What is Ofsted and and how will the new school ratings work?

The sister of head teacher Ruth Perry, who took her own life after an Ofsted inspection, has urged Education Secretary Bridget Phillipson to delay introducing new school report cards.

A letter signed by Prof Julia Waters with more than 30 others, including the general secretaries of four teaching unions, warned the changes would "continue to have a detrimental impact on the wellbeing of education staff and hence on students' school experience".

The new report cards are due to be introduced this autumn, after Ofsted scrapped its old one or two-word judgements.

Ms Phillipson has said they will provide "rich, granular insight" to help deliver "tailored" support for struggling schools.

Ofsted - the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills - inspects and reports on anywhere that provides education for young people in England, including schools, colleges, nurseries and childminders.

Many parents and carers rely on Ofsted ratings to help them choose a school or nursery for their child.

Previously, schools or organisations were inspected every four years - or within 30 months, depending on their status - and were given one of the following four overall grades:

• 1 - outstanding
• 2 - good
• 3 - requires improvement
• 4 - inadequate

Ofsted also inspects some independent schools in England, while others are assessed by the Independent Schools Inspectorate.

Inspections in Wales are carried out by Estyn, in Scotland by Education Scotland, and in Northern Ireland by the Education and Training Inspectorate.

Ofsted inspections no longer give a single overall grade to an institution.

Inspectors still apply one of the existing four grades to the individual sub-categories they assess:

• a school's overall performance
• the quality of education provided
• pupil behaviour and attitudes
• staff personal development and the calibre of leadership and management
• the effectiveness of safeguarding policies

Estyn in Wales and the body that inspects Church of England schools and academies also both moved away from a single grade approach.

In England, from autumn 2025 and after a consultation, a new report card will come into effect, describing what inspectors have found on key aspects of each school, including:

• quality of education
• behaviour and attendance
• personal development
• leadership and management

There will be five possible grades for each area:

• causing concern
• attention needed
• secure
• strong
• exemplary

A separate part of the report card will say whether the school's duties around safeguarding have been met.

The frequency of future inspections will also be determined by the consultation.

The changes are partly in response to the wave of criticism that the old rating system received after Mrs Perry's death in January 2023.

The coroner who investigated her death highlighted concerns that one-word judgements meant the same grading of "inadequate" could be given to a school which was "dreadful in all respects", and to another which was good but with issues which could have been remedied by the time the Ofsted report was published.

Ofsted boss Sir Martyn Oliver has said the new report cards' "suite of grades" would give parents "much more detail" and help identify a school's strengths and areas for improvement.

But the letter signed by Prof Waters and others said they "fail to address" recommendations from the coroner and an education select committee inquiry and would "make inspections even less reliable".

The signatories called on Ms Phillipson to "take the time needed to get change right" and to introduce a "robust, independent complains and appeals process".

Ms Phillipson has previously pushed back against the criticism though, saying parents want more information about schools.

• Ofsted complacent after head's death, says review
• 'I couldn't handle the shame': Teachers' dread at Ofsted reports

During an Ofsted visit - which can last up to two days - inspectors observe lessons and talk to staff and pupils. Parents are also invited to comment.

The school is normally notified the day before.

Schools can request to defer or cancel a visit, but only in exceptional circumstances.

Ofsted has piloted an idea to improve consistency by doing all inspections on a Tuesday and Wednesday, giving notice for them on a Monday.

Inspectors judge schools according to Ofsted's education inspection framework.

Up until now, schools that are rated inadequate have become sponsored academies, and are supported by another outstanding school or charity to improve.

The new report cards will result in the government intervening more quickly to help struggling schools, Phillipson has said.

New regional teams, with a budget of up to £100,000 per school, will help turn around "stuck" schools that have received back-to-back negative judgements from Ofsted.

But those that fail to improve will be transferred to a successful academy trust, even if they are already run by a different academy or a council.

Under a pilot from September 2024, if inspectors have concerns about the safety of children in a school that is performing well in all other respects, they will withhold their judgement for three months to allow time for improvements to be made.

Head teachers can challenge the rating their school is given.

Complaints are dealt with by a senior inspector who was not involved in the original assessment.

The way Ofsted handles the post-inspection period changed in April 2024, with the aim of resolving complaints more quickly, and increasing transparency around decision-making.