By Gavin Mackintosh-
Shadow education secretary Bridget Phillipson(pictured) caused a storm by delegates at the National Education Union conference today as she spoke about Labour’s plans to reform Ofsted.
Her comments ignited boos, as well as call for Ofsted to be abolished, as the shadow secretary said that Ofcom needs to “turn a corner”.
The NEU wants Ofsted to be abolished, and delegates this week passed a motion calling for the creation of a “new system of collaborative support and accountability”.
Ofsted has for years provided detailed evaluations of Uk schools, ranking them in a heirarchy of outstanding, good, needs improvement, and inadequate.
The education watchdog has still come under criticism for below standard assessments of schools , sometimes getting its facts wrong and refusing to address them.
But Labour has said it will reform, not scrap the inspectorate, giving it a strengthened school improvement role, with the length and timing of inspections and grading also up for discussion.
Phillipson told delegates today that to be “to be supportive of inspection, is not to believe it cannot be better”.
“For one thing, it is hardly surprising if the Ofsted we need tomorrow is different from the Ofsted we needed 30 years ago.
“For another, the way inspections operate makes teachers, leaders and lecturers too often feel punished rather than supported.”
Some delegates responded with shouts of “abolish it”, while others booed the shadow education secretary.
NEU president Daniel Kebede attempted to calm the hall, asking shouting delegates to take an “early lunch”.
“I’m not going to have this continued shouting out. If you don’t want to be here, no-one’s forcing you to be.”
He later added: “Conference, you’re like children, settle down.”
Phillipson finished her speech despite repeated interruptions, and received applause after joint NEU general secretary Kevin Courtney thanked her for her appearance.
After her speech, Ms Phillipson said: “I think accountability in schools matters – it matters to parents, but I was also clear that Ofsted does need to change.”
“I don’t think we’re getting the balance right. And I want to speak to teachers, to leaders and to parents about how we make that change and what that looks like. But if that’s going to be effective, it’s got to be a two-way process and that means genuine engagement.”
She added: “You can’t be in a conversation if you’re not taking part in the conversation. If people don’t want to engage, that’s their choice.”
She said that she understood the frustrations of teachers when it came to Ofsted.
“I hear all the time from teachers, school staff and school leaders about how they often feel that the way in which inspection is carried out is punitive and not as supportive as it ought to be.”
Regular Health Checks
Labour’s has proposed to replace Ofsted with a two-phase inspection system , in which all schools and education providers are subject to regular ‘health checks’ led by local government, and a more in-depth inspection led by Her Majesty’s Inspectors (HMIs), full-time, trained inspectors, who will have experience and expertise in the areas they inspect. This will ensure that parents receive the “in-depth and reliable information that they need about our schools”.
Under Labour’s proposed new system, HMIs will carry out inspections in response to concerns arising from these the regular ‘health checks’, or those raised by parents, teachers and governors. This means that in-depth inspections will arise from a genuine need, instead of taking place at random.
The current inspection system is a major driver of high levels of teacher workload and stress, which contributes to the ongoing crisis in teacher recruitment and retention. Labour’s plans to radically reform the system will ensure that teachers are supported in the classroom, and do not see inspections as a punitive process that will drive excessive levels of stress.
A Labour government will also launch a “school improvement revolution” in office through a nationwide school-led peer review improvement programme based on the London Challenge model, aimed at supporting schools in deprived areas with challenging intakes.
This process will be led by regional National Education Service (NES) offices across England, which will co-ordinate peer review across their regions.
Toxic Brand
Courtney said it was “vital” for the NEU to engage with every political party. He said the union believed Ofsted was a “toxic brand”, but added: “we are here to engage in a serious way with politicians that want to engage with us”.
Labour’s current position on Ofsted differs from the policy pursued under Jeremy Corbyn. Ahead of the 2019 general election, Labour pledged to scrap the watchdog and replace it with a new system involving local authority “health checks”.
But the party confirmed last year that under Sir Keir Starmer’s leadership Ofsted would be reformed, not abolished.
Phillipson said today that Labour would reform inspections so the “intensity of the experience is reasonable and proportionate”. She wants a process that points teachers to the “support they need to improve”, and that considers the “broad context for schools”.
She added that inspection of multi-academy trusts was also “missing” from the current system.
Phillipson told reporters after her speech that she was “clear Ofsted does need to change”, and wanted to “speak to teachers and to leaders and to parents about how we make that change”.
“But if that’s going to be effective it’s got to be a two-way process, and that means genuine engagement. If people don’t want to engage, that’s their choice.”
She said school staff and leaders reported inspection was “punitive, and not as supportive as it ought to be”.
“I understand the frustration that teachers feel around that, but I also understand that parents want to make sure that things are going well within their child’s school. I don’t think we’ve got the balance right at the moment.”