Nottinghamshire County Council A briefing for headteachers Changes to the inspection framework from September 2012 June 2012

Nottinghamshire County Council ‘A good education for all’ (Feb 2012) 1Schools cannot be judged ‘outstanding’ unless their a is ‘outstanding’. 2Schools will only be deemed to be providing an b standard of education where they are judged to be ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’. 3A single judgement of c d will replace the current ‘satisfactory’ judgement and ‘notice to improve’ category. 4Schools judged as c d will be subject to a e f earlier than is currently the case. 5A school can only be judged as c d on g consecutive inspections before it is deemed to require h i. 6Inspections will be undertaken without j being provided to the school. 7Inspectors should undertake an analysis of anonymised information of the most recent k l of all teachers within the school, as part of the evidence for a judgement on leadership and management. Which (if any) of these proposals concerned you the most?

Nottinghamshire County Council ‘A good education for all’ (Feb 2012) 1Schools cannot be judged ‘outstanding’ unless their teaching is ‘outstanding’. 2Schools will only be deemed to be providing an acceptable standard of education where they are judged to be ‘good’ or ‘outstanding’. 3A single judgement of ‘requires improvement’ will replace the current ‘satisfactory’ judgement and ‘notice to improve’ category. 4Schools judged as ‘requires improvement’ will be subject to a full re- inspection earlier than is currently the case. 5A school can only be judged as ‘requires improvement’ on two consecutive inspections before it is deemed to require ‘special measures’. 6Inspections will be undertaken without notice being provided to the school. 7Inspectors should undertake an analysis of anonymised information of the most recent performance management of all teachers within the school, as part of the evidence for a judgement on leadership and management. Which (if any) of these proposals concerned you the most?

Nottinghamshire County Council Three key questions What is going to change? What are the implications for our schools? What do we need to do to address these?

Nottinghamshire County Council ‘Responses to Ofsted’s consultation’ (May 2012) This document explains “What we propose to do in the light of the consultation findings” 8 key changes described Detailed inspection framework and guidance to be published on in middle of Junewww.ofsted.gov.uk The four key aspects: achievement, teaching, behaviour & safety and leadership & management to remain the same However, we expect that there will be a revised Evaluation Schedule with new grade descriptors

Nottinghamshire County Council 1:Require ‘outstanding’ schools to have ‘outstanding’ teaching “Consistently high quality teaching drives up pupils’ achievement” From September 2012; will not be applied retrospectively Does not mean every lesson seen during an inspection needs to be outstanding Does mean that, over time, teaching is enabling almost all pupils to make rapid and sustained progress Revised guidance for inspectors in order to make clear that:  teaching is judged by its impact on pupils’ learning and progress over time  inspectors will not look for a ‘preferred’ teaching methodology  in any single observation an inspector will not expect to see every characteristic of outstanding teaching Note: most schools judged to be outstanding at last inspection exempt from routine inspection unless concerns are raised about their performance (annual risk assessment starting in third year)

Nottinghamshire County Council 2:Define an acceptable standard of education as being ‘good’ “Central to our drive to help ensure that all schools are good schools” and “will empower leaders and teachers to make improvements” When inspectors make crucial judgement about achievement, will continue to take account of the learning and progress of pupils currently in the school and the progress and attainment of pupils in the past three years; no single indicator will hold sway “Unlike current arrangements this (progress) will not be linked to national averages” Grade descriptors will be clear that a school can be ‘good’ where pupils’ attainment is below average but they are making good progress Will pay particular attention to how schools are using the pupil premium to improve pupils’ achievement

Nottinghamshire County Council Oxford Dictionary of English “satisfactory adj. fulfilling expectations or needs; acceptable, though not outstanding or perfect: he didn’t get a satisfactory answer.  (of a patient in a hospital) not deteriorating or likely to die.  [LAW] (of evidence or a verdict) sufficient for the needs of the case: the verdict is safe and satisfactory.”

Nottinghamshire County Council 3:Replace the current ‘satisfactory’ judgement with ‘requires improvement’ where schools are not inadequate but are not yet providing a good standard of education One or more key aspect judged to require improvement (grade 3) Leaders, managers and governors have demonstrated the capacity to secure further improvement Inspection reports will be clear about why these schools are not yet good, what they need to do to improve and their strengths Will distinguish between schools that are moving forward and those that are not by clearly indicating where a ‘requires improvement’ school has good leadership that is bringing about sustained improvement Schools judged to ‘require improvement’ will not be designated as schools causing concern and will therefore not be in a category (this is a change to the original proposal)

Nottinghamshire County Council 4:Replace the ‘notice to improve’ category with ‘serious weaknesses’ Where one or more key aspect of a school’s performance is judged as inadequate (grade 4), the school is likely to be judged inadequate overall (grade 4) and placed in category of concern: ‘Serious weaknesses’ (grade 4)  formerly known as “notice to improve”  deemed to require significant improvement  leaders, managers and governors are demonstrating the capacity to secure improvement (i.e. L&M not inadequate)  report will make clear to parents that the school is inadequate but capable of improvement ‘Special measures’ (grade 4)  not providing an acceptable standard of education  leaders, managers and governors are not demonstrating the capacity to secure improvement (i.e. L&M inadequate)  “interventions for schools in special measures will remain because we know that intervention helps such schools to improve”

Nottinghamshire County Council 5:Introduce earlier full re-inspection of schools judged as ‘requires improvement’ Schools judged as ‘requires improvement’ will be subject to full section 5 re-inspection within two years (change to original proposal of 18 months); maximum period and earlier if required “We believe that earlier re-inspections will add impetus and drive to improvements” and “they will also support and empower headteachers and senior leaders to make the necessary changes” Exact time between inspections will reflect the individual school’s circumstances and will be informed by what inspectors find at the monitoring inspections “Between inspections, we will help schools by providing closer monitoring and support” (no details of the nature of this as yet)

Nottinghamshire County Council 6:Usually limit the number of times schools can be deemed to ‘require improvement’ to two consecutive inspections before they are judged ‘inadequate’ and deemed to require ‘special measures’ Schools ‘requiring improvement’ subject to regular monitoring Will have full section 5 re-inspection within maximum of two years If still judged to require improvement, further monitoring and another full inspection within a further two years If still not good at third inspection, highly likely to be judged inadequate and require special measures because not providing acceptable standard of education and persons responsible for leading, managing or governing not demonstrating capacity to secure improvement (‘stuck’) However may be exceptions, e.g. if strong upward trajectory but school not yet good in all areas further time may be given to leaders and managers to secure improvement

Nottinghamshire County Council 7:Shorten the notice we give of an inspection “in order to see schools as they really are” (see classroom practice as it is, day in, day out, for pupils) and “reduce anxiety for staff in the period immediately before an inspection” Lead inspectors will normally contact the school by telephone during the afternoon of the working day prior to the start of the inspection Allows schools to make practical arrangements, including ensuring senior leaders on site/available and informing parents so they can feedback views via ‘Parent View’ on Ofsted website Reserve right to inspect without notice Review again in April 2013 in light of strong parental support for completely unannounced inspections

Nottinghamshire County Council 8:Request that schools provide information of the outcomes of the most recent performance management of all teachers “Good teaching, and the leadership and management of teaching, are central to schools’ success” Inspectors will evaluate robustness of performance management arrangements:  how used to develop, support and challenge individual staff members’ professional practice  correlation between quality of teaching in a school and teachers’ progression through the salary scales  how those responsible for school governance maintain an effective oversight Will inform judgement about leadership and management. Recognise concerns raised by teachers about anonymity:  individual teachers not identified  confidential information not recorded on evidence forms  inspectors will not receive any performance management information in advance (electronically) or remove it from the school site

Nottinghamshire County Council So, how do you secure good at your next inspection? 1Progress tracking data for current pupils is accurate and shows rapid improvement, including for groups 2A large proportion of lessons seen during the two days are graded good or better 3Senior leaders present convincing arguments backed up by robust self- evaluation and evidence

Nottinghamshire County Council Be prepared – business as usual!