Ofsted isn’t in many people’s good books right now, and I totally get it.
There is much that can be improved about all aspects of inspections and as we’ve tragically seen, the pressures involved can be intolerable.
Given the criticisms and the stress, many heads, Trust leads and CEOs I know are working to get schools to good and stay there.
Understandable. And Ofsted inspections is just one of the myriad of issues you’re facing every day.
So, is an ‘outstanding’ rating even worth it?
Here’s the thing…
I think it is worth it… and this is why.
For over a decade I’ve walked into scores of schools that had been rated as ‘outstanding’ within the previous 12 months.
In that time I’ve also walked into and worked in hundreds of ‘good’ and ‘RI’ schools; primary, secondary, specialist and independent.
I chose which ‘outstanding’ schools I visited carefully. I purposely went into schools that had challenging demographics, that had the ‘cards against them’ as it were. I thought, if they can do it, what can the rest of us learn from them?
I was sceptical. Were these schools really better than the many ‘good’ schools I was walking into?
The answer? Yes! I was blown away! These schools were providing a stunning level of education that was above and beyond what I was seeing in other schools.
They are happier schools.
Staff well-being is the best I’ve seen.
Behaviour is gorgeous.
Learning is incredible – so much so I often wondered if I could go to their school and learn now!
The things these schools were doing with their curriculum is, interestingly, how the Ofsted framework has evolved (I think the framework keeps up with outstanding schools, not the other way around).
The curriculum was broad, deep and enriching.
The schools I visited had much deprivation within their communities. Yet I encountered parents and carers who had great pride in their outstanding school, even if their own experience of school wasn’t great; the school had really brought them onboard.
Almost all of these schools did not set out to get an ‘outstanding’ rating, they had set about being the very best they could be – and they did that really well. That said, when the inspectors came, they knew they were that much better than ‘good’ and that they could go for the ‘outstanding’ judgement. If it was possible it would be an achievement for their team and a brighter light in their community, if not, well they’d get good this time.
A few schools I’ve met did strive deliberately for the ‘outstanding’ judgement, because they wanted to give that to their community. They felt the community needed it, to change the narrative and help remove previous beliefs about where they lived and what that meant for their children.
This week, I went to another school like this, in an area with many socio-economic challenges, and who retained their previous ‘outstanding’ when inspected again in May 2023. Between those two inspections it had grown to a whole other level, one that was incredible to see.
In the last few weeks I’m delighted that many schools I know and have supported have been judged, by Ofsted, as ‘outstanding’ or ‘good with outstanding features’. All of them have demographic challenges that would easily explain why good would be a great achievement, but none of these heads would accept that as a reason to not keep striving and learning to do better for their children.
Is ‘outstanding’ worth it? Yes, because it’s about your children. The incredible schools I’ve visited all have these three things in common:
- They set their standards higher than those of Ofsted
- They don’t accept any reason (excuse?) to stop them from reaching those standards
- They never stop learning how to do better
- Staff, pupils and parents love their school
Outstanding is not a dirty word; it’s about excellence in schools. It’s a source of learning and inspiration. That doesn’t mean that the inspection process is perfect, it’s clearly not and I hear about lots of good inspections but there are always the painful clangers that make all of us frustrated. It can improve, it needs to, and it can without losing sight of the fact that it helps us find and celebrate excellence.
You are working hard, your entire school is working hard, no matter what your context, or what Ofsted says. It’s a hard, but rewarding job, fuelled by your desire to do the best for your children and community.
So let’s find excellence, real excellence, embrace it, and learn from it, because it helps us all do better. And it’s out there.
Since 2012 I’ve been proud to bring together heads who have created an outstanding school, against the odds. This year is no exception. If you’d like to meet some of these heads, hear about the challenges their schools face, and how they’ve overcome them, then join us at Moving to Outstanding 2023, which I think I might rename to ‘Outstanding against the odds’…