Commenting on the Shadow Education Secretary, Bridget Phillipson’s plans for reform,Dr Mary Bousted, Joint General Secretary of the National Education Union, said:
“These recommendations to make serious change to inspection will be welcome news to teachers and leaders across England.
“For decades we have had a system that is punitive, unfair and unreliable and has led to staff leaving the profession in their droves. Bridget Phillipson's proposal to remove the four headline grades that Ofsted currently awards is a welcome step towards addressing these issues, bringing us more in line with countries such as Scotland and Wales. Removing the headline grades is needed and would go beyond a reductive approach towards meaningful school evaluation and improvement.
“We agree with Labour that parents and schools ‘deserve better’ from Ofsted. Any reforms to inspection must take seriously the excessive and intensive workloads teachers face, the costs of the surveillance model that Ofsted embodies and the effects on schools of its dogmatic approach to curriculum issues. It is vital that reforms must reduce the high stakes for staff, particularly for those staff in high poverty areas who are most unfairly impacted by the punitive inspection regime. England needs to move towards a system that is supportive, effective and fair. Safeguarding and health and safety are vital concerns and we are pleased to see them foregrounded.
“We hope that Bridget Phillipson's speech marks the beginning of a dialogue with teachers and school leaders. Every intended 'solution' to the problems of inspection needs to consider carefully the likely effects, positive and negative, of proposed measures.
“As these ideas are further developed, the NEU look forwards to considering the detail, noting the Labour Party's commitment to consulting with the profession. A fairer and more supportive system is urgent to ensure we stem the loss of teachers and leaders from schools and colleges.”
