Four out of five head teachers think grades given to schools by Ofsted are unreliable, survey suggests

• Report suggests that ‘overly simplistic’ judgements lead to abrupt changes

More than four in five head teachers believe the grades awarded to schools by Ofsted are unreliable, an education union survey suggests.

Only a third (36 per cent) felt the system, which rates schools from ‘outstanding’ to ‘inadequate’, could be trusted and even fewer (20 per cent) thought the information was useful for parents, according to a poll of NAHT (National Association of Head Teachers) union members.

The findings came as Amanda Spielman published her final annual report as the chief inspector of Ofsted, in which she said that her seven-year tenure had seen ‘sustainable improvements in education’.

But her tough approach has proved unpopular with many schools, with the suicide of head teacher Ruth Perry following an Ofsted downgrade provoking an unprecedented backlash against the regulator.

Her family say she took her own life after an Ofsted report downgraded Caversham Primary School in Reading from its highest to lowest rating over safeguarding concerns.

Amanda Spielman said in her final annual report as Ofsted chief executive that her tenure had seen ‘sustainable improvements in education’, despite her tough approach proving unpopular with many schools

Her death is the subject of an inquest due to start next week.

And in her commentary, Mrs Spielman admitted to ‘seeing a wave of publicly expressed discontent about issues that Ofsted alone cannot resolve’.

And testifying to the lack of trust between Ofsted and schools, 85 per cent of heads polled said they were ‘unconfident’ in the inspectorate.

When asked how they felt about their school’s next Ofsted inspection, the top five words given by leaders were anxious, sick, stressed, terrified and dread.

The inspectorate has faced repeated calls to revamp its school ratings system following the death of headteacher Ruth Perry in January.

Paul Whiteman, general secretary of the NAHT, commented: ‘This is a pretty damning indictment of how far Ofsted has lost its way.

‘Far from driving school improvement, inspections are seen as inaccurate, unreliable, and of little use to parents or schools. Ofsted is clearly no longer fit for purpose, even after the limited changes it was forced to make in the wake of the Ruth Perry tragedy.’

A report for the Institute of Public Policy Research concluded that ‘overly simplistic’ judgements were leading to abrupt management changes and were responsible for a ‘football manager culture’ (Stock Image)

Earlier this week, a union-backed inquiry into the future of school inspection concluded that Ofsted was in need of major reform and was seen as ‘not fit for purpose’.

Another report, from the Institute for Public Policy Research, suggested that ‘overly simplistic’ school inspection judgments often trigger abrupt changes to management, which has fuelled a ‘football manager culture’.

An Ofsted spokesman said: ‘Children only get one chance at an education, and inspection ensures that standards are high for all children.

‘We always want inspections to be as positive an experience for headteachers and school leaders as they can be.

‘After every inspection we ask schools whether they believe the inspection will help them improve. Nine out of 10 say it will.’

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