Does anyone know how often OFSTED reports are done?

[NotEnoughTime]

The school my son has been allocated had its last OFSTED report in July 2008 and I wondered when the next one is due?

Thanks in advance for any info/help.

What did it get last time? 'Outstanding' schools get longer between inspections than satisfactory or failing schools.

Our last one was in 2006 but we were 'outstanding' and think this means they leave you alone for longer!

The norm is I think 3 years for satisfactory, good or outstanding schools; below that more regular, with useful little mini-inspections too.

Oustanding schools are no longer subject to regular inspection; changed last year I think.

It got "good".

Thanks for replies so far.

We've just had a letter (as have many 'good' school around here) that Ofsted won't be visiting until at least summer 2012. This surprised us as our on-line data does not look 'good'!

Methinks Ofsted are mopping up unsatisfactory and failing schools locally in preparation for the new guidelines next January, when the goalposts will be moved yet again.

Whilst I fundamentally disagree with OFSTED and their practices I am a bit shocked to read that outstanding schools are subject to different rules - so much can change in a school in so little time.

From what I can see of schools around here the inspection regime has toughened up too. Three 'outstanding' schools just scraped 'satisfactory' on an inspection 4 years after the last one. So it may go down from 'good' but if that's the general trend then not much may have changed.

So that's an inexpert view. Is the toughening of Ofsted a fact or just anecdotal? Any experts?

Ofsted changed frameworks during the last academic year and toughened up, this is documented on their website.

I am CoG at a school graded Good in May 2008 and we've just been visited again.

The school DC goes to is "good". We just had a letter saying that inspection is postponed until at least July 2012 I think, as long as nothing comes to their notice to suggest an inspection should happen sooner. The letter was from Ofsted saying that they had looked at various aspects of the school (although not sure whether they visited at all) to form their conclusions.

This school was inspected in 2008 I think (before we moved here).

The schools I looked at for DS were all satisfactory and had a 3yr gap between inspections.

Our school last got an oftsed inspection in Sept 2006 - it had moved from being a Satisfactory school to a "Good" school- since then it's "good" Head has moved on and we have been through 4 new Head Teachers.

In June we got a letter to say they weren't interested in assessing it for at least another year because the SATs results seem fine (we are in a middle class area - parents get a tutor if they suspect their child will do badly in the SATs) and since Ofsted has had no direct complaints to them, there is apparently nothing to worry about.....nothing has changed in this school for 8 years (since my first dc started - not even the points that Ofsted raised in their last report, nothing changes because we do things the way we always did. They seem to do the very minimum they can get by - the school is losing it's way, teachers seem to lack enthusiasm - in the morning when you see them - the look on there faces say - "not a another bloody day with this lot"....leadership is poor, Head lacks confidence....teachers lack drive and seem bored and every year it gets worse, it's hard to pinpoint but the atmosphere is getting more and more depressing, it's not that I am particularly in awe of Ofsted, but someone needs to put a rocket up the school's arse - and I had hoped an Ofsted inspection would have shocked them into line, maybe next year....thankfully my dd is in year 6.

Can you ask for one jengajane as a parent...

Don't know - thankfully we're off at the end of this year anyway... but I was rather disappointed last year when I received the note from Ofsted - it made me laugh that they though the school was fine. Ofsted suggest that if you have any concerns you should go to the Head - then the Governors and only after that approach Ofsted. I did go to one Head but her response was complete denial - I was put off and just decided to sit tight - it's all low level I guess - nothing shocking but just a gradual decline in energy - expectations of an interestingly presented curriculum are very low...and lots of parents seem to accept it, even though privately they'll acknowledge that the school isn't great at engaging the kids - they seem to put a huge store by the SATs results and lots don't seem aware of the extent to which kids practice test papers in both Year 5 and Year 6.