Curious about Ofsted inspection [Edited by MNHQ at OP's request]

[KrispyKremes]

Name change as this could be outing.

But Penis Beaker, parking diagrams, LTB and all that.

DCs primary school is getting Ofsteded tomorrow. Just had the emails and survey etc go round.

First time it's been done since they've been school age. So I'm in full curious/nosey mode.

So - will us parents notice anything different tomorrow?

And the poor teachers. Why will they all have been up to today (INSET) and tonight/tomorrow morning? And what happens to them tomorrow? Inspectors in each classroom? Books checked? Kids asked stuff etc?

I'm certainly glad I don't get inspected at work!

Depends on the length of the visit. We had a one day recently. It was one inspector. He was available before the day started to speak to parents in the playground. He did a school walk in the morning, went into most classrooms, chatted with representatives of each year of the student body in the library at one point, spent a while looking at a cross section of school books from each class, looked at plans and budgets, spoke to staff. Gave provisional feedback, sent out report a while later.

Staff made sure their rooms were as tidy as possible, and that all paperwork that might be needed was available if asked for.

It was a manic day and a half, but it is what it is.

Hope it’s a decent inspection for your school.

Schools generally have a strategy that gets put into action once they get ‘the phonecall’. Ofsted will require specific pieces of information, so presumably some staff will be making sure that’s all up to date and in order. Teachers will no doubt get very little sleep tonight as they write up detailed lesson plans and seating plans with all the children’s key learning information on it. Possibly catching up a bit of marking. All staff will probably be very stressed.

During the inspection, the children shouldn’t really notice anything vastly different, other than an inspector talking to them. But school kids are generally quite used to visitors talking to them. Ofsted will want to find out what normally happens at school (not just a performance out on during the inspection), so will be talking to children and parents where possible, will observe lessons, will check the data, interview key staff (senco, head etc). It’s a very intense experience.

Thanks for the reply. I didn't realise they could be different lengths.

I seem to remember one from Secondary School and it felt like there were tons of suits talking to us in the playground etc.

I don't understand why this is 'outing' ?

Ofsted does hundreds of inspections a day. From nursery through to Y6, there are 8 year groups with a minimum average of 30 pupils in each.

How can this be 'outing' ?

The only thing you will notice is the nervous energy of people desperate to do their best. The lessons will be exactly as planned (ofsted may get prettier, nore detailed versions of the plans.) You child may report that the inspectors spoke to them and asked them questions. Other than that, it should be business as usual.

*I don't understand why this is 'outing' ?

Ofsted does hundreds of inspections a day. From nursery through to Y6, there are 8 year groups with a minimum average of 30 pupils in each.

How can this be 'outing' ?*

Because I know nothing about Ofsted (kind of given away by my post right here) and for all I knew there's only 1 Primary done per day.

When I was at school there was a fair bit more warning than the half day we get now. I remember the entire MFL department being redecorated just before our inspection in the mid nineties!

When DS's school had Ofsted in the end of last year, there was an inspector on the playground in the morning talking to parents. I knew I couldn't stay and talk to them as I had littlest to get to preschool so I did the parent view survey thing and then dropped a letter into school for the attention of the inspectors. I don't think DS noticed much different as they are very used to visitors. Whatever the result its very important to read the full report and not just focus on the grade - DS's school was downgraded from an Outstanding to a Good, but it was under completely different rules (as the old report was very old) after a period of significant change and comments were all very positive.

Ofsted don't, or shouldn't, ask to see planning...planning is for the teacher, not for Ofsted. There is an inspection handbook, google it, that will tell you what they are looking at. The inspector will have talked to the head today and may well have said what the key lines of enquiry will be based on available data on the DfE website, or they may wait until tomorrow or say what the lines of enquiry will be. They may well have asked for the school to send them the SIP and the SEF. They will have looked in detail at the website before they arrive. The whole process is stressful, however well prepared you are.

Depends really. DC primary school had a day added to their inspection, Ofsted put on a meeting for parents to attend and even rang parents who couldn't attend (parent feedback was ahem not favourable on the questionnaires). This was the full inspection after an Inadequate 18 months previously. I thought this may mean Ofsted had seen issues with management but when the report came out it was in fact quite the opposite. Overall went up to RI with management getting graded Good.

The staff car park will be full by 7am.

Ofsted have recently changed what they look for, they aren't bothered about excessive planning like they previously were, but just want to see a teacher promoting good progress

The headteacher should have all documents showing whats happening in lessons and outcomes and the obs in lessons should just be to reinforce that

The children might get asked a few questions too about the school, how safe they feel etc

Ofsted are trying to make it less stressful but they aren't being very successful at it. People still stress out and get worked up over it but in terms of your child they shouldn't see too much of a difference. Maybe just teachers being a bit stricter and more "active" in their lesson activities

My opinion.

In a good, confident, school, you shouldn't see anything much different, as the school will know it does a good job day in day out.

In a poor, unconfident school, then you may find things are more different as they pull out all the stops to impress.

Either way the teachers will be stressed though.

Ofsted might not ask to see planning, but for some schools it is policy to leave a copy out for the inspector to see. We have a 'grab pack' that we put out. The last time we were inspected, they were only suposed to stay for 20 minutes for each observation. My inspector stayed for the full hour as she didnt believe I could possibly deliver everything I'd planned.

You shouldn't notice massive differences as the school should always be running in way they see best for the children they have.

Ofsted will be in an area and do a few schools at a time, they were around our local area in July and inspected 5 schools over a 2 week period in our LEA. The local paper has been having a bit of a field day with the results.

pre ofsted they had HMI, and they just turned up.

if you were lucky a kid was dispatched to warn teachers.

Why would it matter if we could somehow find out which school it was (which we can't)? It wouldn't tell us which parent you were.