What is Ofsted and how do school inspections work?

The system of one-word Ofsted judgements for schools in England has "significant benefits" and should stay, according to the government.

It follows concerns raised by the inquest into head teacher Ruth Perry's suicide, which concluded that a critical Ofsted inspection "contributed" to her death.

What does Ofsted stand for?

Ofsted - the Office for Standards in Education, Children's Services and Skills - inspects and reports on anywhere that provides education for young people in England, including schools, nurseries and childminders.

Schools or organisations are inspected every four years or 30 months, depending on their status, and are then graded accordingly:

Many parents rely on Ofsted ratings to help them choose a school or nursery.

Ofsted also inspects some independent schools in England, while others are assessed by the Independent Schools Inspectorate.

Inspections in Wales are carried out by Estyn, in Scotland by Education Scotland, and in Northern Ireland by the Education and Training Inspectorate.

What happens during an Ofsted inspection?

During an Ofsted visit - which can last up to two days - inspectors observe lessons and talk to staff and pupils.

The school is normally notified the day before.

Schools can request to defer or cancel a visit, but only in exceptional circumstances.

Inspectors judge schools according to Ofsted's education inspection framework.

They assess:

The final report gives the school one overall grade.

What happens after an Ofsted inspection?

Schools graded good or outstanding will be reinspected after four years, but are also given recommendations on how to improve in the interim.

Any school which requires improvement will be revisited within 30 months.

Schools that are rated inadequate become sponsored academies, and are supported by another outstanding school or charity.

However, under changes introduced in June 2023, if a school is graded inadequate overall because of ineffective safeguarding, but all other judgements are good or outstanding, inspectors will return within three months to see if improvements have been made.

Can schools complain about their Ofsted rating?

Head teachers can challenge the rating their school is given.

Complaints are dealt with by a senior inspector who was not involved in the original assessment.

The way Ofsted handles the post-inspection period changed this month, with the aim of resolving complaints more quickly, and increasing transparency around decision-making.

How do critics want Ofsted inspections to change?

Ruth Perry took her own life in January 2023 after Ofsted downgraded her school

Several teaching unions want the current system of one-word grades to be replaced.

Estyn in Wales and the body which inspects Church of England schools and academies have already moved away from this approach.

The Beyond Ofsted inquiry, chaired by former Schools Minister Lord Knight and funded by the National Education Union, called for "transformational change".

After the inquest into Mrs Perry's death, senior coroner Heidi Connor issued a prevention-of-future-deaths notice (PFD), to help avoid further tragedies.

Ms Connor said she was concerned by "the almost complete absence of Ofsted training" for inspectors looking for signs of distress in school leaders.

In January, a report from the cross-party education select committee called for an end to the single-word judgements.

But the Department for Education, in its response to that report, said they gave parents an important summary of local schools and should stay.

An independent expert will also review Ofsted's response to Ms Perry's death.

Why have lots of 'outstanding' schools been downgraded?

Schools can be downgraded if they fail any one part of the inspection.

The Ofsted report for Caversham Primary School - where Mrs Perry worked - described a "welcoming and vibrant school".

But it also highlighted failings in training, record-keeping and checks on staff.

Schools that were rated good or outstanding used to be assessed every four years, but routine inspections for outstanding schools stopped in 2011, so resources could be focused on the worst-performing institutions.

However, this meant some outstanding schools might not have been visited for more than a decade.

In 2020, the government restored routine inspections to provide more up-to-date information.

There were 3,400 outstanding schools in England in 2020, and Ofsted plans to reinspect them all by summer 2025.

The latest data from Ofsted shows that of the 358 outstanding schools visited between September 2023 and December 2023:

Ofsted previously acknowledged that many schools being reassessed had experienced "significant change" since their previous visit.