News


Government committee calls for Ofsted to be split in two


Ofsted should be split in two to help focus and improve inspections, according to the Commons Education Select Committee. In its report on the role and


performance of Ofsted, the committee states that a single children’s inspectorate is too big to function effectively. It recommends splitting Ofsted into two new organisations – the Inspectorate for Education and the Inspectorate for Children’s Care. Graham Stuart MP, chair of


the committee, said: “Ofsted’s reach is vast and its remit has grown substantially since its inception, but this has come at the expense of providing a more specialised service. We need a radical shift in how inspection operates in this country, with a more proportionate, specialist and focused approach. “Ofsted has, of course, made


a great impact on the quality of provision across the country, but the evidence clearly shows that smaller, more focused organisations could do even more so.” The committee believes that


splitting Ofsted would raise confidence that the inspection of all settings is being carried out by inspectors with relevant training and experience. Different


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improvement. Every school submits three main areas they want to focus on. The targets they provide are correlated, cluster groups are created around similar need, and support and resources are allocated. In most cases these resources are “in kind” with schools sharing their own areas of expertise. However, there is the potential to pool funds and purchase resources together. “We’ve shared speech and


language therapists, IT support and now are looking at buying in school business management time between us. I think perhaps pupil welfare and safeguarding is another area that we might collaborate on.” Administrative experience that they cannot all provide individually but can collectively, as a group. The schools are currently building their own directory of recommended services. This has seen some businesses grow


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approaches to inspection would flourish, and the profile of Ofsted’s non-education remit would be given a boost. The report states that the new


Education Inspectorate should focus on the progress made per- pupil across the full range of ability groups. Elsewhere the committee claims


that too few inspectors have recent and relevant experience of the types of settings they inspect. The report states that frontline expertise is vital, and more school inspectors should be serving senior practitioners on secondment. The report also recommends


the creation of two new positions – the Chief Education Officer and the Chief Children’s Care Officer. In addition it suggests inspection reports should be more parent- friendly, while still containing a greater depth of intelligence for practitioners. Responding to the report,


Ofsted chief inspector Christine Gilbert said she welcomed recognition of the important role inspection plays in improving quality, however she also said that the question of “who inspects?” was much less important than the quality of inspection and the impact it had on raising standards.


as their popularity among the partnership has spread. It is not only about plugging


the gaps. The group recognises the importance of innovation and bringing fresh ideas into the partnership. They are already affiliated to the Specialist Schools and Academies Trust, which helped them organise their first primary conference. Chris Quigley and Guy Claxton are addressing delegates at their two-day summer conference and Mr Gray recognises that they will continue to need external input to maintain an inspirational and forward-looking perspective. How is it all paid for? There


is a small affiliation fee that helps towards the hire of rooms for meetings and some basic administrative costs. However the partnership is developing its own currency. Where staff are used as exemplars of good practice or are seconded to work with another school they can earn credits. These might either be traded or paid for at the end of the project.


Christine Gilbert: Reorganisation needs to be carefully considered


“Any proposal for further


reorganisation needs to be very carefully considered and is ultimately a matter for the government,” she said. “There are issues about additional costs and a risk of distraction from the core business – namely continuing to deliver high quality, rigorous inspection which helps to drive up standards for children and learners everywhere.” Baroness Sally Morgan of


Huyton, chair of Ofsted, said she took the report very seriously. “The Board has been particularly interested in how Ofsted could do more to engage with parents, and this is reflected in the proposals published last month, in relation to school inspections,” she said. Read the report in full at www.publications.parliament.uk


There are opportunities here


for staff development, career progression and cross-phase learning – many of the benefits claimed by chains of schools and their sponsors. However, unlike chains, there is no compromise on school identity. “We recognise that not every school will want to buy into everything. We have the freedom to select from what’s available, there is no compulsion.” What advice would the


partnership give to other schools in authorities with similar issues? “Sit down together and plan what you want to do from the outset. Try not to do lots of little things that might set you off at a tangent and perhaps undermine what others are doing. You’ve got to keep the shared interests of the group in view and most importantly the interests of the children at the forefront.” It seems as though this group of


schools have found the resources and reserves to make a potential crisis into an exciting opportunity.


FREENEWSLETTER: Thousands of headteachers and school leaders across the country received the first freeHeadteacher Update newsletter last month. Headteacher Update launched


a new email bulletin newsletter offering primary school leaders the chance to stay right up-to- date with the latest news from the sector. The newsletter complements


the new-look Headteacher Update website which launched last year. The site contains an archive of all the content from the hard copy editions of the magazine as well as regular breaking news updates. To register your interest in


receiving the free newsletter, which is sent out in the month between published issues, send your email, name and school to the editor at david.taylor@ markallengroup.com


News in brief


BULLDOG BAN: Playground games such as British Bulldog, conkers and leapfrog are being banned from schools because of health and safety fears. A survey of 653 education


staff, carried out by the Association of Teachers and Lecturers (ATL), shows that more than a quarter of respondents’ schools have banned British Bulldog. Fourteen per cent said that


conkers had been banned and nine per cent said leapfrog was not allowed. Respondents revealed that


British Bulldog had been banned because of the number of broken bones it produced, while “nut allergies” was cited as the reason for conkers being disallowed. Increasingly, adaptations


of playground games are taking place, the survey found, with tag rugby replacing “traditional” rugby, and football being played with soft balls. The survey also shows that


fewer children are being taken on school trips, owing to an increase in bureaucracy and paperwork. Respondents said that time constraints and a drop in funding had also played a key role in this. However, 92 per cent


said they thought school trips and activities were “very important” because they enhanced learning and supported the curriculum.


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