From January, schools will be able to contact Ofsted the day after an inspection if they are unhappy with how it was carried out, the watchdog has announced today.
The watchdog said it will implement all four changes set out in its complaints consultation, which will be introduced in two phases.
Inspectors will be given guidance on developing an “enhanced professional dialogue” for successful inspections from January 2024, in addition to schools being able to contact Ofsted to log any unresolved issues on the next working day after the end of the inspection.
Then, from April 2024, measures to allow schools to review draft reports and highlight “minor points of clarity or factual accuracy”, and raise a formal complaint against inspection findings and judgement, will come into place.
Ofsted said it plans to remove the current internal review step in its complaints process. Schools will instead be able to directly escalate their complaints to the Independent Complaints Adjudication Service for Ofsted (ICASO).
The inspectorate said it will also introduce periodic reviews of closed complaints using external representatives.
Changes to Ofsted’s complaints process
The watchdog announced the shake-up earlier this year following widespread pressure for change from school leaders following the death of headteacher Ruth Perry.
The changes are:
- Enhanced on-site professional dialogue during inspections to help address any issues.
- A new opportunity for providers to contact Ofsted the day after an inspection if they have unresolved concerns.
- New arrangements for finalising reports and considering formal challenges to inspection outcomes.
- Direct escalation to ICASO and a periodic review of closed complaints using external representatives.
The consultation, which ran from 12 June to 15 September 2023, received over 1,500 responses from providers in all the sectors Ofsted regulates - well over double the number the watchdog received for a similar consultation in 2020.
Over 80 per cent of respondents were in favour of proposals one, two and four, and just under 80 per cent of respondents were in favour of proposal three.
However, some respondents highlighted concerns about the changes. These included the difficulty of challenging the views of an inspector, that there was no “independent body” to review Ofsted’s inspection work, that complaints should be investigated by an independent body, and that Ofsted should not “mark its own homework”.
When the proposals were unveiled in June, school leaders said they were a “missed opportunity” because the changes do not give schools a chance to go to an independent body to challenge inspection grades.
Spielman ‘confident’ about impact
Ofsted’s outgoing chief inspector, Amanda Spielman, said: “I’m pleased to see the high levels of support for our proposed changes from those working across education and children’s social care.
“We have also piloted enhanced professional dialogue and allowing providers to contact us the day after the inspection, and these worked well.”
Ms Spielman said that she is “confident” that these changes will “help resolve complaints more quickly”, “reduce the administrative burden on those making a complaint”, and “increase transparency in the process”.
“I hope they will also help providers feel more comfortable about raising any issues with us,” she added.
