during an Ofsted inspection

It is important that you are provided with adequate time and remuneration to fulfil your curriculum and subject leadership responsibilities. Teachers taking on additional curriculum responsibilities should receive a teaching and learning responsibility (TLR) payment.

The school teachers’ pay and conditions document (STPCD) also specifies that reasonable non-contact time, in addition to planning, preparation and assessment (PPA) time, should be allocated for management duties (para 52.6, STPCD).

Additionally, your employer should support your request to have a colleague present when meeting with the Ofsted inspector.

If you are not receiving a TLR payment or the necessary time and support to carry out your subject leadership responsibilities, you should not be held accountable for outcomes during an Ofsted inspection.

For more information see the NEU’s Ofsted inspection advice for members of the main or upper pay range.

An ungraded inspection and what Ofsted is looking for during these types of inspections

An ungraded inspection is an inspection that does not result in individual graded judgements but determines whether the school has taken effective action to maintain the standards identified at the previous inspection.

Ofsted will no longer carry out deep dives for ungraded inspections. Deep dives will instead be replaced by ‘areas of focus’ (see below). Deep dives will continue for graded inspections. 

The call before inspection will be used to agree areas of focus for Ofsted’s visit. These will include the quality of education across a group of subjects and one or two other areas of focus such as personal development, behaviour or attendance. Areas of focus will allow inspectors to gather evidence with greater flexibility and in a way that is right for the school’s context. Ofsted has said this will mean more time for ‘richer conversations’ with leaders about what their school is doing.

Observation of teaching lessons

Ofsted inspectors will undertake lesson visits as part of graded and ungraded inspections, but lesson visits are not about evaluating individual teachers or their teaching, and your lesson will not be graded. Observations conducted during an Ofsted inspection should, therefore, not be used by your school for appraisal purposes.

Inspectors will use the evidence gathered from lesson visits to form a rounded view about the quality of education in the school (School Inspection Handbook, paras 263 and 264).

Inspectors will discuss with school leaders which lessons they will visit (for graded inspections this will be part of the deep dives) to see the curriculum in action, and may visit several lessons from the same curriculum area or subject, including from different year groups. The head teacher, subject leaders and/or other school leaders will be invited to take part in joint visits to lessons. 

Ofsted inspection of  pupils’ work

Inspectors will look at pupils’ work. Ofsted states that scrutiny of pupils’ work will help inspectors to form a view of whether pupils know more and can do more, and whether the knowledge and skills they have learned are well sequenced and have developed incrementally. 

If your school is put in special measures

Ofsted will now place a school in a ‘category of concern’ following a graded inspection if any ‘key judgement’ is inadequate and/or if safeguarding is considered ineffective. Inspectors will then decide if the school has ‘serious weakness’ or requires ‘special measures’. 

Under current legislation, the education secretary has a duty to make an academy order in respect of local authority-maintained schools placed into one of these categories. This may change with the Children's Wellbeing and Schools Bill, which is currently being considered by parliament. If the legislation is passed in its current form, the current duty to issue academy order will become a discretionary power and it will be up to the secretary of state to decide on what action to take in relation to a maintained school in this position (see here).

Advice on academisation – including how to campaign against it.

Will MATs be inspected by Ofsted?

Ofsted has said it will work with government on changes to legislation to allow it to inspect multi-academy trusts (MATs). The NEU supports the inspection of MATs.

Further changes expected in 2025

The Education Inspection Framework (EIF) will be revised, with the new framework coming into place for the next academic year. Some elements of the EIF are likely to stay the same, including the current curriculum focus. Other changes proposed in Ofsted’s Big Listen include designing a framework that:

• is appropriate to the school phase and type (such as primary or special school)
• makes the inspection process more collaborative and takes into account the context in which a school is working
• looks at inclusion and the experiences and outcomes of disadvantaged or vulnerable children, including those with SEND.

Ofsted will consult on the reformed framework from January 2025.

Inspecting SEND

Parts of the EIF that apply to state-funded and non-maintained special schools' provision, pupil referral units (PRUs), alternative provision and mainstream schools’ provision for pupils with SEND

Inspectors will gather and evaluate evidence about:

• how well the school identifies, assesses and meets the needs of pupils with SEND, including when SEND pupils are receiving remote education
• whether leaders are suitably ambitious for all SEND pupils
• how well leaders ensure that the curriculum is coherently sequenced to meet all pupils’ needs, starting points and aspirations for the future
• how successfully leaders involve parents, carers and, as necessary, other professionals/specialist services in deciding how best to support SEND pupils, including agreeing the approach to education otherwise than at/in a school (EOTAS) or home education
• how well leaders include pupils with SEND in all aspects of school life
• how well leaders ensure that pupils’ outcomes are improving as a result of any different or additional provision being made for them, including any reasonable adjustments in EOTAS or home education provision. This covers outcomes in:
  • communication and interaction
  • cognition and learning
  • physical health and development
  • social, emotional and mental health
  • how well SEND pupils are prepared for their next steps in education, employment and training, and their adult lives, including: further/higher education and employment, independent living, participating in society and being as healthy as possible in adult life.

See Special educational needs and disability code of practice: 0 to 25 years.

Ofsted will expect schools to demonstrate that they have taken steps to secure external support for SEND pupils and that concerns have been raised with appropriate authorities when support is not provided or is delayed

Ofsted will expect schools to be doing their best to support SEND pupils. School leaders and special educational needs co-ordinators (SENCOs) should contact the NEU if they believe that inspectors have not taken appropriate account of the lack of access to specialist support services, such as educational psychologists, speech and language therapy, and mental health provision, because of funding issues and long waiting times for assessment, diagnosis and support.

Wellbeing and complaints

Ofsted action to support educators’ wellbeing

The NEU has long campaigned for an inspection system that is supportive, rather than punitive, and that has a duty of care towards all education staff. 

As a result of our members’ tireless campaigning, Ofsted has introduced the following:

• A new national team for inspectors and schools to help with any wellbeing concerns during inspection. 
• New guidance to allow inspectors to pause an inspection, including where they have concerns about the wellbeing of a leader or staff member. Pausing an inspection refers to when an inspection or visit that has already started is paused (and so inspectors will leave if they are on site) and will resume at a date or time beyond the originally scheduled inspection days.
• Mental health training for inspectors.

Ofsted has also committed to setting up an ‘inspection welfare, support and guidance hub’. This will offer inspectors and schools information and other support during inspections.

If your mental health is affected by inspection

The NEU urges any members of staff who are being affected by poor mental health and wellbeing to seek support immediately. Talking to your line manager may help, but you can also seek support from your NEU rep or health and safety rep. It is unlikely that you will be the only person whose mental health is suffering and a collective approach to management may be more productive.

Apart from your GP, there are also a range of external organisations that provide support if you are experiencing poor mental health, including the Samaritans or Education Support. 

Reducing the impact of Ofsted

While our union fights for change at a national level, you can protect yourself and your colleagues from Ofsted's impact by using our Ofsted risk assessment guide to collect and record evidence of damage and risk caused by the inspectorate and its consequences. The NEU Ofsted risk assessment shows how action can be taken to remove or reduce the risk.

Tackling workload driven by Ofsted or by your school’s expectation of an Ofsted inspection

Ofsted inspections create vast amounts of unnecessary workload that does not support pupil learning or effective teaching. We know that Ofsted inspections (and the anxiety and pressure in the lead up to them) drive good teachers and school leaders out of the profession, and discourage new teachers from entering the classroom.

The NEU has dedicated resources to help you and your union group tackle unnecessary workload in school. Use our Reducing accountability workload in your workplace guide to fight back against the pressures placed upon schools by Ofsted, and our Ofsted risk assessment to protect yourself and your colleagues from Ofsted's impact by collecting and recording evidence of damage and risk caused by the inspectorate and its consequences.

How to make a complaint against Ofsted

If a school has any concerns about an inspection, including about inspectors’ conduct or any potential or perceived conflicts of interest, they should be raised at the earliest opportunity with the lead inspector. Concerns can be raised at any point during the inspection, including (but not limited to): 

• the inspection planning conversation 
• meetings between leaders and inspectors 
• the final feedback meeting.

Any concerns must be taken seriously, and the act of raising the concern should not impact inspection findings or how a school is considered by Ofsted. If it is not possible to resolve concerns with the lead inspector, the school or responsible body should follow the steps set out in handling concerns and complaints. 

Changes to the way Ofsted handles complaints

Educators have long found Ofsted notoriously difficult to make a complaint about, even when there has been substantive evidence of poor practice. A large part of the issue is that Ofsted assesses and resolves complaints in-house rather than independently – it is essentially marking its own homework.

However, as part of its September 2024 reforms, Ofsted has pledged to introduce ‘complaints panels’ as part of its complaints processes. These complaint panels will include external sector representatives. The panels will review whether Ofsted has handled a sample of complaints fairly and in line with its policy. National complaints panels were introduced in January 2025, chaired by Ofsted’s national director or the relevant deputy director, so that they could become an established part of its practice before it moves to a renewed inspection framework in September 2025.

Other changes include:

• the opportunity for complainants to talk to the investigating officer so that the investigating officer fully understands the concerns being raised 
• an earlier opportunity for complainants to appeal to the Independent Complaints Adjudication Service for Ofsted (ICASO) when they are dissatisfied with Ofsted’s complaints investigation
• a new ‘hub’ for complaints investigations, as outlined in Ofsted’s response to its Big Listen consultation.

The role of the investigating officer handling complaints

The role of the investigating officer is to use their inspection/professional expertise to consider and respond to the issues raised by a complainant. This includes four main elements: 

1. Reviewing the contents of the online complaint submitted to Ofsted.
2. Speaking with the complainant to fully understand their concerns and to agree the key aspects for investigation. Wherever possible, the investigator will also attempt to resolve aspects of a complaint through this professional dialogue.
3. Investigating the main areas of complaint. This will include, where appropriate and depending on the concerns raised, speaking with the inspector or their line manager, reviewing the evidence gathered during the inspection and the inspection outcomes as set out in the draft report text, and reviewing relevant inspection guidance.
4. Drafting a written response to send to the complainant. This will link together similar issues for conciseness and clarity and provide a conclusion on whether each main aspect of complaint is upheld or not. The complaint response will also set out any steps that will be taken as a result of the complaint – for example, making amendments to the report ahead of publication.