“We support the principle of report cards and broadly agree with Ofsted’s proposals on the areas to be evaluated. However, we have serious concerns about the proposed five-point grading scale. Ofsted’s plan to introduce ‘strong’ and ‘exemplary’ ratings effectively suggests that being ‘secure’ is not good enough.
“This approach risks intensifying the pressure on education staff at a time when workload pressures are high, wellbeing is often poor, and teacher shortages are widespread. Furthermore, it is difficult to see how inspectors could reliably make so many finely balanced judgements across multiple areas in a single inspection.
“We doubt that parents would support a system which worsens teacher shortages and is at significant risk of being unreliable and inconsistent.
“A more effective and sustainable approach would be a three-point grading scale – of either ‘secure’, ‘attention needed’ or ‘causing concern’ – with an area in inspection reports to highlight exceptional practice.
“This would provide parents with clear and reliable information while avoiding unnecessary harm to the wellbeing of the education workforce.”