Martyn Oliver's speech at the ASCL Annual Conference
Source: gov.uk (2025-03-14)

Sir Martyn Oliver, Ofsted’s Chief Inspector, spoke at the 2025 Association of School and College Leaders (ASCL) Annual Conference in Liverpool.

Hello, and thank you so much for inviting me back to speak to you again.

You may recall that I gave my first major speech as Chief Inspector here last year.

It’s also great to be back as ASCL was my union for nearly 2 decades prior to taking on this role.

Last year, I told you that I wanted “Ofsted to be a modern, world-class inspectorate and regulator – fit for purpose and also trusted by parents, by children and by you, the sectors we work with”.

And I told you that I needed your help to do that.

And that has not changed. I still have incredibly high ambitions for Ofsted, and I still need your help.

But it has been a whirlwind year, and a lot has changed.

The Big Listen, which I launched at last year’s conference, heard from tens of thousands of people, including many of you.

We heard your voices, we responded in full, and we are acting.

We’ve had a change in government since I last stood on this stage. And that too has brought changes, not least the abolition of the overall effectiveness grades and the expected reforms in the Children’s Wellbeing and Schools Bill.

And we’ve made changes where we can:
- we’ve brought in mental health awareness training
- we reformed how we handle complaints
- we developed our inspection pausing policy
- we dropped deep dives in ungraded inspections
- we’ve launched the Ofsted Academy
- we’ve established external reference groups to offer independent advice and challenge
- and many more changes
These changes are important, and I know they have made a real difference to you.

ASCL and some of you individually have been kind enough to share some really positive feedback about these changes and how these have impacted your work.

But they have often been changes made to tackle specific challenges or issues.

Which is why we are now consulting on a whole new approach to inspection.

This will build on those things that were already working well, and on the interim reforms we have made, and of course on everything we heard in the Big Listen (https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/ofsted-big-listen).

I hope it too will make a real positive difference to all of you. But, as before, I need your help.

And while the consultation, by the nature of such an exercise, mostly talks about the details of the framework, it is the methodology of inspection which will make the biggest impact.

Which will build on the improvements you’ve seen in the last year.

And which will ultimately reduce the pressure I know that you feel.

New approach

I have heard from some of you already. I know some of you have concerns about what we’re proposing. But I also know some of you are really positive about the changes.

All I ask is that you give it proper consideration and take part in the consultation.

I know that might be a big ask. I’ve been a deputy head, a head, and a MAT leader. I know how busy you are.

But it’s really important that we hear from serving practitioners like you. People who are out there every day, doing the real and vital work of educating children.

I hope that you will find that what we’re proposing is helpful, supportive, and intuitive.

That it will reduce pressure on you, improve the information we give to families and to government, and support you to drive ever higher standards for children.

But I’m sure you will also see things that we haven’t. Things that we may have missed or that could be clearer or stronger, or tighter or firmer.

So please take part. Make sure we get an accountability system that is better for you, better for parents, and most importantly better for children.

Because I know we can all agree that must be our top priority. We’re all on the same side, and all working towards the same goal. We all work for children.

Report cards

Perhaps understandably, our proposed report cards have gained a lot of the media attention so far.

Much of the discussion has been encouraging. We’ve had thoughtful contributions. We’ve had support and we’ve had suggestions for improvements.

I was particularly gratified by the support we had from parents. Schools Week commissioned a poll which told us that nearly two thirds of parents prefer this new approach and over 80% said they found it easy to understand.

But we have also heard a small number of rather surprising responses. Responses seemingly built on a misunderstanding of what report cards are.

So, I do want to be clear here today.

Report cards are not and never were going to bring about the end of grading.

They are not and never were going to sacrifice the much needed clarity for parents.

And they are not and never were going to be about less accountability.

You know, and I know, that we need a way of reporting that is reliable, clear and accessible.

That informs government, that informs parents, and that helps you in your efforts to always do better for children.

I believe our proposed report cards will do that. They will bring about better, more helpful, more nuanced, more detailed, and more precise accountability. They are about recognising strengths and being honest about weaknesses.

Anyone who thought that report cards were going to be an end to assessment was mistaken. And they weren’t paying close enough attention to what parents want, what politicians promised, and what children deserve.

They only get one childhood, one chance. Making sure we are getting it right, and striving for better every day, is not just important, it is absolutely vital.

I’m sorry if that’s blunt. But I don’t believe in dodging the difficult.

I hope what I’ve said is obvious to you, as it is to most people.

But the most vocal critics of the proposed reforms seem to be under the misapprehension that a new low-accountability system is possible.

It isn’t.

Ofsted will always put children and their parents first – just as you all do, every day of your careers.

We can, however, move from low-quality information and high-stakes inspection to a much richer, more nuanced set of information and sensible, supportive and proportionate accountability.

I am delighted that the DfE has put out their consultation on accountability alongside our consultation – please do look at both, and if possible, complete, both.

Our proposed grades

If we can agree on that, then I hope you will also be able to see what we are trying to achieve with our proposed report cards.

Of course, our top priority has to be giving parents and families the information they need in a clear and accessible way.

That’s not a nice-to-have for them, it’s a must have.

But I also believe we have designed them in a way that will help you.

First and foremost, they are truly the end of the blunt overall effectiveness grades. Because they were not working. They hid strengths and weaknesses alike.

So, we are proposing that we will instead grade and report on a wide range of evaluation areas. And we are proposing 5 new grades.

There will be ‘causing concern’ for when something just isn’t good enough.

There will be ‘attention needed’ when something needs focus from you.

There will be ‘secure’, for where you are performing well and consistently.

There will be ‘strong’, for where you are exceeding expectations.

And there will be ‘exemplary’ for the truly exceptional practice worthy of being highlighted as something for others to learn from.

I know there are some who want a system without grades. But Ofsted is not there to just divide schools into those who are meeting a minimum set of standards and those who aren’t.

That wouldn’t be right, and that wouldn’t be fair.

I know this because I have worked in schools at all levels and all grades. Some of the best and some of the worst schools in the country. And none of them would have been served by a met/not met system.

Even the weakest had strengths worth noting. And even the strongest had things that I know that they needed to work on.

Our proposed system recognises this complexity. It recognises that you can be doing great work and still have things to improve. And it recognises that you can need to improve and still have things worth celebrating.

The alternative, that wouldn’t be fair.

It wouldn’t be fair to those who fall below the line. Their strengths would be hidden or ignored. And they wouldn’t get the detailed feedback and subsequent support that they need.

And it wouldn’t be fair to those above the line either. They deserve more than a tick in a box. They deserve to have the things they do well celebrated and perhaps even held up for others to learn from.

But they also shouldn’t miss out on the benefit of an independent and expert viewpoint on what they could work on to be even better.

It especially wouldn’t be fair to those on the edge. Imagine the pressure of a pass or fail distinction for them. For me, that doesn’t bear thinking about.

And of course, it wouldn’t be fair to parents. They told us in the Big Listen, incredibly clearly, that they want a broad evaluative approach with clear reporting on what their child’s school is doing well and what it needs to work on.

‘This school is good enough’ is not something any parent wants to hear. I know it’s not something any of you would want to tell your communities either.

I know you would much rather celebrate your successes with them and bring them with you on your improvement journeys.

We see daily examples of people celebrating their grades, grateful that their hard work has been recognised. I would never want to lose that side of what we do.

Our proposed evaluation areas

So, we will grade. And we will grade on a range of evaluation areas, allowing for more detail and nuance than the current 4 or 5 sub-judgements.

We’re proposing to evaluate many of the areas that you at ASCL suggested in your Blueprint for a Fairer Education System.

You suggested a ‘balanced scorecard’ with measures including ‘pupil outcomes’, ‘curriculum provision’, ‘staff development’, and ‘inclusion.’ That is exactly what we are proposing.

I’m particularly proud that we are proposing an evaluation area for inclusion, and that we’re threading inclusion through all other areas.

As I said at this conference last year, and regularly since: “If you get it right for the most disadvantaged, you get it right for everyone.”

Our proposals will put that sentiment at the heart of everything we do.

Because there’s so much to applaud about England’s schools. About the work you all do every single day. But we have to recognise that there continue to be some children for whom it doesn’t work.

Some who are the most disadvantaged and most vulnerable. Some children with SEND. Some children who don’t feel like they belong in our schools.

We are ahead of many countries in many ways, but until we make sure that high performance delivers for every child, there will still be work to do.

I hope our proposals around inclusion will accelerate these efforts for those who need our help the most.

So, we are proposing to report on inclusion, and on curriculum. On achievement and on developing teaching. On a full range of areas covering all of your work.

And I believe that this approach will allow you, and parents, to really see the detail of what you’re doing well, where you can improve, and perhaps, where your practice is truly exceptional.

By breaking down what we’ve seen into more areas and a broader spectrum of grades, we can be more positive about the great things you’re doing, and clearer about anything that might need work or support.

Context and consistency

Of course, the proposals are not just about how we report. That’s just one part of the proposed new approach.

And as I’ve said, I believe this approach will reduce pressure on you, as well as better inform parents and drive ever higher standards.

A big part of that is by doing far more to take your context into account. We know that your schools don’t operate in bubbles.

You will all have a unique set of challenges and opportunities based on the community you serve, on local economic factors, on access to services, on the availability of high-quality staff, and on hundreds of other things.

We will recognise that and what you have been able to achieve in spite of or because of those factors.

What’s more, you will be both reliant on and benefit from the relationships that you have. Relationships with other schools, with nurseries, with local authorities, with trusts, with alternative provision, and with many other agencies and contractors.

Some of these will be positive and productive, some maybe less so. Again, we will recognise that, we will consider it as part of your context, and place accountability where it truly lies.

ASCL’s Blueprint for a Fairer Education System called for an “accountability system [that] recognises the different contexts in which different schools and colleges operate”.

Again, that is exactly what we’re proposing.

Of course, we need to be careful in how we do this. We need to make sure we don’t lower standards for the most disadvantaged.

And we need to balance context with consistency. We know we can and must do more to maintain consistency.

But that cannot be through a tick box system that serves nobody. We need consistency in a way that also understands your individuality.

Consistency does not mean an identical approach to every type of provider in every corner of the country. That too would serve nobody.

I believe that what we are proposing strikes the right balance. It acknowledges and celebrates the rich variety of education in England.

It tailors our approach both to what sort of provision you offer, but also the circumstances in which you are doing that.

But it will also deliver a reliable and consistent approach that you, that government, and that parents can have faith in.

But again, we will need your help, through the consultation.

Transparency

A big part of how we are proposing to do this is by being more transparent in everything that we do. That starts by being clearer about when we announce an inspection and the type of inspection you will receive.

Routine notification calls will all continue to be made on Mondays, and there will now be only a single type of inspection.

But transparency also extends to what we will look at on inspection.

We are proposing new toolkits that clearly set out the standards for every grade in every evaluation area. These are bespoke to each type of education, so there’s one tailored to schools like you.

I hope, by spelling out in more detail what each standard entails, we will remove any mystery or guesswork on your part.

You should be able to read and understand each standard in exactly the same way as my inspectors.

We want inspection to be a collaborative dialogue on an equal footing. We want you and our inspectors to be able to openly discuss where you are and where you’re heading.

And we want to do that with a shared conception of what high-quality provision looks like.

But please be reassured that we will not be going through everything line-by-line or ticking things off one-by-one.

Once our inspectors are assured that you’re meeting a secure standard, they will let you know and move on.

Please also be reassured, that nothing in these standards should be a surprise or require extra work from you.

I don’t want you to be doing anything ‘for Ofsted’.

We have based them firmly around the existing professional standards and expectations that you are already working to. The statutory and non-statutory guidance that underpins your work. The professional standards you qualified at.

I hope that you will find nothing in there that you are not already doing, or at least aspire to be doing.

Or to put it another way, I hope there’s nothing in there that you would just stop doing if we didn’t exist.

More supportive

We also want to do more to support improvement where it is needed, and work with you to deliver it.

A big part of this will be through quicker and more iterative monitoring visits.

If something needs attention, we will come back more quickly to check on progress and make sure you aren’t stuck with a grade that no longer reflects your school.

I know the thought of inspectors coming back might be the last thing you want after an inspection, but I also know how helpful monitoring visits can be.

I had several when I was running schools. Ofsted came with support and expertise, to make sure we had a realistic, precise and ambitious improvement plan and to check our progress.

Because ultimately, we were all there for the same reason – to make sure we did the best for children, as quickly as we could.

That is the spirit in which these visits will operate. Collaborative and open discussions about the progress you’re making, and any work still to do.

We always want to improve

Just as we want to help you improve, we want your help to improve too.

We are already testing the proposed approach, identifying what works, and learning lessons.

And we are already hearing feedback from those tests.

I’m happy to hear both inspectors and leaders report that they found the new approach to be more flexible and more collaborative. And that we are able to get a better understanding of the school, while being less disruptive to you, your teachers, and your children.

But we are also hearing that we have more to do on defining the differences between grades, particularly between secure and strong, so that work has begun too.

This testing will continue, as will our work to resolve problems and improve the proposals.

I want to give a big thank you to everyone who volunteered to help with these tests, including your president, past president, and some of you in the audience.

But we also need all of your help. So please take part in the consultation (https://www.gov.uk/government/consultations/improving-the-way-ofsted-inspects-education) before it closes on 28th April.

This is a genuine chance to help develop the best approach to inspection for you, for families, and for children.

Please don’t miss that chance.

I don’t expect you to like absolutely everything we’re proposing.

No accountability system can be perfect for all those it inspects and those it serves.

Sometimes we have to balance what might be preferable for you against what is crucial for children and families.

But I believe we are close to a system that reduces the pressure on you, improves the reporting we give to families, and focuses on what really matters to drive higher standards for every child.

And with your help, I think we can get there.

So, if you think something could be improved, please let us know.

If you think we are missing something or need to go further, tell us.

Perhaps you think you could help us even more by becoming an Ofsted Inspector and being a part of this new approach? Do it!

But whatever you do, don’t just stand by. Take part.

Thank you.