The fight back against OFSTED has begun - support needed

[wantmorenow]

Just saw this and it seems genuine and if so then bloody marvellous. Let's hope this is the rallying call to changes with immediate effect. This has been posted today. A Headteacher has refused access to Ofsted tomorrow, I assume in the wake of the coverage of Ruth Perry's death.

www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/4765105-ofsted-needs-to-be-abolished-trigger-warning?page=1

www.mumsnet.com/talk/am_i_being_unreasonable/4765712-ofsted-needs-to-be-abolished-further-details

twitter.com/FloraSCooper/status/1637760884243066881

I've just had the call.
I've refused entry.
This is an interesting phone call.
Doing this for everyone for our school staff everywhere!

School asking for support in person tomorrow 8am if local.

What “information” @LlynTegid

Which school is this? Couldn't work it out from Twitter.

From a little bit of digging she's only been the excecitive head since September 2022. I get ofstead are rubbish what I wonder what her reasons are for blocking.

Also from a safeguarding children's POV. This is gaining traction and she's published the whereabouts of the school on social media. Massive no. If I saw the head done this at my DS school I would be furious.

Bloody hell, she publicly admits on her Twitter that she doesn't know what she's doing regarding not letting them in. Stupid woman. If you want to campaign, do it properly, plan it, raise support. Knee jerk reactions and calls for tue non t

• crowds to turn up at school does not help teachers or children.

Can someone please explain why Ofsted is a bad thing?

Why is it bad that worse schools (unsafe, not working in the childrens' best interests, messy, poor food etc) are called out for being worse schools?

Preach.

It is a micro-managed mess. And micro-managed by ministers who are not educationalists and who do not listen to educationalists.

Inspection? - fine, let's do this. Bur let's have a system of inspection that is coupled with constructive support if problems are found.

Christ it's an infant and nursery as well - little kids. Potentially very frightening for them if large crowds turn up.

Really hope that more school leaders take the same stance to bring about reform in the inspection process.

It doesn't have to be like this, fear, panic, sleepless nights and now a suicide.

It is all to much linked to the political intent of academisation. Judged inadequate, trust take over ( if one can be found) HT out. Career ending, minimum.

It'd just all so sad. What is the answer to our children getting a good, decent education that has good resources and support for all children be that academically or mentally.

Like Ruth Perry’s school, it’s in Berkshire.

As I keep saying - ad nauseam! - inspection is fine; but it must be coupled with constructive support. The reason it isn't is that LA Education departments are dwindling away through lack of funding, some of their functions having been handed to unelected, untrained academy trustees.

Why can't headteachers take the decision to let ofsted in, whilst supporting their staff not to do anything differently and not to get so stressed about the inspections?

I appreciate its difficult if you have a head who isn't supportive but if you do, why not just lead by example and crack on? The head and teaching staff can explain their approach to parents/governors - that their efforts remain focused on giving the children the best education and not jumping through ofsted hoops. I'm sure most parents, me included, would support that and it would be less drama for all? Teachers unions could also do more to encourage and support this approach for teachers mental health.

Schools and teachers do need oversight, don't throw the baby out with the bathwater!

Schools having regular checks? Fine. I'm for that both as a teacher (retired), patent and grandparent.

It's HOW OFSTED carried out inspections that's the issue. Very little of what they demand (and the huge range and minutiae of it) related to what children and parents are looking for from the school and its staff.

The OFSTED system is punitive, not supportive. It's not about helping schools improve, it's about damning them. And there's a huge political background around wanting them to fail, so that the government can turn them all into academies and get rid of local government control over them.

@cupofdecaf if you click on her twitter handle, her first tweet that appears gives the name of the school.

Teaching is in crisis, but not because of most of the things you have posted, especially the phonics part - a load of tosh which has no basis in fact and disregards study after study that shows the opposite without any doubt whatsoever.

schoolsweek.co.uk/head-plans-to-refuse-ofsted-inspectors-entry-following-ruth-perry-death/

Brave, brave lady.

Can you give me an example? Genuinely asking as I don't work in teaching so have no idea what goes on behind the scenes. But I've always downloaded my childrens' Ofsted reports and can't see what's wrong with how they're put together.

I completely agree.

I don't think Ofsted will tell me anything I dont already know.
I agree. Ofsted isn't fit for purpose and their ratings are more or less meaningless. At the same time they cause immeasurable stress for school staff

...and not jumping through ofsted hoops.

@movintothecountry that would result in an inadequate grade in all areas.

I'm afraid you're being very naive. I don't blame you because if you're not working in the school system, you'll not be aware of OFSTED requirements. There's no reason that any non-teacher would be.

But genuinely, it would end up with the school failing in every area, and the government bringing in an Academy chain and undoing all the things you want as a parent.

No study ever shows a complete consensus. If you are an educator you should know this.

There are serious downsides to the phonics system of teaching - the whole Rose report was built on shaky foundations to start with and the inevitable results reveal this. Check the results - as divided by demographic - of the first strategic release.

The issues outlined above are a serious setback to many teachers. These are mainly the result of policy.

In reality, though, how is this protecting the staff? The inspection is a statutory duty so will take place one way or the other. It's just delaying the inevitable so the staff will be inspected but will now be worrying if they'll be judged even harsher.

No one enjoys being ofsteded. It's like management start to lose their minds. I don't even think it's the best way of seeing how lessons and schools operate. But I don't see how shutting inspectors out benefits anyone's mental health.

Why is OFSTED bad? Well back in the day all schools were funded, supported and worked collaboratively as part of their LEA. Expertise was shared, LEA advisors were on hand to support and guide teachers from a place of experience and with funding and time allocated for it. I remember get amazing support from my subject advisor as an NQT back in 2004.

Now this system has been pretty much dismantled and OFSTED is all stick and no support. Poor reports are punished by even more hostile measures. Academies are businesses- no more. Experienced teachers are too expensive and managed out with ruthless efficiency, bullying is rife and leaders are cutthroat in pushing their own agendas.

Garbage.