The Alternative Big Consultation https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/LQ7KG25

About The Alternative Big Consultation

How it all began

When we created The Alternative Big Listen in March 2024 we did so because when we completed Ofsted’s Big Listen we became aware that a number of issues were not directly included. For example, the Big Listen did not ask whether single word judgements should be abolished, did not ask whether Ofsted was fit for purpose, whether respondents believed inspections were carried out in a way that was consistent from place to place, whether schools judged as Good or Outstanding gave an accurate indication of the school’s overall quality and whether a moratorium on routine inspections should occur until a fundamental review had taken place.

We were delighted that nearly 1500 respondents made their views known through The Alternative Big Listen. We were sadly not surprised at the findings.

Very high percentages of respondents were dissatisfied with Ofsted

· 91% believed Ofsted was not fit for purpose

· 91% felt Ofsted should not use one or two word judgements for a school’s overall effectiveness

· 89% stated that Ofsted did not sufficiently consider the context of the school’s area in the judgements they make

· 90% believed inspections are not carried out in a way that is consistent from place to place

· 85% disagreed that the number of schools graded Good or Outstanding gave a strong indication of the overall quality of the schools’ system.

· 83% believed that there should be a moratorium on routine inspections (but not all) until a fundamental review has taken place

When Ofsted published the findings of the Big Listen in July 2024, it confirmed many of the weaknesses highlighted in The Alternative Big Listen but significantly it did not reveal the proportion of all responses, so it was rather selective in its approach. This was in complete contrast to The Alternative Big Listen.

Ofsted also published the findings of the Gilbert Learning Review which it commissioned in April 2024. The Gilbert Review made 14 recommendations. Ofsted fully accepted 11 of them. Her review explained how the tragic events surrounding Ruth Perry’s death ‘shone a light on a climate of fear and frustration around school inspection, which had been building for years. This climate had the consequence of weakening trust in Ofsted, which was increasingly seen by many as defensive and unwilling to respond constructively to criticism. It also had an impact on leader and staff well-being in schools and thereby contributed to the recruitment and retention crisis evident across the sector.’ The Education Select Committee also produced a highly critical report in January 2024 which indicated ‘that Ofsted has lost trust and credibility among many in the teaching profession’.

All of these events led those involved in receiving and delivering Ofsted inspections to believe that a radical review of its approaches would become clear when it published its proposals for a new inspection framework, including the soon to be introduced Report Cards. On 3 February 2025, Ofsted announced a 12 week consultation on its proposals. It is fair to say that these have not been universally welcomed.

When we established The Alternative Big Listen we did so because we were not confident Ofsted would report without fear or favour and would most likely try to obfuscate and show themselves off in the best possible light. We believe our suspicion was justified. This is why we have decided to create a survey that will run alongside the one created by the inspectorate. The Alternative Big Consultation will ask the same questions but will also ask whether Ofsted is fit for purpose.

We are disappointed that Ofsted has presented just one model of inspection and with a tight deadline it feels to us that it is a ‘take it or leave it’ strategy. Our survey will allow respondents to consider alternatives which we will share in our final report but will make clear that a final decision needs to be made by the inspectorate. We do not believe the inspectorate has sought alternatives drawn from other countries or from within the UK. If they have, they have been poor in sharing this work and explaining why it deemed these approaches to be inappropriate for England.

As advocates for inspection, we want to be constructive and believe it is possible to have rigour and robust evaluation of public services while maintaining high levels of respect, appreciation and understanding. We had hoped to see a more collaborative and less confrontational approach being proposed to redress the balance of power/control which currently rests far too heavily with Ofsted.

There are many ways to inspect, and we want to show that it is possible to create a system better fit for purpose. However, this will take a little while and we will need the help of those who inspect and those who are inspected. We will continue our pursuit of a fairer, more trustworthy and respected inspection process.

We want to encourage everyone to respond to our survey which can be found here

https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/LQ7KG25

In addition, we encourage everyone to engage with Ofsted’s survey which can be found here https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/improving-the-way-ofsted-inspects-education/improving-the-way-ofsted-inspects-education-consultation-document

The closing date for the Alternative Big Consultation is 4th April 2025

Press Release: The Alternative Big Listen

REPORT PUBLICATION PRESS RELEASE

DAMNING SURVEY REVEALS SCHOOLS HAVE COMPLETELY LOST TRUST IN OFSTED

The education sector has completely lost trust in Ofsted according to a damning report, published today (12 July), based on the results of a survey set up by two former government inspectors who wanted to give anyone involved in schools a voice.

Professor Colin Richards and Frank Norris MBE, both former senior HMI, created the Alternative Big Listen (ABL) as a means of gathering responses to the questions Ofsted had not asked in its formal consultation on its future. However, they did not foresee the extent to which the almost 1,500 participants would be completely disillusioned with the inspectorate regime.

The results of the ABL show that Sir Martyn Oliver, His Majesty's Chief Inspector at the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills (HMCI) and Bridget Philipson, MP, the new Secretary of State for Education, have a major job to restore the profession’s faith in Ofsted.

The headlines from the ABL are stark with nine out of 10 respondents stating:

• Ofsted is no longer fit for purpose;

• Simplistic one or two word judgments should not be used to characterise the overall effectiveness of a school;

• Inspectors do not sufficiently consider the context of a school’s local area in the judgements they make;

• There should be moratorium on routine (not all) inspections until a fundamental review has taken place.

Prof Colin Richards said: “The findings from the ABL reveal Ofsted has lost very significant levels of trust and confidence from the schools’ sector and suggest that fundamental, not piece-meal, change, is required to craft an inspection system fit for purpose in the second quarter of the twenty-first century. This is urgent given the parlous state of relations, indicated by the ABL survey, between Ofsted and schools.

“As an inspectorate, Ofsted relies heavily on the engagement and goodwill of those it inspects. The judgements made by Ofsted’s inspectors can have lasting positive and negative impacts on the institutions, services and individuals it evaluates. Much of this work is crucially important and tellingly very few of the survey’s respondents argue that

school inspection itself should be scrapped.

Frank Norris MBE said: “The ABL offers a damning critique of Ofsted and clearly demonstrates the amount of work the inspectorate needs to do in order to re-establish confidence in the process. Any pollster would say that to find nine out of ten respondents agreeing on a particular subject is unusual so it is significant that on all the key fundamental issues the ABL, found 90 per cent of participants concur.

“Many want to see radical improvements to ensure inspection is more collaborative and responsive to the context in which schools work. They demand from Ofsted more openness and willingness to accept weaknesses and even failings; they feel that a heavy dose of humility is required. Many believe Ofsted has lost its way and is no longer a reliable source of information on the effectiveness of the schools it inspects. It is

encouraging that the new Government is committed to reform of the inspectorate. These findings indicate they are right to do so.”

The full report can be found at www.thealternativebiglisten.co.uk

Survey Administrators

Frank Norris

Frank Norris was a Headteacher in Trafford and Cheshire. He was appointed HMI in 2001 and in 2004, led the introduction of HMI as front-line school inspectors and developed detailed grade descriptors to support more consistent judgement-making. In 2005 he was a key figure in the introduction of short inspections and the development of the online self-evaluation form.

He was appointed as a senior Ofsted manager responsible for local authority inspections and in 2009, was promoted to Divisional Manager for Education and Care leading the development of the two school inspection frameworks that were introduced in 2012. He was appointed senior school improvement adviser for Stockport MBC in September 2012. In 2013 he became the Coop Group's Education Director and in 2014 was appointed CEO of the Co-op Academies Trust. In September 2019, Frank stood down from the CEO role and became the Co-op’s adviser on education and school matters. He was awarded an MBE in the summer of 2019 for his services to education. He was the Northern Powerhouse Partnership's adviser on education and skills between 2019 and 2025. He is currently a trustee and chair of finance at the Great Academies and Education Trust and Vice Chair of the Liverpool Education Board. He was the independent chair of the Blackpool Education Improvement Board between 2020 and 2004 and chair of the Priority Education Investment Area Board up to November 2023. He is on the advisory Board of InnovateHer, a not-for-profit organisation committed to ensuring more women play an active and senior role in digital and tech companies. in their communities and beyond.

Colin Richards

Since resigning from Ofsted after a very public dispute with its chief inspector, Colin Richards has been Honorary Professor at the University of Warwick, Visiting Professor at the Universities of Leicester and Newcastle and is currently Emeritus Professor of Education at the University of Cumbria.

Following a career in primary and university teacher education he was the first person to be seconded to Her Majesty’s Inspectorate in 1980. From 1983 to 1996 as an HMI he specialised in primary education and teacher education and held the post of Staff Inspector (Curriculum 5-16) followed by that of Staff Inspector (Primary Education) and Ofsted’s Specialist Adviser for Primary Education.

Since leaving Ofsted he has maintained a keen but critical interest in the issues of standards, primary and secondary education, the school curriculum, governance and inspection.. He has been chair of governors of a Cumbrian secondary school which has voted twice not to seek academy status and he has been a National Leader of Governance. He is also a member of the New Visions in Education Group and tweets as @colinsparkbridg

As a critic of much (though not all) of past and present government education policy he is a frequent contributor to the national press (in particular to the Guardian, the Observer, the Independent, the New Statesman, the Times Educational Supplement and Schools Week). He treasures the epithet “an old-fashioned HMI” bestowed on him by a former chief inspector of schools who meant it as a damning criticism!

These surveys are administered by Prof Colin Richards and Frank Norris MBE using a survey system provided by a third party, SurveyMonkey.

Participation in the survey is voluntary and anonymous.

As the survey was anonymous, we were not able to remove responses once submitted it but we did redact any names that were referenced in the comment boxes.

The information provided in these surveys will only be used for consultation and research to help better understand how well Ofsted is working and how it might improve. If you have any questions please contact Dave Smith at dave-smith55@hotmail.co.uk